And lo, there was bread

[layla]

I just can't thank Jane enough for pointing me to this recipe for No-Knead Bread. Now, I'm thoroughly cooking-impaired, and I generally make bread that'll break your toes if you are unlucky enough to drop a loaf on your foot. But this came out perfect -- light, crispy, tasty, and incredibly easy. You need to start the night before in order to have bread the next day, but as long as you're not in a "must have bread NOW!" situation, it's fantastic.

It's been snowing intermittently since Thursday, so I'll console myself with bread. Sigh.

Comments

[vogelein.livejournal.com]

\o/ W00t! Another convert! It's really staggeringly easy, isn't it? It renewed my faith in baking, and I'm so glad it worked for you -- especially after your long and storied history with bread.

I've got about three loaves' worth of sourdough burbling away in the fridge now, and I will be baking them all in this manner. Soooooo goooood.

[laylalawlor.livejournal.com]

Making this batch of bread has actually given me an idea of where my problems with bread come from. I think I put in too much flour; somewhere along the way I got the idea that you're supposed to add flour until it's not sticky anymore, but from looking at this batch and then having Orion tell me how *he* makes bread (and his is usually better than mine) I think maybe I've just been making my dough too dense. Next time that I make bread the old way, I think I'll try a wetter dough and see if that's any better.

I also made a browner bread than the recipe called for (I used 2 cups all-purpose flour and one cup of wheat flour) and was very happy with the results. I was a little worried that it would make the bread come out flatter and denser than it was supposed to, but it didn't seem to have a negative effect.

[vogelein.livejournal.com]

I had the same problem! I made doorstop bread for years until I finally figured out that it was okay to have sticky dough.

I've made this with 100% spelt and 100% whole wheat, and while very tasty, the bread never seems to rise more than about three inches high. It's a big tasty pancake. So I'd stick with the 2:1 ratio; it seems to be the accepted best formula.

Also, with the cost of wheat flour doubling, home baking is really the only way to cut bread costs.

[pamola.livejournal.com]

When I baked, I was firmly in the Tassajara(http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/1-57062-089-X.cfm) camp as opposed to my wife who would do dryer doughs(her current bible is the King Arthur Flour Cookbook). I would create far heavier breads, but I suspect it was my reliance on whole wheat flour.