Prep Time 20 minutes - Total Time 4 hours - Makes 1 loaf
Bread has to be one of the most bought items from a shop, but have you ever thought of making your own? You will be surprised how easy and how satisfying it is, plus it's cheaper then buying it from a shop.
Ingredients
500 g flour 00 or strong white flour.
7 g sachet of fast action yeast.
1 tsp of salt.
1 tsp of caster sugar.
1 tsp of olive oil.
280 ml of slightly warm water.
Method
First start by pouring the water, yeast, olive oil and sugar in a jug and give it a good mix, leave to stand for 10 minutes.
In a large bowl mix the flour, salt and make a well in the middle. Now gradually pour in the yeast mix and combine with the flour using a fork. Once all the yeast mix is added you can pour the dough out onto a worktop and knead for 10 minutes.
Shape the dough and place into a large floured bowl. Cover with clingfilm or a damp tea towel and leave in a warm place until double in size, anything between 1-2 hours.
Once the dough has doubled in size knock it back and once again shape, cover and leave to double in size again.
Whilst the dough is doing its thing get a large ovenproof dish with a lid and pop onto middle shelf a preheated oven set at 200℃ (with the lid on) and leave for a least an hour to get really hot.
Once the dough is ready carefully remove the dish from the oven and place the dough inside. Make a couple of cuts on the top of the dough, splash with some water pop the lid back on and back into the oven for 30-35 minutes. To check if the bread is baked it should sound hollow when tapped underneath.