I found this Homemade Rustic Italian Bread recipe over at Knead to be Loaved. It looked so delicious and I love homemade bread! Following a homemade bread recipe and coming up with exactly the same results as another baker is often a difficult task. Oven temperatures and ingredients vary, so results vary.
I’m including the exact recipe from Knead to be Loaved in this post and adding my comments and possible changes when I make this bread again. The photos are my photos.
This loaf takes careful planning. It is made with a sponge, and that needs to be made one day ahead of baking. Most of the effort involved with making this homemade Italian bread is waiting for it to rise.
Rustic Italian Bread
For the sponge:
2 cups bread flour
1/4 tsp instant yeast
1 cup water, at room temperature
For the dough:
3 cups bread flour, plus extra for dusting
1 tsp instant yeast
1 1/3 cups water, at room temperature
2 tsp salt
For the sponge (or biga as it is called in Italian), combine the flour, water and yeast in a medium-sized bowl. Mix into a shaggy dough, then knead by hand for three minutes. Place back in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow it to sit at room temperature for 3 hours. Then, place in the refrigerator for at least 8 more hours, or up to 24 hours.
(Lightly spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level with a dough scraper or knife. Do not scoop or the flour measurement will not be the same as the recipe.)
The sponge after mixing yesterday and refrigerating over night
(I made the sponge yesterday and finished mixing and baking the bread today.)
For the dough, remove the sponge from the refrigerator and allow it to stand at room temperature while mixing the dough. Combine flour, yeast, and water and mix until the dough is shaggy. Knead by hand about 4 minutes. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it autolyse (rest) for 20 minutes.
Remove the plastic wrap and place the dough on the kneading surface. Sprinkle with half the salt. Take the sponge and place it on top of the dough. Knead together until the dough starts to become one big ball. Sprinkle the remaining salt into the dough. Continue to knead until the salt is incorporated and the two pieces of dough are virtually indistinguishable. Altogether, the kneading should take about 8-9 minutes. The dough will be soft and slightly sticky. Resist adding additional flour.
Dough made by combining sponge and dough made today
Lightly oil a bowl that is three times larger than the dough ball. Place the dough inside, and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a draft-free place until puffy and slightly risen, about one hour.
(Our kitchen was very warm today so the dough had no trouble rising. Summer temperatures got up to 110 degrees outside today.)
Remove the plastic wrap. With a dough scraper, and with the dough still in the bowl, scoop the left side of the dough up and fold it over half the top of the dough. This is called turning the dough. Repeat with the right side. Then repeat with the top of the dough. Cover, and continue to let the dough rise for one more hour.
Unwrap, and turn the dough again. Cover, and let the dough rise for another hour.
Lightly dust your work surface with flour. Turn the dough out of the bowl and onto the floured surface. The dough that was touching the bottom of the bowl should now be facing up.
Liberally dust the surface of the dough with flour, and dust your hands with flour as well. With minimal pressure and gentle hands, lightly push the dough into a roughly 8×10 square.
(Do not use too much flour on the work surface or the dough. You are forming the loaf and the extra flour gets rolled into the loaf causing white streaks if you use too much.)
For pictures of how to shape the loaf go to Knead to be Loaved.
Turn down the two corners of the square, as if to make a paper airplane.
Fold the point formed toward you, down toward the center of the dough
Continue rolling toward you, shaping the loaf into a log shape.
Once the loaf is in shape, continue to tuck the sides of the loaf under, so that it holds a sort of football shape.
(My loaf was log shaped. To get an even shaped loaf make sure it is symmetrical. My loaf changed shape with a slight bend during the final rising.)
Dust the shaped loaf of bread with flour, loosely cover with plastic wrap and allow it to rise one more hour.
Using a bread lame, or single-edged razor, slice a 1/2 inch deep lengthwise cut along the center of the bread.
My loaf after shaping and raising just before placing in the oven.
(I used a sharp knife to make the cut in the center of the loaf. I should have made the cut a little deeper.)
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Mist the loaf of bread with water (optional, but helps the bread form a shiny crust) and place in the oven.
Bake 35-45 minutes until the internal temperature hits 210 degrees and the bread sounds hollow when tapped from the bottom.
Loaf after removing from oven and brushing top with butter
(I baked my loaf at 425 degrees F, according to recipe directions, for 25 minutes and as you can see the top is too browned. I would recommend baking at 400 degrees F for 35-45 minutes but check for doneness after 30 minutes. For a crunchy crust do not brush with butter.)
Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Enjoy! Makes one large loaf of bread.
I would make this bread again. I like the flavor and the rustic texture. Tastes great plain or with pasta.
Eleisia
http://www.NotJustVanilla.com
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