Description
Homemade Fresh Bread Made Easy!
This Artisan-Bakery Style Bread recipe is as simple as it gets! Made with basic pantry ingredients, this homemade fresh bread made easy requires no eggs, milk, or butter. The dough is easy to prepare, so you can enjoy fresh bread the same day!
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 1/2 cups Water
- 2 3/4 Teaspoons Bread Machine Instant Yeast
- 2 Teaspoons Granulated Sugar
- 2 Teaspoons Salt
- 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 cups + 3 tablespoons Flour
Instructions
- In a stand mixer or by hand, whisk flour, yeast, sugar, salt, and oil together. While mixing, heat your water to 105°-115° degrees in the microwave.
- Gradually add your water and pour water into four portions while mixing the dough. Scrape the extra flour from the sides of your mixing bowl and allow it to mix for 8 minutes until your dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Dough should be slightly sticky, smooth, and elastic. Form the dough into a ball and place it into an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap for 3-4 hours to ferment.
- Preheat your oven to 450° degrees. Gently grab the dough from both sides of the bowl and fold it over, making your way around with the same motion. Once the dough is detached from the sides of the bowl, transfer it to a floured surface. Continue to lightly flour your dough as you stretch and fold. Grab the sides of the dough, lift it, and fold it under. Turn the dough 90 degrees and fold again. Then, grab the dough from one side and start rolling it inward until you reach the other side. Roll it over once more to form a ball (see the video for a demonstration of folding).
- Once formed into a ball, place and brush 2 tablespoons of olive oil into your stone pot or on parchment paper, and place the dough in the center. Add 1 teaspoon of water and 1/4 teaspoon of oil in a small bowl (saucer), then lightly brush the top of the bread. If you’d like to score your bread, this is the time to do it. Place the lid over the pot and set it in your oven. Bake for 30 minutes.
- Once baked, remove the lid using heat-resistant oven mittens and bake for another 10 minutes. Afterward, remove the bread from the stone pot using proper heat-resistant mittens and place it on a cooling rack or cutting board for 20 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
- When mixing in a stand mixer, your dough should start to pull away from the sides of the bowl. If you see the dough isn’t pulling from the sides of the bowl, add a pinch of flour until it does.
- Don’t over-flour your dough. Over-flouring your dough will create a dense texture.
- Place the dough into a well-oiled bowl and allow the dough to rest for a few hours. I usually place dough under the sun in a well-sealed, air-tight plastic wrap. Allow it to rest and do not touch while fermenting (I usually make my dough in the morning and allow it to sit all day until about 4:00 pm to start baking).
- When scoring dough, use a razor, knife, or the tip of a pair of scissors to make tiny cuts to give it a beautiful look. (optional)
- If you want to keep dough overnight, I recommend sealing it with plastic wrap, placing a towel over the top of the bowl, and placing the bowl into another bag. Place it into the fridge overnight. The next day, remove the dough from the fridge and allow it to sit for a few hours. Once the dough has come to room temperature, fermentation will continue until you are ready to bake.
- To achieve a crunchy outer layer, keep bread in the oven a few minutes longer to achieve a golden crust.
- Do not cut into the bread until it has cooled off.
- To get a more chewy texture, I tried using “Pizza Crust (fast and easy) Yeast,” and it also turned out great!
- (Note: Be very careful while using your stone pot, it gets very HOT! Make sure to use proper heat-resistant cooking mittens when handling your stone pot while baking.)
*** Our Nutrition information is estimated, so please make sure to check your own calculations to fit your diet.
- Prep Time: 4 hours
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American