Dutch Oven Bread (No knead)

Recipe for No-Knead Bread, Prepared in a Cast Iron Dutch Oven

Crispy outside, chewy inside...just like
bread should be!

So simple to make, but the crust and crumb of this bread tastes like you spent all day in the kitchen, slaving over a hot oven!

What makes the dutch oven process work so well, is the steam that is created by placing your dough in a preheated cast iron dutch oven and then covering it to capture all that beautiful steam! The bread turns out as if it was cooked in a very expensive professional oven.

Recipe for Cast Iron Dutch Oven Bread:

3 cups warm (not hot) water
6 1/2 cups flour
1 Tbsp active dry yeast
1 Tbsp sea salt

• Prepare your dough in a large non-metal bowl, then cover the dough and let it rise for 4-6 hours or so. (Until it doubles in size).

• When your dough looks like it's about ready, set your oven to 450 degrees. Apply oil to the sides, top and bottom of the dutch oven. (I used coconut oil and a 6-quart size cast iron dutch oven) Place the prepared dutch oven into the oven to pre-heat for about 30 minutes.

• Back to your dough...with well-floured hands, gather up your dough and roll it into a ball. Set the dough onto a floured surface or a sheet of parchment paper and let it sit while the cast iron dutch oven is pre-heating.

• When the 30 minutes is up, carefully (that pan is HOT!) place the ball-o-dough into the dutch oven and bake covered for 30 minutes. (If you feel safer, you can simply place the parchment paper along with the dough into the preheated pan - simply omit the oil coating step.) When your timer goes off at 30 minutes, uncover and leave the bread in the oven for an additional 20 minutes.

• Take the dutch oven out of the oven and empty the bread on the cutting board or countertop to cool. This recipe makes one very large loaf, but it disappears fast!