If It Snows, I Bake Bread

Jim Lahey's My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method is one of my go-to recipe books.

We were expecting snow this morning. Before I left for work yesterday morning, I prepped two recipes from Jim Lahey's book.

The first was the basic 18-Hour Bread.

The second was Walnut Bread, Pan co' Santi. For this loaf, I made 1/2 the recipe so we have enough for breakfast for this week.

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18-Hour No Knead Bread

Ingredients-

3 cups (400 grams) bread flour

1 1/4 teaspoons (8 grams) salt

1/4 teaspoon (1 gram) yeast

1 1/2 cups (300 grams) water

extra flour, wheat bran or cornmeal for dusting (I use cornmeal)

Method-

Mix all the dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  

Add water and incorporate by hand or with a wooden spoon or spatula for 30 seconds to 1 minute.  The dough will be shaggy.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for at least 18 hours.

Remove the dough from the bowl and fold once or twice.  

Let the dough rest 15 minutes in the bowl or on the work surface.  

Next, shape the dough into a ball.  

Cover the dough and let it rise 1-2 hours, until more than doubled in size.

Heat the oven to 450°F.  

Place a ceramic-covered Dutch oven in the oven at least 30 minutes before baking to heat it.  

Once the dough has more than doubled in volume, place it on parchment paper that has been dusted with flour, wheat bran, or cornmeal.

WITH POTHOLDERS, remove the pot from the oven and place the dough inside, seam side up.  You can carefully cut a slit across the top with a sharp knife or bread-slashing lame ( this item is on my wish list).

If there is overhanging paper, trim the parchment paper.

Cover with the lid and bake 30 minutes.

Remove the lid and bake another 15-30 minutes until the loaf is nicely browned.

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Walnut Bread, Pan co' Santi

Ingredients for full-sized loaf-

3 cups (400 grams) flour (we use King Arthur Bread Flour)

1/2 cup (85 grams) raisins

1/2 cup (50 grams) chopped walnuts

1 1/4 tsp (8 grams) salt (we use kosher salt)

3/4 tsp (2 grams) cinnamon

1/2 tsp (2 grams) yeast

Pinch black pepper

1 1/2 cups (350 grams) cool water

extra flour, wheat bran or cornmeal for dusting

Method-

Mix all the dry ingredients in a medium bowl.  

Add water and incorporate by hand or with a wooden spoon or spatula for 30 seconds to 1 minute.  

Add water and incorporate by hand or with a wooden spoon or spatula for 30 seconds to 1 minute.  The dough will be shaggy.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for at least 18 hours.

Remove the dough from the bowl and fold once or twice.  

Let the dough rest 15 minutes in the bowl or on the work surface.  

Next, shape the dough into a ball.  

Cover the dough and let it rise 1-2 hours, until more than doubled in size.

Heat the oven to 450°F.  

Place a ceramic-covered Dutch oven in the oven at least 30 minutes before baking to heat it.  

Once the dough has more than doubled in volume, place it on parchment paper that has been dusted with flour, wheat bran, or cornmeal.

WITH POTHOLDERS, remove the pot from the oven and place the dough inside, seam side up.  You can carefully cut a slit across the top with a sharp knife or bread-slashing lame ( this item is on my wish list).

If there is overhanging paper, trim the parchment paper.

Cover with the lid and bake 30 minutes.

Remove the lid and bake another 15-30 minutes until the loaf is nicely browned.