Easy-Ass Bread

 Want to make some easy-ass bread? it is beyond simple and inexpensive (ingredients last a long time and have lots in them). Dutch oven is pricy but it will last you a lifetime. 

Tools:

Dutch oven: 4.5 qt, Lodge brand

Bench Scraper- not necessary but makes clean up SO easy: Kook brand

Spatula: Williams Sonoma brand

Ingredients (and measuring tools):

3 cups of bread flour- I've been told you can use regular but I opt for bread vs all-purpose. 

1 tsp Salt- can probably use any salt but for this recipe, I opt for iodized.

1/2 tsp Active Dry Yeast- this little jar will last a year or longer but it is technically only good for 4mo (according to Google).  To test if your yeast is still alive then you should take your yeast, warm water, and sugar mix them in a little bowl and wait a bit. If it gets foamy your yeast is alive and well and can be used. 

Honey Water mix:

    12oz hot water- letting the sink get as hot as possible is what I do.

    1 heaping tbsp of honey- more honey, sweeter the bread and vice versa

Mix BEFORE adding to the flour mixture.

I mix all the honey water with the flour mixture all at once (I don’t know if that is right but I do it and it works)

mix and mix until you think it is all incorporated. It will look like it needs more water- it is lying. keep mixing it until it looks like this (make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl).

Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap or cover it somehow. I believe you can use a towel to cover it too, but I have not tried. 

Let rest in a warm area for 3-4 hours.

Once proofed, the dough should look like this:

now flour a clean working surface and dump the dough ball out. Fold the bread by taking the left and right sides pulling them out and folding them in. Next, take the top and bottom and fold the dough in. What we are doing is effectively shaping the loaf into a ball. 

Pull out a square of parchment paper and plop your dough ball in the center with the seam side down.

Set oven to 450 degrees and place Dutch oven in when the oven is cold, let the Dutch oven heat gradually and get to the temp of the oven before putting the dough and parchment in it.

Once placed in the hot Dutch oven mist/spray 3ish times with water and make a cut in the center of the dough ball. You can do this with a special dough knife or use clean kitchen scissors. If you're feeling fancy sprinkle some flakey sea salt on there. go crazy, it's your world and we're just living in it. 

Cook for 30 minutes covered and then another 5 minutes uncovered.

BONUS:

Honey cinnamon butter is a yummy addition. I used a high fat butter but it would be good with any kind of butter. 

What I was listening to:

That's a Rap Playlist

That is all for now!

xoxo,

Livvydoo