This no knead rosemary parmesan bread looks like an artisanal loaf but it's so easy to make at home. Aromatic, flavourful, a crunchy top and soft, chewy inside.
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Equipment
Large mixing bowl
Wooden spoon
Dutch oven
Instructions
Combine the yeast sugar and warm water and mix well. Sit for 5-10 minutes until frothy.
Add flour, salt, rosemary and parmesan. Mix with a wooden spoon to a shaggy dough. This will be a sticky dough which is perfect. Don’t be tempted to add more flour, you won’t have to handle it too much.
Drizzle over the olive oil and turn the dough in the bowl to coat it all over. If you have a dough scraper, it’s handy here - rub it or your hands with a little oil first.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and rest in a warm spot for 45-60 minutes or until doubled in size. If you have a dough proving setting on your oven use that or under a warm lamp is good too. (The dough can be chilled for 12 or up to 48 hour instead of rising at room temp, then brought to room temperature 30 minutes before shaping).
DON’T punch the dough down. Oil your fingertips and, leaving the dough in the bowl, gently stretch and fold 4 sides into the center. Think of it as a compass. At the north side, reach your fingers down under the dough at the side of the bowl, stretch up slightly and fold into the centre. Turn it 90° and repeat with the new north. Do this for all 4 “sides”.
Repeat the stretch and fold 2 more times but instead of turning it 90°, for the first fold, just turn the bowl 45° so that you’re starting between 2 folds from the last time. Do the first stretch and fold, then turn 90° again each time.
Cover with plastic wrap again rest for 30-45 minutes until puffy and airy again.
While the dough rises, preheat oven to 230C (210C fan forced) / 450F. Place dutch oven with the lid on into the oven to preheat. If your house is cold, you can sit the dough in front of the oven while it heats.
When the oven is ready and the dough has doubled again, take two large pieces of baking or parchment paper and cross them over on top of each other. Tip the dough out onto the middle of the paper. Dust with just enough flour to help you shape it into a round shape, then sprinkle over the flaky sea salt.
Using oven mitts, remove the dutch oven from the oven, then carefully lift the dough using the corners of the bottom sheet of paper and lower it into the dutch oven - be careful not to touch the sides of the burning hot pan. Place the lid on top and bake 30 minutes.
Remove the lid and bake for a further 12-15 minutes until the crust is golden brown and cracked.
Serve with butter or olive oil and balsamic or cool and serve as sandwiches. Yum!
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Notes
Tablespoons: I use a standard Australian 20ml tablespoon (equal to 4 teaspoons). Check yours before measuring.
Rise time: While you could let this rise for as little as 90 minutes, a longer fermentation (aka overnight in the fridge) will give better flavour and a more chewy, holey texture to the bread. It will also give it a better crust.
Add-ins: See the post for more add-in ideas like sun dried tomatoes, roasted garlic and olives.
Nutrition details are approximate only - scroll below the recipe to find the full nutritional information.
Have you tried this recipe?Don't forget to leave a rating and comment below and let me know how it was! I love hearing from you. Nutrition information is approximate and derived from an online calculator. The brands you use may cause variations.