Basic Rustic Bread

Growing up, we always had fresh bread (pain maison) in the house every morning. They came in individual sizes with a signature slit in the middle that's so typical of this type of bread. The crust - perfect and rustic. The crumb - soft and has a good bite. Pain maison was the staple of all breads.

This recipe is reminiscent of pain maison. It's effortlessly glorious and rustic. This is the only bread recipe that I make by hand. It doesn't take kneading at all. Roughly mix all the ingredients in the order below in a very large mixing bowl. Don't worry about getting all the ingredients to distribute evenly. The whole process is a matter of a few minutes only. Wet your hands towards the end to make things easier.

This recipe makes about 5 medium size loaves. I usually bake two loaves and refrigerate the rest. This way, I can have fresh bread for the rest of the week!

Dough:

• 3 cups warm water
• 1 1/2 tbsp yeast
• 1/2 cup rye flour (or substitue for another type of flour you've been dying to try like semolina flour, spelt or kamut)
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 5 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp salt
  

Leave the dough to rest for a couple of hours or until doubled in size. To make a loaf, sprinkle some flour on the surface of your dough and cut off a piece of dough (size of a grapefruit). Flour your hands and stretch the surface of the dough gently and around to the bottom. This will help smooth the surface of the dough. Pinch the dough closed at the bottom and let it rest on a well floured surface (or sheet lined with parchment paper) for 40min.

You can either use up the rest of the dough by making additional loaves or refrigerate it for use later.

Baking:
Organize 2 shelves in your oven. One in the middle and the other in the bottom third of the oven. If you have a pizza stone, place on the middle rack. Preheat to 450 F while your dough is resting. When ready, sprinkle some flour on your dough, slash the top a few times and slide your dough on the middle rack. Add a pan with a cup of boiling water on the lower rack to add steam to your oven. Bake for 40 min.

There they are! Golden and fabulous.

If you can resiste the temptation, let the loaves cool down completely before tearing into them. The crumb will be much better. Reheat your bread slightly if you want to have it warm later.

You can add more flavour to your bread by stretching the dough like you would a pizza dough and adding a few toppings like herbs, nuts etc. Try oregano, few chunks of fresh figs, garlic and sharp cheddar cheese. I won't even mention waiting till the bread cools down completely : ) May I suggest pairing this warm bread with a creamy Bleu d'Auvergne?... ah, so delicious. Perhaps I've lost a few of readers at the mention of blue cheese? mmm...

One last thing, if taking dough from the refrigerator, cut off a piece of dough, shape and let come to room temperature for about 45min before baking.