Hello everyone,

My partner has been trying out different bread recipes for sometime now. I’m excited to say, he thinks he finally found “the one.” Cory stumbled on this Youtube video from Tasty and decided to give it a try. He ended up making a few changes, including proofing the dough twice instead of once and using a little more water. The result was an amazing—a simple homemade crusty bread with a soft center! I think the result is partially due to the new Lodge Cast Iron Double Dutch Oven 5-Qt that we picked up last month.

Side note: I did not want this dutch oven as my kitchen is quite small and it takes up some space, BUT it is so versatile and makes everything taste great—really, anything from sauteed peppers and onions to this bread recipe!

This recipe + Lodge dutch oven made the tastiest homemade bread with just the right outer shell crunch and soft, fluffy center. This bread is perfect for soups, sandwiches or even bread pudding! It’s visually pleasing with a nice golden color and the taste is perfectly yeasty! Watch the video and give our adapted version of the recipe a try!

What's your favorite bread? Sourdough

Pumpernickel

Crusty "French" bread

Rye

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Cheers and happy eating!

Jocelyn

PS —Like this recipe? Check out my post on homemade pita bread, too!

* Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate and referral links. I may earn a commission or bonus if you click through to make a purchase. All opinions are my own. I only work with companies and brands I personally support.

Simple Homemade Crusty Bread

***Please feel free to share widely, just give me some credit or a link back. Heavily adapted from this Youtube video from Tasty. Check them out!

Prep Time: 50 minutes

Rise Time: 60 minutes

Proof Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients/ Supplies:

2 cups warm water

4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra (We use King Arthur)

2 ½ tablespoons salt

2¼ teaspoons instant yeast (1 packet, straight from fridge)

Extra-virgin olive oil (to cover the bowl)

Cast iron dutch oven Directions *Note, Try letting all ingredients come up to temperature before mixing everything together.Stir the dry active yeast and water together. Mix the salt and flour together. Make a well in the dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the well, and mix until well combined. *Note, you should have a fairly sticky dough ball. Cover with a towel and let rest two hours to proof. Remove the dough from the bowl and dust with more flour. Coat the bowl with extra virgin olive oil and place the dough inside. Cover with a towel and let rest at room temperature overnight. The next day, move the oven rack as low as it will go, and preheat oven to 450 degrees F, with the dutch oven inside. Remove the double over and add the fully proofed dough. Bake for 30 minutes with the dutch oven lid on; then 15 minutes with the lid off. Rest 10 minutes with a towel covering the bread.