Niki Louca from My Greek Kitchen shares her favourite recipe for the easiest five-minute Artisan Bread with The Greek Herald. You can follow her on Instagram @mygreekkitchen for more!
Ingredients:
- 1 kg strong bread flour
- 2 tsp dry yeast
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp EVVO
- 3 ¼ – 3 ½ cups warm water
Method:
- Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl except for the salt and only 3 cups of the water to start off with. Stir with the back of a wooden spoon and slowly add the remainder of the water – now add your salt and stir again till incorporated. You should have a wet and loose dough and will not be able to handle/shape into a ball. Do not knead.
- Cover with glad wrap or a loose lid and allow to rest and rise (anything between 2-4 hours). If the dough is not rising, move it to a warm spot in your kitchen and cover with a tea towel. Once it has risen, place in your fridge overnight.
- The next morning, remove from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature – about an hour or so.
- Pre-heat your oven to 220C/450F for a minimum of 30 minutes.
- When you are ready to bake, place your dutch oven and/or baking trays in the oven for a minimum of 15 minutes to warm up as well.
- Sprinkle your work surface with a little bit of flour and scrape dough out of your bowl. Sprinkle some more flour on the top of the dough and with your scraper divide dough into 2.
- Shape each piece into a ball and transfer to some baking paper. Place dough and baking paper on your tray or Dutch oven and place in the oven. Repeat for the second piece.
- Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until dark golden colour. Tap the bottom of the loaf and listen for a hollow sound. When done, remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Allow to cool down before you cut it.
Niki Louca runs cooking classes in Melbourne. For more or to book classes visit My Greek Kitchen at www.mygreekkitchen.com.au or Instagram @mygreekkitchen. You can email Niki at: niki@mygreekkitchen.com.au.
