Easy Rustic Bread
Ingredients for Dough:
- 3 cups all purpose flour, plus another 1/2 cup flour after first rise
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 warm water, 105°-110°
- A large Le Creuset Dutch Oven or similar
- 1 large sheet of parchment paper (large enough so you can place the dough in the center of the paper and lift it up holding the edges of the parchment to transfer into the dutch oven)
Directions:
- Add flour, yeast, sugar and salt to a large glass mixing bowl
- Whisk briefly to combine
- Pour in water and stir with a wooden spatula
- The mixture will be gooey but that’s ok, it’s what creates the great texture
- Cover with saran wrap and let rise for 3 hours
- Pre-heat oven to 450° with Le Creuset Dutch Oven (with top on too) inside heating up (creating the perfect bread baking environment)
- Sprinkle work surface with 3 tbsp-1/4 cup flour and turn out risen dough with a spatula on the floured surface
- Sprinkle another 3 tbsp-1/4 cup flour on top of dough and using a dough scraper scoop under the dough folding over, turn and repeat 2 more times
- Flatten out dough and fold in left and right side, like folding a letter hence the name “letter-fold”
- Then turn and repeat the fold
- Lay a piece of parchment over a clean mixing bowl
- Place folded dough onto the parchment laying over the bowl and let dough sink down on top of the paper, cover with clean dish towel to rise slightly
- When oven and Le Creuset have pre-heated for 30 minutes pick up dough by the edges of the parchment paper and place inside the Le Creuset
- Place cover back on Le Creuset and bake for 35-40 minutes
- Remove the cover and bake for 15 minutes more for a dark golden crust to form
- Remove from oven and transfer baked bread to a cutting board to cool to room temperature
- NOTE: In my household the bread never has a chance to cool to room temperature before it is devoured!
- Slice, smear with butter and enjoy! 🙂