Bread.

Ingredients:

• 275ml water
• 100ml milk
• 45g butter
• 30g honey
• 150g wholemeal flour
• 450g plain flour
• 1 tsp yeast
  

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients to the bread maker. Cook on basic setting for a medium crust.

Artisan Bread

This recipe has been adapted from The Italian Dish.

Ingredients:

• 3 cups lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon granulated fast acting (instant) yeast
• 2 cups wholemeal flour
• 4 1/2 cups plain flour
  

Directions:

1. Warm the water slightly. It should feel just a little warmer than body temperature, about 38 degrees C. Warm water will rise the dough to the right point for storage in about 2 hours.


2. Add yeast to the water in a bowl or a plastic container.


3. Mix in the flour - kneading is unnecessary. Add all of the flour at once, measuring the flour by scooping it and levelling it off with a knife. Mix with a wooden spoon - do not knead. You're finished when everything is uniformly moist, without dry patches. This step is done in a matter of minutes. The dough should be wet and loose.


4. Allow to rise. Cover with a lid or cling wrap (not airtight). Allow the mixture to rise at room temperature until it begins to collapse (or at least flattens on top), about two hours. You can use a portion of the dough any time after this period. Fully refrigerated wet dough is less sticky and is easier to work with than dough at room temperature. So, it's best to refrigerate the dough for at least 3 hours before shaping a loaf.


5. Shape your loaf. Place a piece of baking paper on a baking tray. Sprinkle the surface of your dough in the container with flour. Pull up and cut off about a piece of dough about the size of a grapefruit. Gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball as you go, so that you have a smooth, tight top. Place the dough onto the baking paper.


6. Let the loaf rise for about 30 - 40 minutes (it does not need to be covered).
   


7. Preheat a baking stone on the middle rack in the oven for at least 20 minutes at 230 degrees C. Place an empty rimmed baking pan on a rack below the baking stone. This pan is for holding water for steam in the baking step. (If you don't have a baking stone, you can use a baking tray, but you will not get the crisp crust on the bottom.)


8. Dust the loaf with a little flour and slash the top with a knife just before baking. This slashing is necessary to release some of the trapped gas, which can deform your bread. You need a very sharp knife or a razor blade - you don't want the blade to drag across the dough and pull it.


9. Bake. Set a cup of water next to your oven. Slide the bread (including the baking paper) right onto the hot baking stone. Quickly pour the water right into the pan underneath the baking stone and close the oven door. This creates the necessary steam to make a nice crisp crust on the bread. Bake at 230 C for about 30 - 35 minutes, depending on the size of your loaf. Make sure the crust is a deep golden brown.


10. Store the remaining dough in the refrigerator, covered but not airtight, and use for up to 14 days.