- 2
Ingredients
- 12 oz unbleached AP flour (2 1/2-2 3/4 cups)
- 4 oz whole wheat flour (generous 3/4-1 cup)
- 1 Tbsp minced fresh thyme
- 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh rosemary
- 1 1/2 tsp fine sea or table salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
- 1/4 tsp instant or bread machine yeast, room temperature
- 12 oz purified water, room temperature (1 1/2 cups)
- Cornmeal
Preparation
Step 1
Whisk together AP flour, whole wheat flour, thyme, rosemary, salt, pepper, and yeast in a large bowl. Stir in water, using a wooded spoon or rubber spatula, until well-combined into a wet, sticky dough, about 30 seconds. Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl; cover with plastic wrap. Let dough rest in a draft-free area at room temperature (about 75 degrees), out of direct sunlight, until surface is dotted with bubbles and dough doubles in size, 12-20 hours.
Arrange a 12x18 inch sheet of parchment paper inside a 10 inch skillet and coat with nonstick spray. Transfer dough with lightly floured hands, onto a generously floured work surface. (Dough will be loose, sticky, and will flatten and spread on surface.) Shape dough into a ball by pulling edges to middle and loosely pinching it closed.
Transfer dough, seam side down, to prepared skillet; loosely cover with plastic wrap coated with nonstick spray. Let dough rise at room temperature until it's nearly doubled in size and does not readily spring back when poked, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
Preheat oven to 475 with a 5 to 7 qt. Dutch oven or heavy pot inside, at least 30 minutes before dough is ready.
Meanwhile, lightly sprinkle cornmeal over top of dough to add texture and a rustic look. Cut an "X" or square pattern in top of dough with kitchen shears.
Carefully remove Dutch oven from oven and remove lid. Transfer dough with parchment paper to Dutch oven, allowing excess parchment to hang over edges. Cover Dutch oven and return to oven; bake 35 minutes. Carefully remove lid and bake loaf until browned and an instant read thermometer inserted into the center registers 207-209 degrees, about 10 minutes more.
Carefully remove bread from Dutch oven, discard parchment, and transfer to a wire rack to cool, about 2 hours.