Our favorite bread recipe

Ever since I got married back in ’94,  I’ve been on a quest to create the perfect loaf of bread for my family.   I began by making bread in a bread machine and loved experimenting with the different recipes.   It was simple and easy to just toss all of the ingredients in, but after several years I found that I was ready to move on and try new things.  So, I learned how to knead dough in a food processor and also by hand.  And then years later I discovered two kitchen appliances that took my bread making to a whole new level:  My kitchenaid mixer and my vitamix.   I began to grind wheat berries into wonderful whole grain flour using the vitamix, and I used the kitchenaid to knead many different doughs for me.  (If you’ve never had bread made with freshly milled flour, you’ve got to try it!!  It’s so yummy and packed full of vitamins and minerals!)  I made bread in loaf pans, in a pullman pan, with whey, with a sour dough starter.  I sometimes soaked my grains.  I shaped the dough into rolls and breadsticks.   I tossed in spices or nuts or raisins.  But I never found a recipe that made the type of bread that I was searching for… until recently.

I’ve finally discovered a recipe that our whole family loves.    It doesn’t require any kneading (don’t worry, I still use my kitchenaid at least twice per week!), it’s super easy, super cheap and super versatile.  I can make it into a simple rustic loaf, rolls, or into a sandwich loaf (which is the recipe below and our family’s favorite).   I can make it with a small amount of yeast (only 1/4 t. per loaf) or I can use a sourdough starter instead.   It’s so easy that the boys can make it.  And trust me when I tell you that it’s so delicious!

The basic recipe is simply called, No Knead Bread, adapted by Jim Lahey.  It appeared in an article in the NY Times several years ago.  This is the recipe that I use, but I adapt it to include whole wheat flour and usually make it into a loaf form instead, which requires less baking time.   I usually double the recipe to make 2 loaves at once.

Anna’s No Knead Sandwich Bread

Ingredients:

2 c. freshly ground whole wheat flour

1 c. unbleached white flour

1 t. salt

1/4 t. yeast  (or 1/4 c. sourdough starter)

1.5 c. filtered water

Directions:

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Add the water and stir well.  It will be very, very sticky.

Cover with saran wrap and set out of the way in a warm place in your kitchen for about 12 hours.  If you’ll be ready to bake within the next couple of hours, continue on to the next step.  Otherwise, you can stir the dough, re-cover it and leave it for up to another 12 hours.  (This is what I usually do because it works well with my schedule.  I mix up the dough in the morning, stir it before bed and then proceed with the following steps the next morning.  That way, we’ll have fresh bread for lunch.  Plus, the longer that the dough sets out, the more of a sourdough taste you’ll end up with and that is what we prefer.)

Now, sprinkle a lot of flour over a clean surface – I use a thin plastic cutting board from Ikea.   You can also use parchment paper, or even your kitchen counter.  The dough will be super sticky, so make sure you use plenty of flour on the surface.  Once it slowly plops out of the bowl, scrape the left-over dough out.  Then, sprinkle flour on top of the dough and pat it down with your hands.  Next, fold the dough from the left and right sides to the middle, and then fold again from the top and bottom to the middle.  Flip the loaf into a well greased loaf pan, seam side down.  Cover again with saran wrap and let it rise for 1-2 hours.

About 15 minutes before baking, preheat the over to 450 degrees.  Grease a knife and cut a slash in the top of the loaf – I usually forget this step and the bread still turns out fine!  Once the oven is ready, uncover the bread and place it in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.   When the bread is done, immediately take it out of the pan and leave it out to cool on a wire rack for at least an hour before cutting.

And that is our new favorite bread!  I’ve made it plain, with chocolate chips, with cinnamon and raisins, with herbs and cheese, with seeds… and it’s so good every single time.  You can use the same steps in the recipe to make rolls, or you can follow the original recipe to make a terrific rustic loaf instead.

I hope you like the recipe – let me know what you think of it!