tirsdag 20. mai 2014

Simple no knead bread - so easy that even your husband can make it!



You cannot have avoided the constant feed of no knead breads that practically have been scattered on all food blogs and social media over the last years. A courtesey to Jim Lahey in New York and Mark Bittman in New York Times for so successfully having awakened the interest of artisanial bread since 2006. Since then the recipe has lived it's own life in millions of homes around the world, with countless versions developed over time. It is fascinating when something is so simple and yet so good, requiring a minimum of equipment. All it takes is a little bit of time, but with a limited active effort.


Easy to make (so easy even your husband might give it a try), tasteful and versatile
- if you haven't yet given it a try you definitely should.  I had given up bread making until I  attended the release of a Swedish no-knead-book in 2010 - and since then I can't remember having bought bread one singe time.  I promise - if I can make it - so can you and you will not be disappointed next Saturday when you start your day with a long breakfast featuring this delicious and simple no knead.

This recipe can be varied in a number of ways, and I will include some suggestions on the blog in later posts.

Basic no knead bread
3 dl room cold/tempered water
5 g fresh yeast
5-10 g salt
6,5 dl wheat flour

Dissolve the yeast in the water and mix in the wheat flour and salt. No need to knead - all you have to do is make sure the dough is somewhat smooth. 1 minute should do the trick. The dough should be moist, but not to sticky. The consistency will depend on the flour and some types might require more or less than 6,5 dl.

Leave the dough to rest over night under a kitchen towel or cling film. The dough should now have doubled in size and developed a rich flavor. Take the dough out of the bowl and stretch it carefully, creating a rectangular that you fold into an envelope like bread. Leave to rest for at least an hour with the "seam" down on a baking sheet or similar dusted with flour. When the bread has yet again risen turn it upside down, now with the seam (what's left of it anyway) upwards.

Make sure that your oven is pre-heated to 250 centigrades with the baking plate inside. Shuffle the bread onto the baking plate and bake for 30-40 minutes, adjusting the heat downwards after 10-15 minutes if you see that the colour is getting too dark. The bread is finished when it makes a hollow sound when you knock on it, the crust should be crisp and the colour golden.

Rumor has it that the bread gets even better if you also have a baking plate furthest down in the oven and add a small amount (maybe 0,5 dl) of water when inserting the bread. I would say it doesn't make the largest difference to me, but I prefer to do it anyway. Better safe than sorry. 

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