Homemade Artisan Bread

Make four-ingredient homemade bread in bulk!

So weird to finally be posting some recipes from quarantine back in 2020, but here we are...the baking bread time in quarantine. I typically have flour on hand at all times. Sometimes a little too much because I forget I have flour on hand and buy more, so that worked out well during the beginning of the pandemic when some commodities were harder to come by. This recipe makes a big batch of dough that you can make multiple loaves with - it's almost like a sourdough. 

What you need:

• 3 cups lukewarm water
• 1 Tbsp. active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. kosher salt
• 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  

Directions:

1. In a 5 or 6 quart bowl or food container, add water, yeast, and salt.
2. Add flour all at once and stir with a long handled wooden spoon.
3. Stir until all the flour is mixed in.
4. Put the lid on the container but do not seal it.
5. Let sit at room temperature for 2 hours. Don't punch it down.
6. At this point, you can use some of the dough or refrigerate. It is easier to manage when it's chilled.
7. For the first two days of refrigeration, leave the lid cracked for gases to escape. After that you can snap the lid. If you're using a glass container, do not seal.
8. To use the dough, dust a clean surface with flour. Remove a piece about 1 lb. and form into a ball.
9. Place on a piece of parchment paper and let rest for at least 40 minutes or up to 90 minutes. It will not really rise, but it may spread.
10. Cut slashes in the dough with a serrated bread knife about 1/4-inch deep.
    
11. Place parchment paper with dough on a cast iron skillet or Dutch oven.
12. Bake in a preheated 450 degree oven for 30 to 35 minutes or until a deep brown color.
13. Allow loaf to cool until room temperature and slice with a serrated bread knife.
14. The remaining dough should be used in two weeks time. To make a new loaf, repeat steps 8 through 11.

Recipe from The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day cookbook