Easy No Knead Crusty Bread
“What’s for dinner?”
That is the dreaded question in my life, right next to, “What’s for breakfast?”
There are plenty of days that I have struggled with answering those seemingly simple questions. I hope to one day have that all figured out! In the meantime, I will sit and enjoy a slice of some crusty bread while I share this recipe with you!
Baking Bread Can Be Fun!
There was a time I was very intimidated by bread baking. I just knew that I would mess it up. I’m so thankful that I finally got past that thinking to give it a try.
I love baking bread now! There are so many different things you can make with some bread dough! Everything from sandwich bread, artisan bread, rolls (including sweet rolls), and sourdough! Not only that, but all the variations like using different types of flour, adding nuts or grains for texture, and forming your dough in different ways for presentation.
There are some recipes that require a little hands-on and time. Today I have a recipe that does take a few hours due to rising times and the baking, but very little effort otherwise. It takes only five minutes to mix the ingredients. Then you do have to wait for it to rise. After it rises, you add the dough to buttered pans and let it rise again. Then bake it in the oven for a while. Finally, the result is a delightful loaf of buttery, crusty bread!
Easy Crusty Bread Recipe
You will need the following:
- all-purpose flour,
- yeast
- sugar
- salt
- warm water
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Begin by combining the lukewarm water, yeast, and sugar. Allow to sit until the yeast is activated and begins to foam.
While that is going, combine the flour and salt. Then add the yeast mixture into the dry ingredients.
Mix together until they are there is no more dry flour in the bowl.
Cover the bowl loosely with a damp tea towel or plastic wrap and allow it to rise until doubled.
Generously grease your bread pans with about one tablespoon of butter each.
When the dough is done rising, use a spatula or spoon to divide the dough in half and add it to each of the bread pans.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Let the dough rise again in the pans and when they have reached the top of the pans or a bit higher, gently place them in the preheated oven.
Bake for 15 minutes at 425 degrees F and then reduce the heat to 375 degrees F for another 20 minutes.
The bread is done when it looks golden brown.
Take them out of the oven and remove the bread from the pans to a cooling rack and allow them to cool for at least 30 minutes. (Or sooner if needed)
You can serve it with almost anything. Soups, pastas, salads, or whatever! Even your pickiest eaters will enjoy this tasty loaf, especially if it is it is still a little warm. Spread a generous amount of butter on a slice of this bread and enjoy with your dinner!
Crusty Bread
A super simple recipe for a delicious addition to any meal. Perfect with a bowl of soup or pasta.
Ingredients
- 2 cups lukewarm water
- 2 teaspoons yeast
- 2-3 teaspoons sugar
- 4 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
- Combine water, yeast, and sugar together in a small bowl and let it proof for about 5 minutes until it begins to foam.
- Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl and add the yeast mixture.
- Stir together with a wooden spoon or dough hook.
- The dough will be sticky and it will not look smooth. That is just fine.
- Cover loosely with a damp tea towel or some plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size.
- Grease two loaf pans (I use glass) generously with butter. Use about 1 tablespoon per loaf pan.
- Once the dough has doubled, divide it into each of the loaf pans evenly.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Allow the dough to rise again until it reaches the top of the pans. Carefully place the pans into the oven and bake for 15 minutes.
- Keep the bread in the oven and lower the temperature of the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Continue baking for another 20 minutes. The bread should be a golden brown color when it is finished.
- Remove from the pans to a cooling rack and allow to cool for a bit.
- Slice and enjoy with butter or however you like your bread. Although it is not a super quick recipe, it is certainly an easy one and it is absolutely DELICIOUS!!
Notes
You can use any size of pan. I personally use glass pans, but I have used loaf pans, small Pyrex bowls, or even 9x13 cake pans (use all the dough for this size).