No-Knead, No-Problem!

I hear that a lot of folks have been baking as part of their corona virus experience.  I have been, too—though with a few exceptions (looking at you Birthday Month!), it has been almost exclusively bread, not sweets.  

No-Knead Bread with Cornmeal and Poppy Seeds

I re-discovered a no-knead bread recipe that I made pretty regularly for a while years back.  I’ve spent the last four months tweaking and playing around with it--swapping ingredients, changing ratios.  They’ve all been good loaves and we’ve enjoyed all the taste testing.  

I can’t begin to tell you how much I’m a fan of no-knead bread.  I find it to be so easy, so tidy, and so fast in comparison with kneading bread.  I only use one bowl.  My countertops and hands never get gooey or sticky with dough.  And I still get fresh bread!!!!  I love it.

Matt is the bread artist at our house.  He is the one who nurtures starters and does long-rise or long-fermentation.  He uses proofing baskets and kneads for three to five minutes at a time.  In contrast, I am a purely a purely functional bread baker.  Just give me something I can slap in the toaster and I am happy.  As such, I basically only make no-knead breads.  Some people find them a little dense, but I don’t mind.   I think that makes it better for toast, in fact.  Really though, I like bread pretty much anyway you slice it.  (Pun intended!)

For a long time my go-to recipe was the Easy Oatmeal Bread, but it never became Matt’s favorite.  He thinks it is too short; that it doesn’t get enough rise.  This one meets with Matt’s approval and is just as easy.

The cornmeal enhances the crust texture-wise, as well as making it a lovely light golden color.  

I sprinkle seeds over the top of the dough when I set it out to rise in the baking tin.

No-Knead Bread with Cornmeal - Makes One Loaf

2 ½ cups flour

¾ cup cornmeal

1 ½ cups warm water

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1 ½ teaspoons yeast

1 tablespoon olive oil

poppy seed, sesame seed, etc., to sprinkle on top of loaf

• Add the yeast to the warm water and let it sit for a couple of minutes to activate.
• Combine the salt and flour in a large bowl.
• Add the water-yeast mixture to the bowl.
• Combine thoroughly using a stiff spoon so that you can scrape the sides and fold in all the loose flour, working until it forms a ball.  This is all the "kneading" the bread gets so I make sure it is all well combined all the way through.
• Drizzle oil over the ball and, using the spoon, rotate the dough around so that all of it gets a light coating.
• At this point you have two options:
  a) shape the dough and let it raise for 1.5-2 hours.  I use a standard bread tin, but it is also possible to do a free-form loaf.
  OR
  b) refrigerate the dough for later use.  This is a great option, especially when the recipe is doubled.  I like to bake half fresh and save half to bake fresh a few days later.  To use the refrigerated dough: Take the chilled dough out an hour or two before the desired baking time.  Then, shape, raise, and bake as below.
• Bake in an oven preheated to 450 degrees F.  Bake for 30-45 minutes, until the crust is golden.  If desired, sprinkle poppy seeds or other small seeds on top of the loaf prior to baking.
• Remove from oven and let rest for three-five minutes.  Don't wait longer though or the loaf steams in the pan and loses the crispness of the crust.
• Remove the loaf from the baking tin and allow to cool on a cooling rack before slicing.

No-Knead Bread with Cornmeal and Poppy Seeds

I was pleasantly surprised to learn that—even though I feel like I’ve been eating more and moving less over these past few months—I’ve managed to maintain my weight throughout the whole thing.  Bread baking, stress, closed gyms, and all.  That feels almost as big an accomplishment as perfecting this bread.  😆