Old World Italian Bread Food

MOM'S ITALIAN BREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the sugar, salt and 3 cups flour. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Stir in remaining flour to form a soft dough., Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour., Punch dough down. Turn onto a floured surface; divide in half. Shape each portion into a loaf. Place each loaf seam side down on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. , Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°. With a sharp knife, make 4 shallow slashes across top of each loaf. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

BASIC ITALIAN BREAD

Steps:

• Place the water and yeast in the bowl of an electric mixer and allow the yeast to bloom for about 5 minutes. Using a dough hook attachment, add the flour and sugar to the water and mix on low speed until a dough starts to form. Drizzle the oil and salt into the dough and beat on medium speed for 8 to 10 minutes, or until a smooth, firm, elastic dough is formed.
• Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and spray the dough with a thin coating of cooking spray. Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside to proof in a warm, draft-free place for 11/2 hours or until doubled in size. Remove the plastic wrap, punch down and flatten the rounded dough with the heel of your hand. Roll the dough up tightly, sealing the seam well after each roll. The dough should be elongated and oval-shaped, with tapered and rounded (not pointed) ends.
• Preheat the oven lined with a pizza stone to 425 degrees F. Alternately, an inverted baking sheet may be used in place of a pizza stone.
• Place the dough on a baker's peel heavily dusted with semolina flour, or cornmeal, or alternately on an inverted baking sheet. Allow the dough to proof, loosely covered with a damp towel, for 30 minutes, or until doubled in size. Brush the dough with the egg white and sprinkle the sesame seeds over the top. Using a razor blade or sharp knife, score 3 (1/4-inch deep) slashes across the top of the dough at a 45 degree angle.
• Spray the dough generously with water from a water bottle and place in the oven on the baking stone. Immediately close the oven and bake for 3 minutes. Open the oven door and spray the dough again with the water bottle. Close the oven door and bake for an additional 3 minutes before spraying the dough for a third time (the spraying of the dough will ensure a crisp golden brown crust). Bake the dough for 45 minutes, or until a hollow thud is heard when the bread is whacked with the bowl of a wooden spoon. Allow the bread to cool slightly before serving.

OLD WORLD ITALIAN BREAD

Steps:

• 1. In a large mixing bowl, add sugar, yeast, and warm water. Let proof for about 10-15 minutes. (Proofing is allowing the yeast to activate, you will see small bubbles come to surface of water, therefore letting you know your yeast is good & activated)
• 2. In separate bowl, add 4 cups of flour and salt, blend well & then add to water and mix with a dough hook. Beat at low speed for about 3-4 minutes, make sure to scrape the sides and mix into dough. Cover bowl with a towel and let rest for 15 minutes.
• 3. Gradually add in the remaining 3 cups of flour to make a stiff dough. You will have to knead by hand. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic. Kneading will take about 15 minutes, give or take a few. Shape dough into a ball and place into a lightly greased bowl, turning dough to coat complete surface of dough. Cover with a towel and place in a warm, draft-free space to allow dough to rise until doubled in size. Approximately an hour. TIP: I PLACE MY DOUGH IN THE OVEN ON TOP RACK. IN A LARGE SHALLOW PAN, IE:CAKE PAN, FILL WITH BOILING WATER AND PLACE ON BOTTOM RACK. CLOSE OVEN AND ALLOW DOUGH TO RISE. DO NOT TURN OVEN ON!
• 4. When dough has doubled in size, turn out on lightly floured surface and punch down, divide dough into two , and form into 2 balls, place back into greased bowl and cover and allow to rise for 15 minutes, doubled in size again.
• 5. Once doubled, punch down and form into 2 oblong balls. Grease 2 heavy baking sheets and sprinkle with cornmeal. Place dough on baking sheets. Preheat oven to. 375 degrees F NOTE: I MADE 3 SMALLER LOAVES FOR THE PURPOSE OF USING THIS BREAD IN ANOTHER RECIPE. WHICH YOU CAN TOTALLY DO IF YOU'D LIKE! JUST ALTER BAKE TIME BY APPROXIMATELY 5-8 MINUTES.
• 6. Whisk together egg white and tablespoon of water. Make diaginal cuts into dough about every 2 inches, 1/4 inch deep. Brush dough with eggwash over top and sides. Again, cover and allow to rise in a warm draft-free space until dough doubles in size. Approximately 30 minutes.
• 7. When ready to bake, remove cover from dough. Place a large shallow pan filled with boiling water in bottom rack of oven. Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes. Midway between baking, brush eggwash on top and sides of dough again. This helps give you that nice crispy crust with the soft center. Bread is done when you tap on crust and it has a hollow sound, and crust is golden brown. Allow to cool on cooling rack! But first you must test it by slicing a nice warm piece of bread and topping with fresh butter. Eat, if you die of delight, it's safe to share with family & friends! :)

BEST EVER ITALIAN BREAD

Steps:

• Stir the yeast into lukewarm water and set aside.
• Combine 5 cups flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add the yeast mixture, remaining water and olive oil. Using a dough hook attachment, mix on lowest speed of electric mixer (stir setting on a KitchenAid) until a dough starts to form, adding more flour as needed. Knead on low speed (2 on a KitchenAid) for 7 minutes. Transfer dough to lightly floured surface and need by hand for 1 to 2 minutes, or until a smooth, firm, elastic dough is formed.
• Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and spray the dough with a thin coating of cooking spray. Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside to proof in a warm place for 1½ hours or until doubled in size. I usually put mine in a SLIGHTLY warmed oven.
• Remove the plastic wrap, punch down and flatten the rounded dough with the heel of your hand. Roll the dough up tightly, sealing the seam well after each roll.
• Preheat the oven to 425°F and place an empty baking pan on bottom rack. This will be used later to create steam.
• Place the dough on a inverted baking sheet that has been dusted with flour. Cover with a towel, for 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
• Brush the dough with the egg white, and then slash the dough lengthwise about 1/4-inch deep in three spots.
• Place the pan of dough on the top rack, and pour a large cup of water into the warmed baking pan on the bottom rack.
• Bake for 45 minutes, or until a hollow thud is heard when tapping the bottom of the bread. Allow the bread to cool before slicing.