Dutch Oven Artisan Bread

Happy Monday, Friends! As promised, I'm sharing the artisan bread I baked in the new-to-me Dutch oven I scored at a yard sale recently. I intentionally used my favorite no-knead bread recipe to compare the Dutch oven results--come see what I learned

You can read more about the fabulous vintage Dutch oven I scored for $5, here! Before I share the simple recipe, here are a few things you need to know. First, you can bake the bread within a few hours of mixing the dough or if you prefer, refrigerate overnight to bake the following day. Next, you will need to preheat the Dutch oven to get the desired crusty texture. I preheated mine for 45 minutes at 425 degrees with the lid placed separately on the oven rack, allowing both pieces to heat more evenly. Finally, if you place the bread dough on parchment paper to form the loaf, you can transfer both into the Dutch oven when you are ready to bake the bread.

Ingredients:

2 cups warm water

1 pack yeast

1 teaspoon salt

4 cups flour 

Above are the only ingredients you'll need to make this crusty artisan bread. You may notice it is almost identical to the whole wheat bread recipe I shared a few months ago. However, this time I used 3 cups of whole wheat flour and 1 cup of all purpose flour.  I will also note that the Dutch oven improved the overall bread texture and is now my preferred method for bread baking!

Ready to get baking? Dissolve the yeast in the water and stir in the salt. Gradually add the flour until it is mostly smooth. It's okay if the dough is slightly lumpy. Cover and allow to rise at least 2 hours. Preheat the Dutch oven for 45 minutes as mentioned in the previous paragraph. Place dough on parchment paper that has been sprinkled with flour to form the round or oval loaf depending on the shape of your Dutch oven. Once the Dutch oven has preheated, transfer the parchment paper and loaf and bake the bread covered at 425 degrees for 30 minutes, then remove the lid and bake an additional 10 minutes for the desired crusty texture. Allow to cool before slicing. Enjoy!