SPEEDY NO-KNEAD NYT BREAD
OK, this bread is the most amazingly perfect bread ever, and it’s almost impossible to screw up. You really have to try it. I have accidentally added too much water, not enough yeast, and let it sit twice as long as it should have. Every time it turned out perfectly. Crunchy outside, light and delicious inside. Plus, it’s practically labor-free, and doesn’t make a mess, either. All the action takes place in one bowl and one lidded Dutch oven or cooking pot.
Do NOT waste your money on a bread machine, you don’t need one. Have your kid help you rip open a package of yeast, warm up some water, and measure 3 cups of flour before dumping it in a bowl. Stir it up, put a plate on top, and leave it for a few hours.
I have passed this recipe on to a bunch of friends, and they all report glowing results, cooks and non-cooks alike. Usually this bread gets scarfed down in a flash, but if you do have bread leftovers that go stale, they make terrific French Toast.
* 3 cups bread flour
* 1 packet ( 1/4 ounce) instant yeast
* 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
* Oil as needed. (Spray Olive Oil from Trader Joe’s is the easiest)
1. Combine flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl. Add 1 1/2 cups water and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy. Cover bowl with a plate or with a larger bowl placed upside down on top. Let dough rest about 4 hours at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
2. Lightly oil a work surface and place dough on it; fold it over on itself once or twice. Clean your original bowl, oil it, and put the dough back in for about 45 minutes to rise again.
3. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6-to-8-quart heavy covered pot or dutch oven (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats.
When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Dump the dough from the oiled bowl directly into the hot pot. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.
4. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 10 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.
Yield: 1 big loaf. You can easily double this recipe, just make sure that you use a bigger bowl to mix it in and let it rise. You can use the same amount of yeast, just double the flour and salt.
When you go to do the second rising, split the dough into two equal pieces and put each in its own oiled bowl. Bake one, and then when it is done, plop the second one into the already-hot bread-baking pot.
This is my slightly edited version of the NYT bread recipes from Mark Bittman.
See http://www.nytimes.com/200
http://www.nytimes.com/200
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Prep Time: 10 min
Inactive Prep Time: 8 hr 0 min
Cook Time: 55 min
Level: Easy
Serves: 6 to 8 servings
* 2 tablespoons olive oil
* 1 cup chopped onions
* 2 tablespoons minced garlic
* 2 bay leaves
* 1 sprig fresh thyme
* 2 cups roughly chopped ham pieces (I buy one of those big uncured spiral cut hams at Trader Joe’s, use 2 cups for this and make sandwiches on buttered bread with avocado with the rest, or just eat it straight. Mmmm, ham….)
* 1 pound dried black-eyed peas, soaked in cold water overnight and rinsed well (if you use a slow cooker you don’t have to presoak – see below)
* 1 quart low-sodium chicken stock
* 1 cup cold water
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* (1/2 package of Trader Joe’s precooked bacon, cut with scissors into little strips)
In a medium stockpot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, add the onions and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and country ham. Add the black-eyed peas, chicken stock, and 1 cup cold water. Bring the liquid up to a boil, partially cover and reduce to a simmer. Simmer the peas for about 25 minutes, uncover and cook an additional 20 to 25 minutes, or until the peas are tender. Season the peas with salt and pepper as needed.
Alternatively, you can throw everything into a slow cooker and let it go on low for 7-8 hours, or on high for 4-5 hours.
If you got the bacon, you can throw that in right before serving. If you put it in too far ahead of time it gets a little too soft.
