Crispy Italian Bread

Name: Crispy Italian Bread
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: Flour: 5 cups; Sugar: 1 tsp; Active Dry Yeast: 2 and 1/4 tsp; Water: 2 cups; Olive Oil: 2 tbsp; Salt: 2 tsp

Cuisine:

Italian

Medium

Ingredients

5 cups Flour
all-purpose flour, measured and sifted
1 tsp Sugar
2 and 1/4 tsp Active Dry Yeast
one packet
2 cups Water
warm
2 tbsp Olive Oil
2 tsp Salt

Directions

The experience of making pizza dough lead me to try making Italian bread and focaccia bread using Vito Lacopelli’s All-In-One Pizza, Italian Bread and Focaccia Bread Recipe. Both the Italian bread and the focaccia bread came out good, which started me thinking about just trying to make a large loaf of crispy Italian bread (Something very hard to find in the Houston area due to the humidity).

After searching for a bit I came across this recipe. I made this crispy Italian bread and was VERY happy with the results. I’m sure I will be making this on a regular basis for the bread lovers in our family.

Also, you can use this little planner to help you make the bread for a specific time.

The link to the original recipe can be found here:

Crispy Italian Bread Recipe

Steps

1 Done	Place 2 cups of sifted flour, sugar and yeast into your stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl) and mix. Add 2 cups of very warm water, and on low speed mix for about 1 minute.
2 Done	Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let stand 1 hour or until bubbly. The picture shows what it should look like after an hour.
3 Done	Gently stir in the oil and salt. Stir in 3 cups of sifted flour.
4 Done	Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8-10 minutes. Knead by pushing the dough down and away from you with your right palm. Fold the dough back over, rotate 90 degrees, and repeat. You will need to add more flour until the dough no longer sticks to your hands. Once kneaded, the dough should be smooth and springy.
5 Done	Shape the dough into a ball by gently stretching the dough around and under from the sides. Do this with both hands on opposite sides of the dough, rotate and repeat to form a nice tight ball with a smooth top. Transfer the dough ball to a greased bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Let the dough rise for 1 hour (or until doubled in size). The dough is ready if an indentation remains when touched. The picture shows what should look like after this first proving.
6 Done	Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with butter. Put a little olive oil on your hands so that the dough doesn't stick to your hands. Place your palm over the top of the dough and turn the dough out onto your palm. Flip the dough down onto your work surface so that the top of the dough is once again on top. Shape the dough into an even and round loaf by again stretching the sides of dough downwards and under to make almost a smooth top (about 9 to 10 inches in diameter). Move the dough to the baking sheet.
7 Done	Run your hands under water and pat the top of the dough with water. Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and allow the dough to rise 1 more hour or until almost double in size.
8 Done	Add hot water to an 8x8 or 9x9 pan until about 1/2” from the top, and place on the bottom of the oven, not directly under the loaf. Heat the oven to 425°F. Make sure the water is boiling before you put the dough in the oven.
9 Done	Carefully, with a sharp knife, make 4 slashes on top of the loaf. The cuts should be no more then 1/4" deep. If you want to get creative you can try other patterns for different looks.
10 Done	Bake 35 to 45 minutes or until the loaf is a deep golden brown with crispy crust, and sounds hollow when tapped. Transfer the loaf to a wire rack to cool completely before cutting. NOTE: *** We baked ours for 40 minutes but put a sheet of aluminum foil over the loaf at about the 30 minute mark because the top looked like it was going to burn before the loaf fully cooked.