11-25-2009, 08:08 PM
All you potential bread bakers should check out a book called "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. Scrumtious bread that is sooooo easy. You mix the ingredients in the "master recipe" (no kneading), let it sit for 2 hours, then shape, rise and bake a loaf if you like. The recipe makes 4 1 lb loafs, so whatever you don't bake on day 1, you leave in the fridge for up to 2 weeks! The longer the dough sits in the fridge, the more "sourdough" flavor it develops. When you want bread with dinner, you scoop out a softball size lump of dough, shape it, let it rise for 45 minutes and bake. Using Jeff's baking method, the loaf comes out crusty and tasty! Once you've mastered the generic recipe, there are variations for making all kinds of breads and pastries using the same premise.