Well, the 5 minutes claim is a bit deceiving. I made this recipe from the cookbook Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day. I've tried 3 recipes from this book so far and they have all turned out great. My post for the basic boule can be found here. The hands-on time probably is about 5 minutes, the rest is waiting for the bread to rise or bake - with no kneading necessary. I made the dough for this bread a few days ago, let it rise 2 hours on the counter and placed the dough in the refrigerator until I had time to bake it - you can leave it in the fridge for up to 7 days. On baking day, pull the dough out of the fridge, shape it, roll it, fill it, and let it rest for a while in the loaf pan. Then place the loaf in the oven and wait for the delicious aromas to waft through the house! So, yes, it does take about 5 minutes to make the dough, and 5 minutes (maybe 10) to assemble on baking day, but you really cannot leave the house and go to work while the bread is rising or baking. You can, however, set the timer and go do other things around the house while the bread is doing its thing. A total of about 2 hours on dough-making day, and 3 hours on baking day for this recipe. This bread is fabulous toasted with a little butter.
Buttermilk Bread Dough
adapted from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day
2 cups lukewarm water
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt ( I will use a bit less next time)
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
6 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I use King Arthur brand)
1. Mix the yeast, salt, and sugar with the water and buttermilk in your heavy-duty stand mixer.
2. Mix in the flour all at once using the dough hook attachment.
3. Cover (not airtight), and allow to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and collapses (or flattens on top), approximately 2 hours. (I transfer the dough from the mixer bowl to a large dough bucket for rising and refrigerating.)
4. Refrigerate and use the dough within the next 7 days.
5. (Follow the instructions for cinnamon-raisin bread below at this point or continue with these directions if making a plain loaf.) On baking day, lightly spray a 9x4 loaf pan with cooking spray. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 1/2-pound piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Elongate the ball into an oval.
6. Drop the dough into the prepared pan. You want to fill the pan slightly more than half full.
7. Allow the dough to rest for 1 hour and 40 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Dust the loaf with flour and slash the top, using the tip of a sharp knife. Brush the top surface with melted butter.
8. Bake the bread near the center of the oven for about 45 minutes, or until golden brown.
9. Remove from the pan. Allow to cool completely before slicing.
Cinnamon-Raisin Bread
adapted from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day
1 1/2 pounds buttermilk bread dough (recipe above)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup raisins
egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water)
1. Spray a 9x4x3-inch loaf pan with baking spray. Set aside. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 1/2-pound (cantaloupe size) piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go.
2. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to an 8x16-inch rectangle about 1/4-inch thick, dusting the board and rolling pin with flour as needed. You may need to use a metal dough scraper to loosen rolled dough from the board as you are working with it.
3. Using a pastry brush, cover the surface of the dough lightly with egg wash. Mix together the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle the mixture evenly over the dough. Evenly distribute the raisins in a single layer over the dough.
4. Starting from the short side, roll it up jelly-roll style. Pinch the edges together, tucking the ends under.
5. Place the loaf seam side down in the prepared pan. Allow to rest 1 hour and 40 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from pan and allow to cool completely on a cooling rack before slicing.
Buttermilk Bread Dough
adapted from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day
2 cups lukewarm water
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt ( I will use a bit less next time)
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
6 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (I use King Arthur brand)
1. Mix the yeast, salt, and sugar with the water and buttermilk in your heavy-duty stand mixer.
2. Mix in the flour all at once using the dough hook attachment.
3. Cover (not airtight), and allow to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and collapses (or flattens on top), approximately 2 hours. (I transfer the dough from the mixer bowl to a large dough bucket for rising and refrigerating.)
4. Refrigerate and use the dough within the next 7 days.
5. (Follow the instructions for cinnamon-raisin bread below at this point or continue with these directions if making a plain loaf.) On baking day, lightly spray a 9x4 loaf pan with cooking spray. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 1/2-pound piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Elongate the ball into an oval.
6. Drop the dough into the prepared pan. You want to fill the pan slightly more than half full.
7. Allow the dough to rest for 1 hour and 40 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Dust the loaf with flour and slash the top, using the tip of a sharp knife. Brush the top surface with melted butter.
8. Bake the bread near the center of the oven for about 45 minutes, or until golden brown.
9. Remove from the pan. Allow to cool completely before slicing.
Cinnamon-Raisin Bread
adapted from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day
1 1/2 pounds buttermilk bread dough (recipe above)
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup raisins
egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water)
1. Spray a 9x4x3-inch loaf pan with baking spray. Set aside. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 1/2-pound (cantaloupe size) piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go.
2. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to an 8x16-inch rectangle about 1/4-inch thick, dusting the board and rolling pin with flour as needed. You may need to use a metal dough scraper to loosen rolled dough from the board as you are working with it.
3. Using a pastry brush, cover the surface of the dough lightly with egg wash. Mix together the sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle the mixture evenly over the dough. Evenly distribute the raisins in a single layer over the dough.
4. Starting from the short side, roll it up jelly-roll style. Pinch the edges together, tucking the ends under.
5. Place the loaf seam side down in the prepared pan. Allow to rest 1 hour and 40 minutes.
6. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from pan and allow to cool completely on a cooling rack before slicing.
When I have 5 minutes, can you help me make some bread?
ReplyDeleteMmmm, it's 10:30ish pm and I feel like making the cinammon-raisin bread right now.
ReplyDeleteGorgeous, tantalizing pics and lovely blog!