5 minute artisan bread
preparing dough for storage:
warm the water slightly
it should feel just a little warmer than body temperature
warm water will rise the dough to the right point for storage in about 2 hours
with cold water it will need 3-4 hours
add the yeast to the water in a 5 quart bowl or , preferably , in a resealable , lidded plastic food container or food-grade bucket
don't worry about getting it all to dissolve
mix in the flour and salt - kneading is unnecessary
add all of the flour at once , measuring it in with dry-ingredient measuring cups , by gently scooping up the flour , then sweeping the top level with a knife or spatula
don't press down into the flour as you scoop or you'll throw off the measurement
mix with a wooden spoon , a high-capacity food processor fitted with the dough attachment , or a heavy duty stand mixer fitted with the dough hook until the mixture is uniform
if you're hand mixing and it becomes too difficult to incorporate all the flour with the spoon , you can reach into your mixing vessel with very wet hands and press the mixture together
don't knead , it isn't necessary
you're finished when everything is uniformly moist , without dry patches
it takes a few minutes , and will yield a dough that is wet and loose enough to conform to the shape of its container
allow to rise
cover with lid
allow the mixture to rise at room temperature until it begins to collapse , approx 2 hours , depending on room temperature , and initial water temperature longer rising times , up to 5 hours , won't harm the result
you can use a portion of the dough any time after this period
fully refrigerated dough is less sticky and easier to work with than dough at room temperature
on baking day:
prepare your loaf tin , tray , or whatever you're baking it in / on
sprinkle the surface of your refrigerated dough with four
pull up and cut of a grapefruit-size piece of dough , using a serrated knife
hold the mass of dough in your hands and add a little more flour as needed so it won't stick to your hands
gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all 4 sides , rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go
most of the dusting flour will fall off - that's fine , it isn't meant to be incorporated
the bottom of the loaf may appear to be a collection of bunched ends , but it will sort itself out during resting and baking
the correctly shaped final product will be smooth and cohesive
the entire process should take no more than 30 - 60 seconds
rest the loaf and let it rise in the form , on the tray / pizza peel , for about 40 minutes depending on the age of the dough , you may not see much rise during this period
that's fine , more rising will occur during baking
twenty minutes before baking , preheat the oven to 450f place an empty broiler tray for holding water on any other shelf that won't interfere with the rising bread
dust and slash
dust the top of the loaf liberally with flour , which will allow the slashing knife to pass without sticking
slash a quarter inch deep cross , diagonal lines , or tic-tac-toe pattern on top using a serrated knife
after a 20 min preheat you're ready to bake , even though the oven thermometer won't be at full temperature yet
put your loaf in the oven
pour about 1 cup of hot water into the broiler tray and close the oven to trap the steam
bake for about 30 minutes , or until the crust is nicely browned and firm to the touch
store the rest of the dough in the fridge in your lidded container and use it over the next 14 days
the flavour and texture improves , becoming like sourdough
even 24 hours of storage improves the flavour
this is the standard bread
there are loads of variations - both savory and sweet - in the book