Bread in 5 Minutes a Day (Step-by-Step)

In an earlier post, I mentioned an experiment with homemade bread in five minutes a day. I never would have believed that bread this good could be this simple to make. Honestly, if you can measure, stir and tell time, you can make this bread. No kneading required! Even though I halved the original recipe, I've been very pleased with the results. Its firm, crunchy crust and chewy interior belies the minimal amount of work required. I hope you enjoy this stress-free way of creating artisan-quality bread at home.

For the original recipe and story behind this method, see this article from Mother Earth News. Please note that "5 Minutes" refers to the active prep time, not the cumulative amount of time from start to finish. :)

Basic Boule
Yields 2 small loaves

Here's what you'll need:

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water

3/4 Tablespoon granulated yeast

3/4 Tablespoon kosher or sea salt

3 1/4 cups unbleached, all-purpose white flour

Cornmeal

1. Pour water into a lidded container. Add the yeast and salt and stir with a wooden spoon. Don't worry if it doesn't dissolve completely. Also, you will notice on the sides of my container the remains of a previous batch of dough. The leftover bits of the older dough will help to develop the flavor of the new batch.

2. Mix in the flour until uniformly moist. This only takes a minute or two and should produce a loose, wet dough.

3. Cover loosely and let rise at room temperature for at least two and up to five hours.

4. The dough will at least double in size and the top will collapse or flatten out. It can be used at any time after this step, but is best of refrigerated for at least three hours. This dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, and the longer it is stored the better the flavor.

5. When you're ready to bake, prepare a piece of parchment paper by sprinkling it liberally with cornmeal. (The original recipe calls for use of a pizza peel, which I don't own. The parchment paper seems to be a good solution for getting the shaped dough onto the hot baking stone.) Take the container of dough out of the refrigerator and sprinkle the surface with flour. For this loaf, I used half of the dough - a piece approximately the size of a grapefruit. Add flour as needed so it won't stick to your hands. Shape the dough into a ball by pulling the surface of the dough on each "side" to the bottom. You will end up with four bunched ends on the bottom of the dough. Place the ball on the parchment paper and let it rest for about 40 minutes.

6. 20 minutes before baking, place a baking stone on the middle rack of the oven and an empty broiler pan on the bottom rack. Preheat the oven to 450.

7. Make a few slashes (1/4 inch deep) in the surface of the bread to help it expand while baking. Most people use a sharp knife for this; I actually used a pair of kitchen shears in this instance. You will notice that I have also brushed away the excess cornmeal from around the bread because the exposed cornmeal has a tendency to burn. Once the oven is heated, place the bread and parchment paper on the baking stone. Quickly pour about a cup of water into the broiler pan and quickly close the door (Warning - there will be hissing, sizzling and steam!). Bake for about 30 minutes, or until crust is browned and firm.

8. This is what it should look like when you remove it from the oven:

Beautiful! You may hear the bread crackle, or "sing", as it is cooling.

You're supposed to let it cool completely on a wire rack before slicing, but I just couldn't resist!

For the ultimate indulgence, this bread makes killer French toast. If you make it with fresh-out-of-the-oven bread, be sure to pop it in the toaster or oven to dry it out a little.