Tommaso's Italian Bread in Ten Steps
Wait, that's not bread! That's a pan?
How about that? The bread guru and my dear friend Tommaso Murri has been kind enough to share his oh-isn't-this-just-marvelous bread recipe with us. While making bread takes a lot of time (actually, it takes much more of that unquantifiable thing called "patience"), it is well worth the hours. Not only is homemade bread better than most store-bought bread, it can also be very relaxing to prepare. Moreover, bread making provides a great sense of accomplishment--just wait until you pull the loaves from the oven. And what do you need to make Tommaso's bread? Two large bowls. Measuring cups and spoons. Bread flour. Yeast. Salt. Olive oil. Water. Plastic wrap. A rolling pin. A dish towel. A serrated knife. An atomizer--and no, not what they have at CERN; if you don't have one, a spray bottle will do. You will also need a bread pan for four loaves (see the image). Each depression in the pan should measure three inches wide. Here's the recipe in ten steps:
1) Grease a large bowl with oil and set aside. (Put on your favorite music.)
2) Pour two and a half cups of warm (not hot) water in the other bowl. Add two packets (or four and a half teaspoons) of dry yeast and two teaspoons of salt. (Start singing.)
3) Add five cups of bread flour. Note, slowly add the flour: The first three cups, one cup at a time. Then add half of a cup at a time, stirring in each thoroughly as you go. Dough will get hard to handle when you have all five cups in the bowl. (Invite others to sing along.)
4) Remove the dough from the bowl and place on the kitchen counter (or on dough board) and sprinkle with flour. Work the dough with your hands in order to absorb any remaining flour. When the ball gets sticky, sprinkle a few pinches of flour on it and work it until it is relatively dry. The dough is ready when you can push the heel of your hand in the dough, keep it there for ten seconds, and then remove it without the dough sticking to your hand.
5) Place the dough in the greased bowl. Move it around to assure that all sides are greased. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and then a dish towel. Allow the dough to rise until it forces against the plastic wrap--depending on the time of year and/or humidity, this could take as many as three hours.
6) Remove the dish towel and the plastic wrap, press the dough down, then cover again. Allow the dough to rise until it once again forces against the plastic wrap. This will likely take between an hour and an hour and a half.
7) Remove the dough from the bowl and divide it into four equal pieces. Knead each piece a bit, adding a little extra flour if necessary. Then, roll each out into flat pieces. Note: The dough will resist! But have no fear! Press on! (Turn to music for inspiration.)
8) Once flat, roll each in a spiral, much like a jelly roll. Place each in the bread-pan depressions.
9) Cover the pan with wrap and let the dough rise again, perhaps as long as an hour. Score the tops of the loaves with the serrated knife and cover again. Preheat your over to 425 degrees.
10) After the loaves have sat for an additional thirty minutes, spray lightly with water from the atomizer and place in the oven. After three, six, and nine minutes respectively, open the door and spray the tops of the loaves (do not remove the pan from the oven). After twelve minutes, turn the oven down to 400 degrees and bake for nineteen minutes. Remove the loaves and let cool. Either enjoy that day or freeze!
1) Grease a large bowl with oil and set aside. (Put on your favorite music.)
2) Pour two and a half cups of warm (not hot) water in the other bowl. Add two packets (or four and a half teaspoons) of dry yeast and two teaspoons of salt. (Start singing.)
3) Add five cups of bread flour. Note, slowly add the flour: The first three cups, one cup at a time. Then add half of a cup at a time, stirring in each thoroughly as you go. Dough will get hard to handle when you have all five cups in the bowl. (Invite others to sing along.)
4) Remove the dough from the bowl and place on the kitchen counter (or on dough board) and sprinkle with flour. Work the dough with your hands in order to absorb any remaining flour. When the ball gets sticky, sprinkle a few pinches of flour on it and work it until it is relatively dry. The dough is ready when you can push the heel of your hand in the dough, keep it there for ten seconds, and then remove it without the dough sticking to your hand.
5) Place the dough in the greased bowl. Move it around to assure that all sides are greased. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and then a dish towel. Allow the dough to rise until it forces against the plastic wrap--depending on the time of year and/or humidity, this could take as many as three hours.
6) Remove the dish towel and the plastic wrap, press the dough down, then cover again. Allow the dough to rise until it once again forces against the plastic wrap. This will likely take between an hour and an hour and a half.
7) Remove the dough from the bowl and divide it into four equal pieces. Knead each piece a bit, adding a little extra flour if necessary. Then, roll each out into flat pieces. Note: The dough will resist! But have no fear! Press on! (Turn to music for inspiration.)
8) Once flat, roll each in a spiral, much like a jelly roll. Place each in the bread-pan depressions.
9) Cover the pan with wrap and let the dough rise again, perhaps as long as an hour. Score the tops of the loaves with the serrated knife and cover again. Preheat your over to 425 degrees.
10) After the loaves have sat for an additional thirty minutes, spray lightly with water from the atomizer and place in the oven. After three, six, and nine minutes respectively, open the door and spray the tops of the loaves (do not remove the pan from the oven). After twelve minutes, turn the oven down to 400 degrees and bake for nineteen minutes. Remove the loaves and let cool. Either enjoy that day or freeze!