My Mother’s Peasant Bread: The Best Easiest Bread You Will Ever Make
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This is the no-knead bread recipe my mother has been baking for 45 years. Start to finish, it can be ready in three hours. It bakes in well-buttered Pyrex bowls — no need to preheat a baking vessel for this recipe — and it emerges golden and crisp with a soft, tender crumb. 🍞🍞🍞🍞🍞
When I tell you that, if forced, I had to pick one and only one recipe to share with you that this — my mother’s peasant bread — would be it, I am serious. I would almost in fact be OK ending the blog after this very post, retiring altogether from the wonderful world of food blogging, resting assured that you all had this knowledge at hand. This bread might just change your life.
The reason I say this is simple. I whole-heartedly believe that if you know how to make bread you can throw one hell of a dinner party. And the reason for this is because people go insane over homemade bread. Not once have I served this bread to company without being asked, “Did you really make this?” And questioned: “You mean with a bread machine?” But always praised: “Is there anything more special than homemade bread?”
And upon tasting homemade bread, people act as if you’re some sort of culinary magician. I would even go so far as to say that with homemade bread on the table along with a few nice cheeses and a really good salad, the main course almost becomes superfluous. If you nail it, fantastic. If you don’t, you have more than enough treats to keep people happy all night long.
The Magic of the Peasant Bread
So what, you probably are wondering, makes this bread so special when there are so many wonderful bread recipes out there? Again, the answer is simple. For one, it’s a no-knead bread. I know, I know. There are two wildly popular no-knead bread recipes out there.
But unlike the others, this is a no-knead bread that can be started at 4:00pm and turned out onto the dinner table at 7:00pm. It bakes in well-buttered Pyrex bowls — there is no pre-heating of the baking vessels in this recipe — and it emerges golden and crisp without any steam pans or water spritzes. This is not artisan bread, nor is it trying to be. It is peasant bread, spongy and moist with a most-delectable buttery crust.
Genuinely, I would be proud to serve this bread at a dinner party attended by Jim Lahey, Mark Bittman, Peter Reinhart, Chad Robertson, Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. It is a bread I hope you will all give a go, too, and then proudly serve at your next dinner party to guests who might ask where you’ve stashed away your bread machine. And when this happens, I hope you will all just smile and say, “Don’t be silly. This is just a simple peasant bread. Easy as pie. I’ll show you how to make it some day.”
Peasant Bread Variations
Once you master the peasant bread, you can make any bread your heart desires — this simple no-knead bread recipe is the foundation of many of the other bread recipes on this site, namely this hugely popular overnight refrigerator focaccia and this simple homemade pizza dough. It’s even the inspiration behind this sourdough focaccia and this sourdough sandwich bread and this simple pita bread recipe.
The below post is organized as follows:
- How to Make Peasant Bread, Step by Step
- The Best Way to Store Bread
- Peasant Bread Dinner Rolls
- Peasant Bread Sandwich Bread
- How to Add Seeds and Nuts to Bread Dough
- How to Make Gluten-Free Peasant Bread
- How to Coat the Loaves in Seeds
- How to use Whole Wheat Flour
- How to Bake the Peasant Bread in a Dutch Oven
Many more variations on the peasant bread can be found in my cookbook, Bread Toast Crumbs:
Bread Toast Crumbs
Love the peasant bread? There’s now a book filled with 40 simple bread recipes plus 70 recipes to use up every crumb of every loaf you bake.
How to Make Peasant Bread, Step by Step
First: You need yeast.
This is the yeast I buy exclusively: SAF Instant Yeast. Instant yeast can be whisked into the flour directly without any blooming or proofing. If you want to stick to active-dry yeast, there are instructions in the recipe notes on how to do so. Red Star yeast is great.
Whisk together flour, salt, sugar, and instant yeast. Add lukewarm water.
Mix until you have a sticky dough ball. Let it rise for 1.5 to 2 hours…
… or until it looks like this:
Punch down the dough using two forks.
Then split the dough down the middle again using the two forks.
Because this is a very wet dough, it must be baked in an oven-proof bowl. I am partial to the Pyrex 1L 322 size, but any similarly sized oven-proof bowl will work.
Butter the bowls well; then transfer half of the dough to each prepared bow.
Let the dough rise again until it crowns the rim of the bowl, about 30 minutes.
Transfer the bowls to the oven to bake:
This bread is irresistible when it’s freshly baked, but it also makes wonderful toast on subsequent mornings as well as the best grilled cheese. It’s also my favorite bread to use for these egg salad sandwiches and for this no-tuna “tuna” salad.
The Best Way to Store Bread
If you want to store the bread at room temperature for 3 to 4 days, I think the best method is in a ziplock bag. I’ve tried other eco-friendly options, but nothing seems to keep bread freshest — the crumb the softest — better than a ziplock bag. You can re-use the bags again and again.
If you intend to keep the bread for longer, I would freeze it. I often slice bread as soon as it cools completely, transfer the slices to a ziplock bag, then freeze. This way, I know the bread was frozen at its freshest.
A ziplock bag will not prevent the crust of bread from turning soft, which is why I suggest always reheating day-old bread. I use a toaster at breakfast for slices of bread, and I reheat half or quarter loaves in the oven at 350ºF for 15 to 20 minutes when serving for dinner.
Bread revives so beautifully in the oven or toaster.
No-Knead Dinner Rolls
To use the peasant bread dough to make rolls, simply divide the dough into smaller portions and place in a buttered muffin tin as in these No-Knead Thyme Dinner Rolls (pictured above). This recipe for no-knead buttermilk pull-apart rolls is also based on the peasant bread as are these brioche pull-apart rolls.
No-Knead Sandwich Bread
To make sandwich bread, multiply the recipe below by 1.5 and bake the bread in two buttered 8.5×4.5-inch loaf pans.
Made with half all-purpose flour and half King Arthur Sprouted Wheat Flour, these seed-coated sandwich loaves (pictured above) have a soft and light crumb. I really like KAF’s sprouted wheat flour, which is made from white whole wheat berries that, when sprouted, yield a creamy, sweet, milder-tasting flour. You can use 100% all-purpose or bread flour for an even lighter loaf or your favorite whole wheat flour in place of the sprouted wheat flour.
How to Add Nuts and Seeds to Bread Dough
To add seeds and nuts (or dried fruit and cheese), simply stir them into the dry ingredients. This recipe for Quinoa-and-Flax Toasting Bread will offer guidance on how much to add.
How to Make a Gluten-Free Peasant Bread
Making gluten-free peasant bread (pictured above) unfortunately isn’t as simple as swapping in gluten-free flour for the wheat flour. But the process and recipe is still super simple — in fact, because there’s only one rise, many people find the gluten-free peasant bread to be even simpler than the original. Find the recipe here: Gluten-Free Peasant Bread
How to Coat the Loaves in Seeds
To coat the peasant bread in seeds, as pictured above, simply coat the bowls with everything bagel seasoning or with dukkah or sesame seeds or whatever seed mix you wish. The seed-coated loaves look so beautiful, and it’s amazing how much the flavor of the coating permeates the loaves. Find the recipe here: Everything Bagel Seasoning Peasant Bread
How to Use Whole Wheat Flour
To use whole wheat flour in the peasant bread, simply replace as much as 50% of the all-purpose flour with your favorite whole wheat flour: I like KAF’s sprouted wheat flour, and I’ve been loving the Cairnsprings Mill Trailblazer stone-milled flour. With the Trailblazer, I can use up to 75% of it in the peasant bread, and it yields a beautiful, chewy texture as well as a lovely flavor and aroma.
When using whole wheat flour, you may have to use more or less water — there is no rule as to how much more or less, and it will take some trial and error to get right because all flours absorb water differently. When I use KAF sprouted wheat flour, for example, I don’t change the water amount at all. When I use the Trailblazer flour, on the other hand, I reduce the water by at least 50 grams.
If you’d like to learn more about whole wheat flour and stone-milled flours, read this: Easy Sourdough Bread (Whole Wheat-ish)
How to Bake the Peasant Bread in a Dutch Oven
If you’re looking for more of a crackling crusted boule (characteristic of a loaf of sourdough bread) as opposed to the buttery crispness of the peasant bread, you can bake the peasant bread dough in a preheated Dutch oven.
There are detailed instructions below the recipe in the notes section, but one thing to keep in mind before you begin is dough hydration. The peasant bread is a very high hydration dough, meaning there is a lot of water relative to flour. Because baking the peasant bread in a Dutch oven will require some handling of the dough — to shape it into a round and to create some tension — you may want to reduce the water from the start. Consider holding back 20-30 grams of water to make the process more manageable for you.
My Mother’s Peasant Bread: The Best Easiest Bread You Will Ever Make
- Total Time: 2 hours 27 minutes
- Yield: 2 loaves
Description
Notes:
The bread:
This is a sticky, no-knead dough, so, some sort of baking vessel, such as pyrex bowls (you need two 1-qt bowls) or ramekins for mini loaves is required to bake this bread. See notes below the recipe for sources. You can use a bowl that is about 2 qt or 2 L in size to bake off the whole batch of dough (versus splitting the dough in half) but do not use this size for baking half of the dough — it is too big.
Peasant Bread Fans! There is now a book: Bread Toast Crumbs, a loaf-to-crumb bread baking book, filled with tips and tricks and answers to the many questions that have been asked over the years. In the book you will find 40 variations of the master peasant bread recipe + 70 recipes for using up the many loaves you will bake. Learn more about the book here or buy it here.
Ingredients
- 4 cups (512 g) unbleached all-purpose or bread flour
- 2 teaspoons (10 g) kosher salt
- 2 cups (454 g) lukewarm water (made by mixing 1.5 cups cold water with 0.5 cup boiling water)
- 2 teaspoons (8 g) sugar
- 2 teaspoons (8 g) instant yeast, I love SAF Instant Yeast, see notes below
- room temperature butter, about 2 tablespoons
Instructions
- Mixing the dough: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, sugar, and instant yeast (I love SAF Instant Yeast). Add the water. Mix until the flour is absorbed. (If you are using active dry yeast, see notes below.)
- Let it rise. Cover bowl with a tea towel or plastic wrap and set aside in a warm spot to rise for at least an hour. (In the winter or if you are letting the bread rise in a cool place, it might take as long as two hours to rise.) This is how to create a slightly warm spot for your bread to rise in: Turn the oven on at any temperature (350ºF or so) for one minute, then turn it off. Note: Do not allow the oven to get up to 300ºF, for example, and then heat at that setting for 1 minute — this will be too hot. Just let the oven preheat for a total of 1 minute — it likely won’t get above 100ºF. The goal is to just create a slightly warm environment for the bread.
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Grease two 1-qt or 1.5-qt oven-safe bowls (see notes below) with about a tablespoon of butter each. Using two forks, punch down your dough, scraping it from the sides of the bowl, which it will be clinging to. As you scrape it down try to pull the dough toward the center (see video below for guidance). You want to loosen the dough entirely from the sides of the bowl, and you want to make sure you’ve punched it down. Then, take your two forks and divide the dough into two equal portions — eye the center of the mass of dough, and starting from the center and working out, pull the dough apart with the two forks. Then scoop up each half and place into your prepared bowls. This part can be a little messy — the dough is very wet and will slip all over the place. Using small forks or forks with short tines makes this easier — my small salad forks work best; my dinner forks make it harder. It’s best to scoop it up fast and plop it in the bowl in one fell swoop. Some people like to use flexible, plastic dough scrapers for this step.
- Let the dough rise again for about 20 to 30 minutes on the countertop near the oven (or near a warm spot) or until it has risen to just below or above (depending on what size bowl you are using) the top of the bowls. (Note: Do not do the warm-oven trick for the second rise, and do not cover your bowls for the second rise. Simply set your bowls on top of your oven, so that they are in a warm spot. Twenty minutes in this spot usually is enough for my loaves.)
- Bake it. Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375º and bake for 15 to 17 minutes longer. Remove from the oven and turn the loaves onto cooling racks. If you’ve greased the bowls well, the loaves should fall right out onto the cooling racks. If the loaves look a little pale and soft when you’ve turned them out onto your cooling racks, place the loaves into the oven (outside of their bowls) and let them bake for about 5 minutes longer. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes before cutting.
Notes
- The bowls: The cheapest, most widely available 1-qt bowl is the Pyrex 322. Update: These bowls are becoming harder to find and more expensive. As a result, I’m suggesting this cheaper option: the Pyrex 3-piece set. You can split the dough in half as always (see recipe) and bake half in the 1-quart bowl and half in the 1.5 quart bowl. The loaves will not be the same shape, but they will be delicious nonetheless.
- Yeast: I buy SAF Instant Yeast in bulk from Amazon I store it in my fridge or freezer, and it lasts forever. If you are using the packets of yeast (the kind that come in the 3-fold packets), just go ahead and use a whole packet — It’s 2.25 teaspoons. I have made the bread with active dry, rapid rise, and instant yeast, and all varieties work. The beauty of instant yeast is that there is no need to “proof” it — you can add the yeast directly to the flour. I never use active-dry yeast anymore.
- If you have active-dry yeast on hand and want to use it, here’s how: In a small mixing bowl, dissolve the sugar into the water. Sprinkle the yeast over top. There is no need to stir it up. Let it stand for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the mixture is foamy and/or bubbling just a bit — this step will ensure that the yeast is active. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. When the yeast-water-sugar mixture is foamy, stir it up, and add it to the flour bowl. Mix until the flour is absorbed.
- Troubleshooting: You can find step-by-step video instruction here.
- Several commenters have had trouble with the second rise, and this seems to be caused by the shape of the bowl they are letting the dough rise in the second time around. Two hours for the second rise is too long. If you don’t have a 1-qt bowl, bake 3/4 of the dough in a loaf pan and bake the rest off in muffin tins or a popover pan. The second rise should take no more than 30 minutes.
- Also, you can use as many as 3 cups of whole wheat flour, but the texture changes considerably. I suggest trying with all all-purpose or bread flour to start and once you get the hang of it, start trying various combinations of whole wheat flour and/or other flours.
- The single most important step you can take to make this bread truly foolproof is to invest in a digital scale. This one costs under $10. If you are not measuring by weight, do this: scoop flour into the measuring cup using a separate spoon or measuring cup; level off with a knife. The flour should be below the rim of the measuring cup.
- Here’s a printable version of this recipes that’s less wordy: Peasant Bread Recipe, Simplified
- How to Bake the Peasant Bread in a Dutch Oven: Preheat a Dutch Oven for 45 minutes at 450ºF. Dust a clean work surface with flour. After the first rise, turn the dough out onto the floured surface and shape it into a ball: I like to fold it envelope style from top to bottom, then side to side; then I flip it over and use the pinkie edges of my hands to pinch the dough underneath and create some tension. Transfer the dough to a sheet of parchment paper. Let rest for 20 minutes. If you feel your dough is spreading too much you can lift up the sheet of parchment paper, dough and all, and place it in a bowl of a similar size. After the 20 minutes, transfer the dough, parchment paper and all to the Dutch oven. Carefully cover it. Bake 30 minutes. Uncover. Bake 15 minutes more.
- To bake the peasant bread in a loaf pan: If you are using an 8.5×4.5-inch loaf pan or a 9×5-inch loaf pan, you can bake 3/4 of the dough in it; bake off the rest of the dough in ramekins or other small vessels … the mini loaves are so cute. You can also make 1.5x the recipe, and bake the bread in 2 loaf pans. If you have a large loaf pan, such as a 10×6-inch loaf pan, you can bake off the entire batch of dough in it. For loaf pans, bake at 375ºF for 45 minutes.
- How to Bake at Hight Altitude:
- First try the original recipe as written (preferably with a scale). You may not need to make any adjustments. One commenter, who lives at 9200 ft finds the original recipe to work just fine as is.
- If the original recipe doesn’t work, try adding a little bit more water because it rises fast and it is so dry: about a quarter cup for every 512 g of flour.
- Try decreasing the yeast to 1.5 teaspoons.
- If your dough is especially gooey, try decreasing the water by 1/4 cup. But, if you aren’t using a scale, my first suggestion would be to buy a scale and weigh the flour, and make the bread once as directed with the 2 cups water and 512 grams flour, etc.
- Punch the dough down twice before transferring it to the buttered Pyrex bowls. In other words, let it rise for 1-1.5 hours, punch it down, let it rise again for about an hour, punch it down, then transfer it to the buttered bowls.
- Variations:
- #1. Cornmeal. Substitute 1 cup of the flour with 1 cup of cornmeal. Proceed with the recipe as directed.
- #2. Faux focaccia. Instead of spreading butter in two Pyrex bowls in preparation for baking, butter one 9×9-inch glass baking dish and one Pyrex bowl or just butter one large 9×13-inch Pyrex baking dish. If using two vessels, divide the dough in half and place each half in prepared baking pan. If using only one large baking dish, place all of the dough in the dish. Drizzle dough with 1 tablespoon of olive oil (if using the small square pan) and 2 tablespoons of olive oil (if using the large one). Using your fingers, gently spread the dough out so that it fits the shape of the pan. Use your fingers to create dimples in the surface of the dough. Sprinkle surface with chopped rosemary and sea salt. Let rise for 20 to 30 minutes. Bake for 15 minutes at 425ºF and 17 minutes (or longer) at 375ºF. Remove from pan and let cool on cooling rack.
- #3. Thyme Dinner Rolls
- #4 Gluten-free
- #5. Everything Bagel Seasoning Bread. Simply coat the buttered bowls with Everything Bagel Seasoning. Watch a how-to on Instagram Stories here.
- #6: Whole Wheat Peasant Bread. Use as much as 50% whole wheat flour. I like King Arthur Flour’s white whole wheat flour (see this post) or sprouted wheat flour (see this post).
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 32 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
6,418 Comments on “My Mother’s Peasant Bread: The Best Easiest Bread You Will Ever Make”
is your oven a normal oven or a fancy convection oven?
Amanda — my oven is a piece of cr@p. Seriously, no convection setting, no anything really. The coil burnt out a few months ago, and I should have just replaced it, but my husband was able to fix it, which is nice…I suppose?
I’m making the bread right now and so far so good. I use a heating pad on the lowest setting to help the bread rise. It’s a consistent and controlled low heat source that I have always used with pretty good results. Thanks for the great recipe!
Leah — wonderul tip! Love that idea.
Thanks so much for your response! I have 2-1.5 quart bowls that I used. I did get good results with the first rise because I tried the oven trick. I removed them from the oven and punched them down with a fork. Then I was unsure what to do, so I put them back in the oven covered with the towel again. After 20 minutes I hadn’t seen much progress so I uncovered them and removed them from the oven. After 45 minutes they had only risen 1/2 way. It seriously was so tasty but not as pretty as it should be! Any ideas? Thanks again! Meg
Meg — ok, great to hear you have the right sized bowls! That always helps. OK, next time you make it, I would do the oven trick, but make sure you read the updated notes — you only want to preheat the oven for a total of 1 minute and this can be at a low setting… the goal is to just create a slightly warm spot for the bread to rise. After the first rise (try to let it rise for 1.5 to 1.75 hours if possible), punch it down with the forks, divide it in half, place each half in your well-buttered bowls, and place the bowls on top of the oven (if you have a stovetop that is). Preheat the oven to 425. The heat of the stovetop will provide enough warmth for the bread to rise, and it isn’t totally necessary anyway to do this…it should rise just fine on its own provided your kitchen isn’t too cold. Let the bread rise for about 30 minutes uncovered. At this point, the dough should be near the rim of the bowl. Pop it in the oven for 15 minutes (I know this is different than the original instructions); reduce the heat to 375ºF and bake for 17 more minutes. The loaves should be nice and golden for you! Hope that helps!
I found your recipe a couple of weeks ago and I’m so excited to try it. Right now, it’s on the first rise and it smells so good (I love the smell of yeast, don’t know if that’s weird). I’m very excited see how my first attempt at homemade bread goes.
Veronica — I love the smell of yeast, too… not weird at all 🙂 Hope it turns out well for you!
This recipe is wonderful!! I’ve made it three times now and have also passed the recipe on to my mom and sister who also love it. Very easy and I love that I don’t have to knead the dough! Thanks for the recipe!
I follow the recipe as is but add in some herb de Provence and about a tbsp of ground flax seed. I am making it this time with 1cup of whole wheat flour to the 3 cups in unbleached white flour. We’ll see how it turns out.
Laura07 & Courtney L — wonderful to hear this!
Just made this and it is YUMMY! I made it just like the recipe except i only had bleached flour. It raised a bit during the second rise, but not as much as the pictures. I used one 1qt and one 1.5qt bowl. delish!!
Any suggestions for a baking vessel for someone who owns no glass bowls? The only glass I have is a pie pan and a 9×13 baking dish. I have regular metal loaf pans, as well as some various rectangular Pyrex baking dishes, but nothing quite the same size and shape as yours.
Jaclyn — I would go with the regular metal loaf pans. If you have two loaf pans, divide the dough in half after the first rise, and place each half in the well-buttered pans; then let the dough rise for about 30 minutes — depending on how big your loaf pans are, the dough might not rise all the way to the top. If you only have one loaf pan, place enough dough in the pan so that it reaches about 2/3 of the way up, then bake off the rest of the dough in muffin tins or ramekins or something of the sort. Hope that helps!
I am making your recipe for the second time in 2 days. This taste so good. I will continue to make this instead of buying store bought!!
Kim H — Wonderful to hear this!
OMG.. made this tonight and it is by far the best and easiest bread i have ever made..i can understand other comments about eating it all before it cooled..this is the best ever bread!!.. when i get used to making it, i might add garlic and dill.. my family loves it
Carol — So happy to hear this! Love the idea of your potential future variations. You won’t believe it, but in all of the years I have been making this bread, I haven’t added a single seasoning…only changed up the flours here and there. Thanks for the inspiration 🙂
how would i adjust the baking time to make rolls instead of loaves?
Alison — I would do 10 minutes at 425 and about 10 more minutes at 375 — they might need a few minutes more than that, but definitely check them at the 20 minute mark for doneness. Hope they turn out well for you!
I am on my second rise right now. I can’t wait to try this bread!
LoriS — Hope it turned out well for you!
do you have to use glass? what about metal bread pans greased real well with butter?
Lora — you do not have to use glass. I’ve always used glass bc that’s what my mother did, but many commenters have had success using a metal loaf pan — filling it 3/4 or 2/3 of the way up with dough (before letting it rise) — and then baking the rest of the dough off in muffin tins or ramekins or popover pans, etc. Definitely be sure to grease the pans well!
Made this last night and it was gone before I could set the table. Truly amazing and so simple. I was asked by 3 family members today when I was going to make it again. So yeah, it’s in the oven rising now!! I will be making this at least twice a week. Thank you Alexandra!!!
Tracy — SO happy to hear this! Really, nothing brings me more joy.
Thank you so much for sharing this delicious and simple recipe! I’ve been baking homemade breads for years, always from scratch, but this is the first no-knead yeast bread I’ve made. I was looking for something simple that I could make with one hand while holding my 9 month old daughter in the other arm. I’m pregnant and had the worst craving for fresh bread, and she wasn’t feeling well that day. This was so easy and quick that I was able to do everything without setting my daughter down (I’m really good at multi-tasking with a baby, but there’s no way I could’ve made any of my old go-to doughs with one free arm)! Thank you so much! Not only did it turn out incredibly well, it’s now my husband’s favorite bread! I just found the recipe a week ago and I’ve already made it 3 times. My 6 year old son adores it, my husband eats it for lunch and with dinner, and my baby girl goes crazy when it first comes out of the oven. I can’t thank you enough! I’ve only been able to bake fresh bread about once a week since we had our little girl but now we can easily have fresh bread every day! Oh and I used all bread flour, weighed the flour instead of measuring by volume, and baked them in 1.5 quart metal mixing bowls. A perfect recipe with outstanding attention to detail!
Trish — loved your comment. It made me laugh because when I was writing the post, I almost mentioned something about being able to make it one handed with a baby attached to your hip no less. I often find myself in the same situation. Measuring the flour by weight definitely makes things easier. Anyway, I am so happy to hear that you and your growing family like the bread! Congrats on the one on the way… you certainly have your hands full!
We have made this bread twice in the last week and it has turned out perfectly both times. The first time I used regular all purpose flour and the second time my husband made it and he wanted to use about 1 cup of whole wheat flour…Delicious! It made fantastic toasted cheese and some of the best garlic toast that I have ever had. This will definitely be a staple at our house….easy and super yummy.
Kala — so happy to hear this! I love adding a cup of whole wheat flour, too — it feels a touch healthier, and I love that golden brown color. Yesterday I grilled a few pieces on my panini machine to dip into soup…so good! Love the idea of garlic toast.
Have you ever tried to freeze the dough before the first rise? I am wondering if i could mix up a few batches and freeze them? i am going to try one batch and i will let you know how it turned out. I would assume you could and then when it thaws it will do its first rise? Gonna experiment. it would be nice to have a few batches made up all ready so you can set out in morning and bake off by afternoon.
Lora — I haven’t tried this experiment, but I love the idea. I have a feeling it would work. I used to do this with pizza dough, but I’m wondering if pizza dough is more forgiving bc it’s so flat? Would love to hear how your experiment works out. In the meantime, I might have to try this one out as well.
this bread makes a killer grill cheese! my family loves it!
Lora — So happy to hear this! Have you made this Lucques grilled cheese via Bon Appetit: https://alexandracooks.com/2012/09/11/the-best-grilled-cheese/ ? SO good!
Second time making this bread. The first time I tried it was actually my first crack at making bread…and it turned out AMAZING!! Ill be making it for garlic toast tonight for dinner and can’t wait! Thank you so much 🙂
Britney — So happy to hear this!
Have you tried baking this on a stone? I know it’s not artisan bread, but I lack pans where I’m staying on vacation and was wondering if a couple free-form loaves would work!
Ginger — I’m afraid I have not. I don’t think it would fare so well — the dough is so wet, and unlike the Jim Leahy bread that starts out wet but in the long 18-hour rise builds some structure, this fast-rise bread just doesn’t — I don’t think at least — have the strength. You of course could try it, but I have a feeling it will bake into a more ciabatta (a large one) or flat, long loaf. I hope that makes sense.
Has anyone tried this with cinnamon and sugar? I have made 6 batches the past 3 days (LOL) and today I’m trying to make a cinnamon sugar loaf. I’ll let you know how it comes out. I also would like to try some with herbs and cheese.
Natalie — I love it. I have not tried cinnamon and sugar, but please report back on how it turns out. My daughter would love that.
SOOOOOOOOO Good!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOW! I put a little honey butter on it. YUM
Thanks for the amazing recipe!!!
Jamie — So happy to hear this! Love the idea of honey butter. yum
That looks incredible! I’m so glad I found your recipe on Pinterest. I am going to give this a try. 🙂 Megan
Okay so this bread is super amazing although VERY time consuming in comparison to other breads I’ve made. And you absolutely can NOT use olive oil! It doesn’t work my bread stuck to the dishes really bad even though it tasted good I had to mutilate it to get it out of the pan! 🙁
Elyssa — I’m glad to hear you liked it despite the sticking of the bread in the pan — butter, and a lot of it, is the best way to go. And I’m a little confused as to why it took so long. What part took the longest for you? The mixing? Or the rising? This is the fastest bread start to finish I have ever made.
Thank You for this recipe, one awesome tip I have found when using a bread pan is to line it with parchment paper, just form it in you pan don’t worry what it looks like, your bread pans will stay clean with zero sticking!! Can’t wait to try your Artesians!
Thanks, Karen, great tip!
Mine is on it’s first rise now. Can’t wait to eat it 🙂 Thanks!
How would I make this using fresh ground whole wheat flour? A friend of mine has a mill and just gave me some wheat flour but I am not sure if it can be used in the same way as bread flour; can you give me some advice?
Sounds so good. Is kosher salt a must, or will table salt work as well.
JoAnne — table salt will work just fine. Use about a teaspoon or a heaping teaspoons.
This will be the third time I have made this since the start of January. Today I am subbing 1 cup whole wheat flour to see what happens. I don’t know if it’s because it is colder than usual inside my apartment or it’s the denser flour. But, it doesn’t seem to have risen as much as the original recipe. Let you know how it turns out. Smells good. 🙂
Melanie — whole wheat flour definitely will affect the rising time as well as the texture of the ultimate loaf, which will be denser and a little dryer. How did it turn out? I find that the whole wheat adds a “healthier” taste but is still enjoyable if perhaps not as delicious as when made with all white flour.
I am so excited to try this!! I have it in the first rise right now, but I think there is too much flour. I did 4 c of KA bread flour, but it doesnt look wet like you were saying, although it is very sticky. I am hoping it turns out well- we shall see!! Keeping my fingers crossed! Thank you for the recipe!! I love simple, easy recipes like this! 🙂
Thank you so much for posting this recipe! I have my very first batch in the oven rising right now! I love simple, easy recipes like this….will be adding this to my collection of recipes. 🙂 I just have one question, my dough is not wet like in your picture. It appears there is too much flour, even though I followed directions, adding 4 c KA Bread Flour. I do not have a scale, so my only option is using the measuring cup. My dough looks like other bread dough, soft and floury, although very sticky. Is this normal or did I somehow get too much flour? Can I add more water to the recipe when this happens or will that screw it up? Thank you again, I am going to keep trying until I get it right (that is, if this batch doesn’t work out) 🙂 Happy Sunday!
Jessica — this has happened with several of the commenters, but, it sounds as though your dough isn’t too far off in texture — the dough definitely is sticky. I’ve been meaning to make a video so people can what the ideal texture of the bread is. Next time you make, measure 4 scant cups, or even 3 cups as you normally measure them, then mix the flour with the salt, and the water with the yeast and sugar; then mix the dry with the wet and slowly add the last cup of flour until the right consistency is achieved. You can, as you asked, always a tablespoon more water to get the consistency right if you’ve added too much flour. Thanks for your nice comment and enthusiasm! I hope you do give the bread another shot!