Hearth Bread

This bread is an easy to make hearth bread with a hard crust and soft inside. It does take some time to make, but not a lot of effort. Because of the time it takes to make, the bread has a slight sour flavor, similar to a mild sour dough. It is wonderful with jam/jelly or with soup. It is also great on it's own.


Note: The photos in this instructable show the use of a mixer;however, I have made this bread for years by hand.

Step 1 Igredients

INGREDIENTS:
5 cups of flour (unbleached all purpose works well)
2 cups of warm water (100-110 degrees F)
2 teaspoons yeast (instant or dry)
2 teaspoons salt

Comments

[DanYHKim]

Scoring the bread may help it rise more fully in the oven by relieving the tension of the bread's outer surface. Gas pockets within the dough will expand in the heat, and a scored loaf will have larger holes and maybe a softer texture.

[fgibbs]

Yes, scoring does allow the bread to rise and expand while cooking. You can score the loaf in different designs but if you don't score it, the loaf will rip at the weakest point. It is not pretty!

[obax17]

Just wondering, since I've never made bread before, if it gets left to rise longer than the times you give, is it a problem? I want to try making this this weekend, but will be in and out throughout the day and don't know if I can meet those times exactly. Thanks!

[fgibbs]

I have never had any problems due to letting the dough rise longer than the recommended time. In fact, in cooler temperatures, it may need extra time to rise.

[obax17]

ok cool. It turned out a bit bland, but then, I did forget the salt, and it was the first time I ever made bread. I'll give it a couple more goes before I give up and go back to store bread :)