Best Hearth Bread Recipes

ROSE'S HEARTH BREAD

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, stir together flours, salt and yeast. Stir in water and honey. Knead dough until smooth and springy, but still slightly sticky. Add a little flour or water as necessary.
• Lightly brush oil inside of large bowl. Place dough in bowl, turning to oil all sides. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place about 1 hour or until doubled in size.
• Line cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper or lightly sprinkle with cornmeal. Gently push fist into dough to deflate. Shape dough into a round ball. Place on cookie sheet, cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place about 45 minutes.
• Place baking stone on lowest oven rack and heat oven to 475°F Carefully cut an X-shaped slash on top of dough; spray with cool water. Place cookie sheet in oven on baking stone; place one cup water in a shallow pan on the other rack.
• Bake 10 minutes; reduce oven temperature to 425°F Bake an additional 15-20 minutes or until bread is golden brown and skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely on a cooling rack.
• NOTE: Stir-ins can include: 1/4 cup of 1 or 2 of the following--Kalamata olives, roasted garlic cloves, cut-up sun-dried tomatoes, slice chives, shelled sunflower seeds, 1 teaspoon fresh or 1/2 teaspoon dried herbs such as rosemary or thyme.

FOCACCIA FARCITA (FILLED ITALIAN HEARTH BREAD)

Steps:

• Sprinkle yeast into 200ml of the water in a bowl.
• Let sit 5 mins; stir to dissolve.
• Mix about 3/4 of the flour with salt together in a large bowl.
• Make a well in the centre and pour in the yeasted water and olive oil.
• Mix in the flour.
• Stir in remaining water to make a sticky dough, using a wooden spoon.
• Add the remaining flour, if needed, 1 tablespoon at a time, to form a knead-able dough.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
• Knead until smooth, silky and elastic, about 10mins.
• (you can add more flour if necessary, 1 tablespoon at a time) Put the dough in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap/tea towel.
• Leave to rise until doubled, 1 1/2- 2 hours.
• Knock back and divide the dough into 2 equal pieces.
• Chafe for 5 minutes.
• Chafing: Form each piece into a ball by cupping your hands gently around it.
• Apply a light, downwards pressure to the sides, while simultaneously rotating the dough in a steady, clockwise motion.
• Continue until the dough forms an even, round shape.
• This action is called CHAFING.
• Leave to rest 10 minutes.
• Roll out each piece of dough into a 9 inch round.
• Place one round on an oiled baking sheet.
• Arrange the cheeses and basil on top, then seal the filling using the second round.
• Cover the dough loosely with a tea towel.
• Prove until doubled, about 30 minutes.
• Using your fingertips, lightly press into the surface of the dough to form dimples about 1/2 inch deep.
• Sprinkle with coarse salt and 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
• Top with rosemary sprigs.
• Bake in a preheated oven at 400°F/200°C for 30-45mins until golden.
• Drizzle immediately with remaining olive oil, and serve warm.
• Variation- use 1 lb cherry tomatoes (drizzle with 1 TB olive oil, season with salt and pepper, then bake at 400°F for 20 mins), 5 oz mozzarella and 4 oz rocket (arugula) as filling.

HEARTH BREAD

Steps:

• Mix flour, salt, soda, sugar and butter.
• Put in egg and sour milk and mix well.
• Turn out onto a breadboard and knead it a little, then put in a pan and bake.
• To a nice golden brown in a 350 oven 25-30 minutes.

FRENCH HEARTH BREAD

Steps:

• Dough Starter:.
• In a mixer bowl combine the 1 cup bread flour,1/4 cup wheat flour, 1/2 tsp yeast, honey and water.
• Whisk until smooth, about 2 minutes.
• Scrape down bowl. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Let ferment at room temperature for 1 hour up to 4 hours.Starter will have bubbled up and risen in the bowl.
• Flour Mixture:.
• Combine the 1 3/4 cups bread flour and the yeast.
• Add to the risen sponge in the mixing bowl.Do not add salt at this time.
• With the dough hook installed mix on low speed (# 2 on a Kitchenaid) for about one minute until you have a rough dough.
• Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for 20 minutes.
• Sprinkle on the salt at this stage and knead with dough hook (#4 speed) for about 7 minutes. Instant read thermometer plunged into the center should read 78 to 80 degrees.
• The dough should be very elastic, smooth and slightly sticky;If too sticky,add a little flour up to 1/4 cup. You can knead in any extra flour by hand after you remove the dough from the bowl.
• Let the dough rise in an oiled covered bowl until double at room temperature.
• Press the dough down, fold it over and let rise again for another l hour.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
• The dough may be formed into a ball or,placed in an 8 X 4 greased bread pan or rolled out to an oblong loaf.
• Free form loaves should be placed on a cookie sheet that has been sprinkled with flour or cornmeal.
• Cover the shaped dough and allow it to double. The freeform oblong loaf should be 8" by 3"inches high. In the loaf pan the center should be 1" higher then the sides of the pan.
• Preheat the oven to 475 1 hour before baking. Adjust oven shelf to lowest level and place a baking stone or baking sheet on it before preheating the oven.
• At this stage I like to mist the loaf with water and roll it in sesame seeds, poppy seeds or other whole grains.
• Slash freeform bread diagonally with a sharp knife or razor blade making 1/2" deep slices.
• If using a loaf pan, make 1 slash down the center or leave unslashed.
• Bake for 10 minutes at 475 then turn oven down to 425 and continue to bake for 20 to 30 minutes more or until Instant Read Thermometer reads about 200 degrees. Cover halfway through baking if loaf becomes too brown.
• Let bread cool thoroughly before slicing.

ROSEMARY HEARTH BREAD

Steps:

• Dissolve yeast in the warm water.
• Stir in 1 1/2 cups of the flour and the remaining ingredients until smooth.
• Stir in the remaining 1 1/2 cups of flour until dough forms.
• Knead dough until smooth.
• Cover and let rise for 10 minutes.
• Grease a cookie sheet.
• Shape dough into a round loaf.
• Place on cookie sheet.
• Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.
• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Cut an X shape 1/2 inch deep into the top of the bread.
• Brush olive oil onto bread.
• Bake 35 minutes or until golden brown.
• Serve hot or cold with olive oil.

FRENCH HEARTH BREAD

Steps:

• 1. Gently heat the milk, water and butter in a saucepan on low just until the butter starts to soften and the milk is warm (but not hot!). Set aside.
• 2. In a KitchenAid stand up mixer with the flat beater attachment combine the unbleached white flour, wheat flour, salt, chopped walnuts and active dry yeast.
• 3. Switch to the kneading attachment and pour in the milk mixture. Knead for a few minutes until the dough is no longer sticky. Let dough rest-covered for 1 hour.
• 4. Sprinkle a small amount of flour on a cutting board. Knead the bread dough a few times then shape into 1 or 2 boules or similar shape.
• 5. Arrange the boule(s) on a parchment lined baking tray. Place in a *warm oven and let rise for about 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and leave the boules in the oven while the bread rises. *We have a KEEP WARM feature on our range. I turn on the KEEP WARM feature and as soon as it comes to temperature I turn it off and allow the bread to rise.
• 6. Bake for approximately 25 minutes or until the bread is lightly brown and hollow when tapped. Set aside to cool on wire racks. Good toasted, too!

HEARTH BREAD

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mix Bisquick, water and garlic to form a soft dough. Pat into a ten inch circle on round baking stone or cookie sheet.
• 2. Brush with either butter, margarine or olive oil. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and sunflower kernels pressing them lightly into the dough.
• 3. Bake until golden brown 15 to 20 minutes. Cut into 12 wedges.
• 4. Note for variations. Beer can be substituted for the cold water. Substitute with your favorite seeds, like poppy seeds, or finely chopped mixed nuts.

EUROPEAN-STYLE HEARTH BREAD

Steps:

• Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. , To make the poolish: Combine the flour, water, and yeast. Cover the container and allow to rest for 12 to 16 hours at room temperature. When the poolish is ready to use, it will be doubled in size, and filled with large bubbles., To make the dough: Add the water to the poolish. Add the flour, mix to combine, cover the bowl, and allow the mixture to rest for 20 minutes. This rest period (autolyse, in French) allows the flour to absorb the liquid and the gluten to start its development, making kneading easier and more effective., Add the yeast and salt, and knead the dough until it's fairly smooth, about 5 to 7 minutes by hand, 3 to 4 minutes by electric mixer, or 5 to 7 minutes in a bread machine. The gluten will continue to develop as the dough rises, so you don't want to develop it fully during the kneading process., Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl, and allow the dough to rise, at room temperature, for 1 1/2 hours. To help develop the gluten, distribute the yeast's food, and expel any excess carbon dioxide, turn the dough every 30 minutes during the rising time: gently fold all four sides into the middle, and turn the dough over., Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface, divide it in half, shape each half into a rough log, cover them, and let them rest for 15 to 20 minutes. This allows the gluten to relax, making it easier to shape the bread., Shape the logs into batards (shorter and fatter than traditional French baguettes) or Italian-style loaves - tapered ovals about 12" long., Place the loaves on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet, cover them with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow them to rise at room temperature for about 2 hours; they should be puffy but not doubled., When the loaves are nearly done rising, preheat the oven to 425°F., Using a sharp knife or razor, and holding it at a 10° to 20° angle, make four slashes in each loaf. These should be nearly vertical to the loaf, each about 1/3 the length of the loaf. The beginning of each cut will run parallel to the previous cut by 1/3 the length of the cut. Spray the loaves with warm water., Bake the bread for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the loaves are a deep, golden brown. European-style loaves are generally baked longer than American loaves; if you're uncomfortable with a very dark crust, reduce the baking time a bit.