5-Minute Artisan Bread

A few months ago, I happened upon a book called "The Kitchen Counter Cooking School."  It was a truly terrific book, and inspiring in a lot of ways.  The basic premise is that the author (a graduate of Cordon Bleu in France), decides to hold a free series of workshops for people who can't cook, and help them learn the basics in order to improve their eating lives.  

They all happen to be women (she had a man involved initially, but he dropped out before it started),  of all different ages, and many backgrounds, and then she and a few other chef and culinary friends teach them all sorts of skills from chopping vegetables, to making bread, to not wasting as much food in the kitchen.  

One of the recipes that she includes is this 5-minute artisan bread recipe.  Perhaps you have heard of it before (I had), but I felt like it would be a good fit for my current life.  So I tried it out!  It isn't the best loaf of bread I have ever made (that would be the super buttery brioche that I made for Christmas Morning...), but it was very tasty, and SO fast and easy.  Even I can squeeze in 5 minutes to throw together this loaf.  

It makes a smallish loaf (Actually 4 smallish loaves, total), but it is perfect for our little family to eat with a soup for dinner.  Sometimes there are leftovers, and sometimes their aren't.  Either way, it is a great way to get a homemade bread out in record time.  

Super Easy Artisan Bread

From The Kitchen Counter Cooking School & Artisan Bread in Five

3 cups lukewarm water

1 Tbs yeast

1 Tbs Salt

6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (you can substitute up to 1/2 of the flour with whole wheat flour)

In a large bowl, or container with a lid, combine the water, yeast salt and flour, and mix with a spoon until the flour is incorporated (it will be a wet dough, and quite lumpy). Cover lightly, but do not seal, if you are using a lidded container.  Put in the refrigerator overnight (you can also use after two hours.  See this article for directions on how to do that). 

The next day, lightly flour the top of the dough in the container, and pull out 1/4 of the dough.  

Form it into a ball, and place on a cornmeal sprinkled silicone mat or parchment paper.  Let the dough sit for 40-90 minutes.  The dough will not rise a lot during this time, and that is okay.  

Preheat your oven with a baking stone in it, to 450°F and place a heat-proof pan (like a cast iron or metal pan) on a rack below the stone.  

Slash the top of your bread with a very sharp knife.  

Carefully slide the loaf onto the hot baking stone and pour a cup of water into the heat proof pan below.  Quickly and carefully close the oven door, and let it cook for 30-35 minutes until golden brown, and hollow sounding when you tap it.  

Remove and let cool until it reaches room temperature, then serve.