Homemade bread, because it is so easy to make

After rather a long pause, I am back again with some new, delicious and easy recipes. I took some time from writing, but not from cooking... trying new recipes, experimenting in my kitchen and spoiling my boys with nice and delicious food.

Today we are going to make bread. Yes, yes bread..... you probably do think right now why, why shall I make bread... well homemade bread is the best if you ask me and does not have to be very difficult to make. After you will try this recipe you will agree to everything I wrote above. Now the recipe is done within couple of minutes, the only thing you would need is a bit of a resting time. After you make the dough, it shall rest for about 8-10 hours, overnight if you would like to have the bread for breakfast or you make the dough early in the morning and have a delicious bread for dinner. 

I made this bread to bring along for brunch at our friends place, I made it for my boys for a cosy and lazy Friday evening and for a special weekend breakfast. The smell around the house is heavenly and the smiles on the faces of your loved ones unbeatable.

The crust is another unbeatable feature of this bread... as it will be baked in a dutch oven pot. Is crust also your favorite part of the bread? When I was a kid my mom would often send me to buy bread. On the way home, I would not be able to resist to take one or two bites of the bread crust, well maybe a bit more. By the time I would return home, half of the bread crust would be gone. At first my mom would argue with me, explaining me that this is not a good thing to do. Over the time she would give up on her arguments and simple ask me to buy two loafs of bread instead, making sure the rest of the family can enjoy some of the bread crust too...

Freshly made bread does not to have much to be served with, in our little family we do enjoy it with some butter. I would pep it up with some flavors to make it extra special.

 Homemade bread

• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon dry yeast
• 2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil (optional)

In a bowl mix flour, yeast , sugar and salt. Pour in the water and oil. Mix everything together with a wooden spoon till all dry ingredients are wet (no need to over mix here). Wrap the bowl with a clear film foil and let it rest over night... in the refrigerator or on the kitchen counter.

Preheat the oven to 200 C. Put your dutch oven with the lid on into the oven too, making sure it will get very hot. Take the dough out of the fridge, you will find it very bubbly and sticky.... exactly how it supposed to be. Flour your working board (I add some poppy seeds to the flour...to add some more flavor to the bread). Using a spatula, scrap the dough out of the bowl on the floured working board. Take a scraper and fold the dough couple of times from the edges to the middle (since the dough is so sticky the scraper makes it easier to handle the folding part). Take the dough ball and place it on the baking paper, then back into the bowl... while you are waiting the dutch oven to get very hot. 

Take the dutch oven out of the oven (use oven gloves), place the dough (with baking paper) into the hot pot and put the lid on. Bake for about 30 minutes. Take the pot out and check on the bread... if the bread appears to pale, take away the lid and put it back into the oven for 5 more minutes. Take the bread out of the dutch oven and let it cool on the cooling rack. Serve it with pure butter or flavored butter...

Lemon and chives butter

• 100 g butter (softened)
• salt
• zest of a lemon
• finely chopped chives

Mix all the ingredients till all well combined

Honey butter

• 100 g butter (softened)
• 1-2 tablespoons honey

Give it a mix, not too much, so you still will have some honey buckets in there (marbled look)

Enjoy!