No-Knead Bread

No-Knead Bread 

 

1 ½  cups lukewarm water (about 120 degrees – I just put it in the microwave for a minute or so)

¾ T granulated yeast  (about 2 ½ packets)

¾ T coarse salt

3 - 3 ½ cups unsifted, flour

 

(warning:  use a bigger bowl than you think you’ll need)

Stir yeast and salt into water until dissolved.  Add all of the flour at once.  Stir with a wooden spoon until well mixed (yes, it will be wet, sticky, and gloppy).  Cover (I use a warm, damp towel) and let rise at room temperature until it flattens on top (this takes 2-4 hours, depending on room temperature).  At this point you can use some or put it all into the refrigerator.  (I like it best after about 48 hours in the fridge).

 

When you are ready for bread, lightly flour your hands and pick up the dough.  Round by folding all outside edges under, and place it into a greased pan.  You’ll want a pan with a lid (or you can use a pie pan as a lid or, I suppose, foil).  Grease the lid, also!  Cover and let rise in a warm place until it’s at least doubled – about 1-2 hours.  Bake COVERED at 450 for about 35 minutes, then remove the cover and bake at 350 for another 10 minutes or until nicely golden.  Remove from oven and enjoy!  If you can wait, it like to cool for 15 minutes or so.  In our case it’s usually almost gone by then…

 

This is a combination of a few different recipes – I just played with it until I found something I liked.

 

 

 

 

Garlic Butter

 

Drizzle an entire bulb of garlic with olive oil, wrap lightly in foil, and bake at 350 for about an hour.  Let cool, then squeeze the roaster garlic out into a bowl.  Mix with 1 to 1 ½ sticks of softened butter (I added parsley for effect).  Re-form and refrigerate so it will firm up.  Serve with bread! Yummy!!