Artisan Bread - First Attempt

Have I ever mentioned that I love bread? I have a fondness to artisan breads like sourdough, pumpernickel, rye, Italian, and French loaves. These are pretty pricey, but oh so yummy. I always buy mine and just before serving I would warm it up in the oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes. The crust would crisp up and the inside would be warm so that when I spread the cool butter on it would spread ever so evenly.

One day, while browsing online on Amazon, I somehow came across Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes A Day. I read the customer reviews and then even Googled it. I found their official website and watched the authors make their bread on YouTube. It looked really simple. They claim that there is no need to proof the yeast, no kneading, and only 5 minutes hands-on! Could it really be that simple? Is there a catch? Well, being the shopper that I am, I purchased it.

It's been sitting on my bookshelf for over a month now and I finally got up the nerve to try it. And you know what? It was as easy as the authors said it would be. Here is a pictorial of what I did (sorry, but I forgot to take pictures of when I cut the dough and shaped it onto the board before putting it in the oven):

1. First I measured out the yeast and salt.



2. I measured out the water, making sure it was lukewarm and added it to the yeast and salt.

3. I added the flour and mixed with a rubber spatula and it was kind of hard to stir so I ended up using my hands.




This is what the dough looked like after stirring. This recipe makes 4 1-pound loaves. You may not be able to tell, but the dough is pretty wet and sticky.

4. Let the dough sit on the counter for 2 to 4 hours. After that you can bake a loaf or two or you can store it in the refrigerator. It will keep for 14 days.



This is what the dough looked like after sitting on the counter 2 hours covered. See the bubbles from the yeast doing its work? At this point, I could have cut a 1-pound piece and shaped it to go in the oven but I didn't need it just yet so I covered it and put it in the refrigerator overnight.

5. To make my loaves for dinner, I took my doughs out of the refrigerator (I also made a batch of the Light Whole Wheat loaf recipe). I put some cornmeal on some waxed paper (I don't have a pizza peel). I floured the surface of the dough and cut a 1-pound piece from it and shaped it into an oval and placed it on my make-shift pizza peel. I then slashed the loaves three times each.

6. About 10 minutes later, I preheated the oven to 450 degrees with my Pampered Chef stone cookie sheet. Once the oven reached 450 (about 25 minutes), I slid my loaves onto the hot stone and poured some hot water into a pan on a lower rack to create steam. I set the timer for 30 minutes...and Voila!
The one on the left is the Master Recipe for French-style Boule and the one on the right is the Light Whole Wheat version. The regular version is much prettier, don't you think? I think it's because whole wheat flour absorbs more water making it a little more difficult to shape smoothly.
The verdict? It was very easy and it tasted yummy. A little on the dense side but I think it's because I didn't let the dough sit on the counter long enough after shaping. I will definitely be making my own from now on. My guest thought it was great so I packed up the unused doughs for him to bake at home. Success, indeed.