This is the recipe and method for my giant round Boule, the one I take to all the functions, I'll add pics and a video but this is the recipe and method to get you started

This is a quickie howto, I'll do a video and play by play pics in the week BUT I'm occupied for a couple of days and want to get at the measurements and method up for those of you who will do it without the play by plays. 

TRACY'S SINGLE BOULE

In a kitchenaid mixer or something with a dough hook, dump the following, yeah, just dump it in.  I make this bread weekly so, it works. 

600 grams of all purpose flour. (can you use bread flour? sure, but it's more expensive and I don't see any reason to bother)
Heaping tsp of salt 
2 1/2 tsp yeast. (I heap it a little probably)
about 2TB Olive oil (more if you want)
2cups water, slightly warm, pour it in all at once
 
Mix with dough hook till it clears the side of the bowl and is shiny, it takes a while, grab a coffee or a glass of wine and stand there, watching it 


with WET hands, shape the very soft, very loose dough into a ball, quickly, drop it back into the bowl, cover with plastic
Leave to double+, it takes about an hour, maybe

Gently tip the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, form it into a ball without squashing all the air out of it, smooth the top and place it, seam side down in a parchment lined bowl. 

NO need to flour the parchment, nothing sticks. 

Cover it with plastic loosely, I put it in a dry cleaner bag, leave it to dome generously or double in size. 

PUT a 6qt lidded dutch oven in the oven and preheat to 450, at least 45 mins.

Slash the top of the boule with a serrated knife if you feel chefy

Carefully transfer the boule, in the parchment, (lift the corners) into the dutch oven.

Cover and bake 20 mins, remove the lid and bake another 10

Remove the boule to a rack, cool, eat!!!!!!!!!!! 

This is the I just need bread with dinner, italian loaf

This is cheap, fast (in bread terms), easy and you can eat it in a couple of hours.  This is old school, no bells, whistles, just good, real, bread.

I use the kitchen aid, but you can do it by hand

TRACY'S OLD SCHOOL ITALIAN LOAF 

INGREDIENTS 

4 cups a/p flour
1 1/2 tsp yeast
2 cups VERY warm water with 2 tsp of salt dissolved in.

METHOD

Mix all ingredients to a wet but smooth dough.
Transfer to an oiled bucket with a lid.
Leave to rise till at least doubled.
Gently tip onto a heavily floured cloth, use the cloth to roll the dough into a rough log.
Transfer loaf to a parchment lined sheetpan, cover with a floured cloth, let rest
Leave to rise while oven preheats to 500 with a large container of hot water on the bottom shelf.
When the oven is hot an the loaf poofy (technical term)  put it in the hot, steamy oven and set the timer for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, turn the oven down to 400 and cook till it's done, maybe another 20?  It should sound hollow on the bottom when you knock on it.
Transfer to a rack to cool till you can't stand it any more.
EAT!

INSTRUCTIONS AND PLAY BY PLAY PICTURES

Drop the flour and yeast in a bowl, mix it up, add the salt water.  With dough hook set on 4 or so, let it go.....

    

nope, nope, nope, not yet, nope 

    

YES! Smooth.  It took 7 minutes. Transfer into a lidded bucket.  Yes, I put it in the small one by mistake and transferred it to my 4qt :) Pop the lid on and leave it till it doubles.  I'll take a pic at 30 and 60, if it takes that long.

   

Ok, this is at 30 and 50 mins...that's doubled so tip it out onto a floured cloth.  This is my linen bakers cloth, I make them, I sell them, I love them

    

Tip the dough out, look how alive it is!  Fantastic!  Dust lightly with flour and fold the bottom up, the top down, stretching a bit, gently.

    

Pull the sides up and over. This is hard with one hand! so I could take pictures.  Start to roll and pinch out the biggest bubbles on the rolled edge.

    

Ok, now roll it into a loaf

    

Ah, preheat the oven to 500 with a pan of water in there.  When the oven is hot and the loaf has poofed up (technical cooking term!) then transfer the loaf to a parchment lined baking sheet and get it into the oven,

Here's the final shots.  Oh, poofy!  I rolled it gently on the sheet pan and into the oven.  500 degrees for 10 minutes, rotate the pan and reduce the temp to 450 for another 18.  I cooked it in the top third with a huge pan of water under neath it.

  

and so here we are...  giant and cooked and crusty and crunchy... it's snap crackling and popping as it cools.  This is the worst time for me - the wait - oh the horror - I want to rip it open and eat it like a caveman!!! 

  

I'll publish this now because there's people waiting BUT I'll add pics when I cut into it. 

This is a really good, solid, classic, old school, flavorful, REAL, bread.  Make it, enjoy it and make it again. 

I cut in...  joyful 

  

I have to go eat it now, all of it :)

/enjoy

Single Italian Crusty Loaf

I make a lot of bread.  In my humble opinion, I'm getting pretty good at it, such as 'it' is.

People, the dreaded "THEY", say you should make many loaves at one time if you're going to ALL that trouble.  Well, it is NO trouble to get a single delicious crusty flavorful crispy soft airy dense fantastic loaf of bread on your table.  If you think you might like to have a bread, cheese and wine lunch or if you want to have a fresh loaf for dinner, you really don't need much time, hardly ANY effort and the payoff is miraculous.


Sure, from beginning to end it takes a couple of hours but your actual investment in time of actually DOING something is about 3 minutes.

This is my 'go to' quickie crusty loaf.  It's delicious, doesn't use a machine and there's no fuss or muss with it. Trust me, you can do this, easy. Ok, here we go:

Tracy's Single Crusty Italian loaf

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp yeast (ok, I heap it a bit)
1 cup warm(ish) water

Throw it all in a tub and stir it around.  It's VERY wet.  It's not like a normal bread dough at all, do not fret, it's supposed to be so yukky!!  Mix it around with a spoon then with a very wet hand, flip it over itself a couple of times if you feel the need to be more involved.  Put a lid on your container of choice and leave it for about 45 minutes? 60 minutes?  Until it poofs way up... check out my time lapse pics, just for you!

In the tub, nice action shot!  Seriously, just dump it all in and mix it up.  It's like superthick batter more than dough.  Don't fret, remember, I've got you here...
   
Put a lid on it.  This is my Home Depot mix bucket, perfect.  I took these pictures at 12 minute intervals, because 10 seemed too often and 15 seemed too far apart.  Don't judge, I've had a rough couple of months. This is a 48 minute rise.
   

   

Ok, that's risen enough, dump it onto a well floured board or cloth.  This is a linen bread cloth I treated myself to.  It's great but not worth the money at all.  I went to the fabric store, bought a piece of linen, cut it and it works just as well for a fraction of the price.  Still, since I make so much bread I thought I deserved the real thing. 

Dump it onto a board/cloth. It's gooey and VERY stringy, look at all that happy yeasty goodness.  Try not to squash the air completely out.  Just dust the top with flour and it won't stick if you're gentle, sprinkle lightly as needed but really, try to avoid adding too much, you're really just flipping it around here.

   
Fold it over with fingertips.  Roll it gently and then flatten it slightly in the middle with the side of your hand.
   
Flip/Roll the dough over so the folded side is down.  Tuck the sides, top and bottom under a bit to make it neat, cover it with a towel and leave it.
  
Night night! AND, here it is about 30 minutes later.  A little poofy.  Lovely. 

Roll it gently onto a floured or cornmeal covered peel.  The seam side is up now and that is what will give the loaf it's signature pull apart seam, you'll see.
   
Slide it into a 450 degree oven, on a stone OR you can use a cookie sheet. and bake it about 40 minutes.  Spin it at 15 minutes and then flip it upside down for the last 5-10.  Pull it out and LOOK what you did!

See what I mean about the seam giving it the pullapart line down the middle?  Oh yeah, we're pros now!  No slashing with knives or razor blades, just let it proof seam side down and bake it seam side up.  Ya Baby!
   

BEAUTIFUL!  it's crusty, tasty, light, crisp, airy, flavorful and WAY easier than getting into your car to drive to the store to find a crusty loaf that doesn't taste ANYWHERE near as good as this.This is the underneath, mmm  so crusty and wonderful.

Just for you, I cut into it to show you the innards.  I ALWAYS wait at LEAST 20 minutes before cutting into any bread, it is still cooking in there and cutting it can give you a gooey loaf, not this time though, oh man look at this...... 

I can't even tell you how good it is.  Even if you aren't a bready, you HAVE to admire the crumb on this loaf, the crust to innard ratio,you know how good it is just by looking. 

The crust is crisp and crunchy and the middle is soft soft and airy and full of flavor.  you NEED to make this.  Here's my standard beauty shots.  Oh and we had to taste without and with butter, just for science :)  

      

Go one, go make yourself a single loaf, it's so easy, doesn't need any machinery and you'll be delighted with how delicious it is.  

/enjoy