Snow, Bread and Boule! An Artisan Weekly Make and Bake Rustic Bread Recipe
Snow, Bread and Boule!
An Easy Artisan Weekly Make and Bake Rustic Bread Recipe
Snow, Bread and Boule! An Artisan Weekly Make and Bake Rustic Bread Recipe
The snow arrived in soft fluttering flakes and settled as fast as anuninvitedguest at the tea-table! The light was bright and the snow-bound garden had that eerie muffled silence that the snow always brings with it.The Aga and fire were lit, the house and kitchen were toasty warm, the cat lay curled up on the sofa and the smell of bread softly stole through the house, its yeasty fragrance soseductive and welcoming. What else is one to do whenhouseboundon a snowy day but bake? Cakes and biscuits are all very well, but one needs and desires a fresh loaf – the crust begging to be broken……fluffy inside and ripe for the butter knife (does one still have butter knives? I know I do, but think they may be a thing of the past now). And, that is just what I did today, baked bread and then scoffed it with greed as well as sporting a buttery chin.
Snowy Scarborough Seafront
This bread recipe is an absolute winner; sometimes called “Hearth Bread”, the dough is made ahead of time and then used as and when you fancy a freshly baked loaf of bread. This is the trick ~ make up a large batch of rustic artisan style bread dough, store it and then bake a loaf each day you need fresh bread, amazing but true. This is a “hodge podge” of old-fashioned English and French rustic bread recipes; the bread dough is made up ahead of time and stored (in the old days) in an earthenware crock or bowl, with a lid. You tear off a piece of the dough as and when you want to bake a loaf of bread. Easy! You can add other types of flour to the basic white batch, as long as the dry ingredient to liquid ratio remains the same – you can mix rye or whole wheat flour with the white, or add herbs, onions, seeds, fruit and other flavourings…..thepossibilitiesareendless.
Snow, Bread and Boule! An Artisan Weekly Make and Bake Rustic Bread Recipe
The dough can be used as soon as the initial proving has finished, but it will keep in a cool place or a fridge for a week or two – I do not recommend longer than 2 weeks however. The dough can be used for free form bread loaves, in bread tins, as rolls or other shapes…..or for a Boule, as I made today, one of my favourite types of French bread and ideal for slicing for toast and sandwiches.I notice that this type of long-term or long-life bread dough has made a revival in a book called “Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day”; this recipe however, is a very old technique and method, dough was always made up for the week and then kept in the cold room or pantry for daily baking. My grandmother who lived in a 600 year old cottage in Northern England, used to have a stone slab in the Pantry where she kept her crock and dough, I remember sticking my finger in it!!
Image: Snow across the Wolds, near to High Hunsley, East Riding of Yorkshire, Great Britain. Photo by Dr Patty McAlpin
This recipeyieldsabout 4 to 5 loaves of bread, depending on the weight and shape of the bread that you bake, and can also be kept in a cool pantry in between bakingsessions.It’s an easy recipe and is also very handy to know that you have some of this tucked away for that emergency “snowy day” loaf of bread, or just BREAD! I hope you enjoy this recipe if you make it, do let me know and ask if you need any tips about the method. Have a warm and happy Tuesday, see you later with cakes, salads, books and a new giveaway. Karen
Snow, Bread and Boule! An Easy Artisan Weekly Make and Bake Rustic Bread Recipe
Weekly Make and Bake Rustic Bread
Print recipe
| Serves | 4 to 5 bread loaves |
| Prep time | 2 hours, 40 minutes |
| Cook time | 30 minutes |
| Total time | 3 hours, 10 minutes |
| Allergy | Wheat |
| Dietary | Vegetarian |
| Meal type | Bread, Breakfast, Side Dish, Snack |
| Misc | Child Friendly, Freezable, Pre-preparable, Serve Cold, Serve Hot |
| Occasion | Barbecue, Birthday Party, Casual Party, Christmas, Easter, Formal Party, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Valentines day |
| Region | British |
| By author | Karen S Burns-Booth |
This is a “hodge podge” of old fashioned English and French rustic bread recipes; the bread dough is made up ahead of time and stored (in the old days) in an earthenware crock or bowl, with a lid. You tear a piece of the dough off as and when you want to bake a loaf of bread. Easy!
Ingredients
- 900g strong white bread flour
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 2 x 7g sachets dried fast action yeast (or 25g fresh yeast, added to a little warm water with 1 teaspoon honey or sugar)
- 650mls tepid water
Note
This is a “hodge podge” of old fashioned English and French rustic bread recipes; the bread dough is made up ahead of time and stored (in the old days) in an earthenware crock or bowl, with a lid. You tear a piece of the dough off as and when you want to bake a loaf of bread. Easy!You can add other types of flour to the basic white batch, as long as the ratio remains the same – you can mix rye or whole wheat flour with the white, or add herbs, onions, seeds, fruit and other flavourings.
Directions
| Step 1 | Pour the warm water into a large mixing bowl – the water should be tepid or hand warm – NOT too hot, as it will kill the yeast. |
| Step 2 | Add the yeast to the water and then the salt, mix well. |
| Step 3 | Add ALL the flour and mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon or a dough hook until all the ingredients are amalgamated – NO need to over knead. |
| Step 4 | Leave the bread dough in the mixing bowl and cover loosely – I use a shower cap to cover my dough! (That is NOT used as a shower cap any more, I hasten to add!) |
| Step 5 | Allow to prove for 2 hours, or until doubled in size. |
| Step 6 | The dough can now be stored in the fridge or you can use the dough to make a loaf of bread immediately. |
| Step 7 | If baking a loaf of bread now, pre-heat the oven and place a baking sheet or pizza tray in there. Tear off a large ball, about the size of a small melon, and knead it for about 1 minute with floured hands and on a floured board, Shape it as desired (Rolls, Cob, Cottage Loaf, Boule, Baguette or Bannette etc) or place it in a greased and floured loaf tin. Allow to prove and rise for a further 20 to 30 minutes. Slash the surface with a sharp serrated knife if you wish, see photos. You can add a glaze or special finish at this point. |
| Step 8 | Bake at 225C/450F for 30 minutes or until well risen, brown and the loaf sounds hollow when it is tapped on the underside. (If you wish, you can add a bowl of boiling water as soon as you put the bread into the oven – this steams and bakes the loaf to give a good chewy texture and keeps the inside moist.) |
| Step 9 | Remove the bread when baked and cool on a cooling rack. Serve warm with butter, cheese, jam, hams and cold cuts, or slice when cool for sandwiches. Also wonderful when toasted the next day. |
| Step 10 | Store the excess dough in the mixing bowl, loosely covered, in the fridge or somewhere cool until needed – this will keep for 2 weeks, but I find it has all gone by 7 to 10 days! This amount of dough will make between 4 and 5 loaves of bread, depending on the shape and amount of dough you use. |
Snow, Bread and Boule! An Easy Artisan Weekly Make and Bake Rustic Bread Recipe
I am entering this bread into Cake duch*ess’s Twelve Loaves challenge for January
Snow, Bread and Boule! An Easy Artisan Weekly Make and Bake Rustic Bread Recipe
Related Posts
Beer and Cheese Bread in a Crock
Baps, Bloomers and Barm Cakes - Celebrating British Bread Week with Rustic Flower Pot Bread Loaves
Think Pink! Real Bread: Beetroot and Walnut Bread Rolls Recipe
Cheese and Garlic Sourdough Bread
