
No-knead artisan bread
When I was younger I was a champion sleeper. So much so that mum had to wake me up to take me to kindy (I’m pretty sure it started about 9.30am!). I was even such a sleeper that on holidays I would sleep through buffet breakfast. Can you believe it?
On a family holiday to Fiji when I was about 12, every morning my sister and I would pass on buffet breakfast and instead order it to our room when we decided to emerge from slumber. The order was the same every day.
‘One long stick bread please.’
What arrived at our door 20 minutes later was a warm, crusty loaf of the most delicious bread either of us has ever tasted. Each morning we polished off the whole thing spread with a little butter and Vegemite.

No-knead artisan bread
While my sleeping habits have changed a lot since then my love for a fresh loaf of bread has only grown and my love for homemade bread is still growing.
Entitled ‘amazing no-knead bread,’ this bread was screaming for me to make it from the second I laid eyes on it. It looked just like a loaf you’d get at a fancy bakery. During the whole process I was hesitant. I couldn’t believe that half a teaspoon of yeast in 6 cups of flour could amount to such deliciousness but that little bit of yeast really worked its magic!
It does take a while from start to finish but there is seriously little actual work involved.
I’ll do a little math for you:
– to eat it at 12 midday, start the bread at 4pm the day before
– to eat it at 9am, start the bread at 12 midday the day before
– to eat it at 7pm, start the bread before bed the night before

Step one – the dry ingredients
In a very big bowl, I used the bowl of my electric mixer, mix the flour, yeast and salt together.

Step two – add the water
Add the water and mix it in. I was a bit lazy so used the dough hook to bring it all together. You just have to mix it until there are no more dry bits. I added a bit more water than the original recipe (I’ve added it in my recipe below too) because it seemed too dry.

Step three – rest time
That’s it, that’s basically the hardest part. Now you just need to cover it with plastic wrap and walk away for 12-18 hours. I made mine at about 5 in the afternoon on Saturday.

After a big rest
The next day at about 8am this is what it looked liked. When it’s ready for the next step it will have doubled in size and be bubbly on top. It will also smell yeasty (in a good way). When you first make the dough it just smells like wet flour so you’ll notice the difference.

Shaped and ready for rest number two
Now you need a lot more flour. Sprinkle it out on top of a clean tea towel (a cotton one).
I just realised I made this step a lot more difficult. I didn’t read the part where it said to tip the dough out onto the towel. I thought I read to pick it up and use your hands to shape it. It was mighty tricky balancing all that dough in my hands but I somehow managed.
The easier way to do it is to turn the dough out onto the tea towel. Flour the top of the dough and your hands and then gently start tucking the dough under itself until it makes a smooth ball like the photo above. It should only take a minute or two. You’re not kneading, just shaping.
Dust the top of the dough with more flour and then wrap it up loosely with the tea towel or cover it with another one. Now it needs another rest for 2 hours.

Warming the pot
After 1.5 hours, it’s time to pre-heat the oven and the pot. I used a bit cast iron pot for my loaf. You need a pot with a lid that can withstand up to 210C.
Pre-heat the oven to 210C fan-forced with the pot inside.

One big ball of dough
After two hours the dough will have doubled in size again. Mine was enormous.

Ready for baking
This is the tricky part.
Take the pot out of the oven and place it on something heat-proof. It’s best not to do this on top of the stove because the flour does fly around a little and a bench top is easier to clean.
Get your hands under the tea towel and flip the dough out into the pot so it’s seam-side down. It doesn’t need to be pretty, just in the pot. Mine was quite unattractive but I think it made for a very pretty finished loaf.
Bake it for 40-50 minutes and then take the lid off and bake for another 5-10 to brown the top.

Testing for ‘doneness’
The recipe said that it’s done when it reaches 200 degrees. I assumed it meant 200C but the other temperatures are in Farenheit so I’m not so sure. Either way, mine was mighty hot inside when it was ready.

Ready
Isn’t it beautiful?

Cooling aka the longest 20 minutes of my life
Turn the bread out onto a wire rack to cool.
‘I can’t cut it until it stops talking.’ I said to Will. Without even looking up he said ‘oh ok.’ I think he must be rather used to my kitchen craziness by now. You have to listen to me too though. Do not cut the bread until it has cooled and stopped making noises or it will be tough and not tasty.

No-knead artisan bread
Admire your bread in all its glory.

No-knead artisan bread
When it has cooled, slice it up and devour it quickly. If you like warm bread you can indeed warm it up again or toast it, you just can’t eat it warm from the oven after its first baking.
I had my first slice with mushrooms and feta and was so eager to get into it I nearly forgot to get a photo. Apparently it lasts a few days. I wouldn’t know. Someone ate all mine within 24 hours. Enjoy!
What about you? Have you ever slept through breakfast? Do you like to make your own bread?
No-knead artisan bread
Ingredients
Instructions
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Congrats on this bread. It’s so wonderful and perfect looking. Weren’t your parents lucky to have a child who slept! I would have liked one of those! xx
Haha yes I was a false introduction to having a baby my grandmother said
Beautiful Claire! Once you start on these breads, it’s hard to stop!
It most definitely is. It seems crazy to pay up to $6 for a loaf you can make at home for next to nothing!
Oh yum this is my next bread adventure. My last was Pain d’Epi. :-)
Pain d’Epi is impressive Corrie! Good luck with this one. I dare say it’s pretty much foolproof and oh so good!
I’ve made this bread and was so delighted at how delicious it was and what a gorgeous crust it had too. Definitely a household favourite here too :)
It will be a regular in my house!
Haha perfectly shaped too :) I hate kneading so always opt for a longer rise.
That’s the other bonus yes! I’m not a fan of kneading either Nic but I do most of it in the mixer now. Good old dough hook!
Thsi is a gorgeous bread. This is one of my favourites but be warned. If you have a glass cooktop and you start to feel heat coming through the pot holders and you let go… your cooktop will smash into a zillion pieces. just sayin… :)
I have never served this bread to anyone that didn’t adore it.
Oh dear that’s a tough lesson to learn. Good thing I have a gas cooktop.