Oh Bread & Honey, you are the source of all things delicious. Today I made a half batch of their Country Crust bread. I’ve made it before and it was wonderful THEN. Now it’s downright amazing because I’ve gotten it turn out golden and puffy TWICE. It’s a record. I like that you can (in theory) stick the dough in the fridge for up to four days… so I could do all the work one day and reap all of the benefits several days later. That’s my kind of style!
A few glamour shots. This load deserves it.
Can a loaf of bread pose for a camera? I think so.
Now, for the good part!
Country Crust Bread
From Bread & Honey
Ingredients:
2 packages active dry yeast
2 cups warm water (105 to 115 degrees)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon salt
2 eggs
1/4 cup oil
6 to 6 1/2 cups bread flour
soft butter or margarine
Directions:
Dissolve yeast in warm water. Stir in sugar, salt, eggs, oil, and 3 cups of the flour. Beat until smooth. Mix in enough remaining flour to make dough easy to handle. Turn dough onto lightly floured board; knead until smooth and elastic, 8 to 10 minutes. Place in a greased bowl; turn greased side up. (At this point, dough can be refrigerated for 3 to 4 days.) Cover; let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour (Dough is ready if impression remains.)
Punch down dough; divide in half. Roll each half into a rectangle, 18×9 inches. Roll up, beginning at short side. With side of hand, press each end to seal. Fold ends under loaf. Place seam side down in greased loaf pan. Brush loaves with a little oil. Let rise until doubled, about another hour.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place loaves on lower oven rack so that the tops of the pans are in the center of the oven. Pans should not touch each other or sides of oven. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until deep golden brown and loaves sound hollow when tapped. Remove from pans. Brush loaves with butter; cool on wire rack.
Makes two loaves.