All Rise! - Perfect Italian Bread Every Time

I know I have written quite a few posts about bread in general, but lately, we've been on an Italian bread kick here in my house. Why? Well because the boys love my Italian bread. We have it on Italian "Extravaganza" night and because I always make 2 giant loaves at a time, we usually have it for subs, as well. 

When we have the kids, everything is an "extravaganza"! That is because we usually do a whole theme and Italian night is no different. We don't just have lasagna, for instance. We will also have Italian salad or baked ziti or stuffed shells or giant meatballs, you name it.

Italian bread, I find, is the key when you have American kids who have grown up with soft white American bread. It's soft enough for their palate but with a nice chew and texture that can satisfy most adult palates at the same time. Probably why it never lasts long in the house and when we have guests over, as we did for Easter Sunday, everyone wants to take home some bread with their leftovers. 

Can't say as I blame them. 

So for all the Sunday dinners, holiday dinners and bread lovers out there, I've written a special post about Italian bread just for you. 

One of the secrets to my version and for the techno-geeks like myself who need to know the "why" of things, the key is the fat that gets added to the dough. If you prefer a more crispy, crunchy crust as in the French baguette style of bread, then omit the fat altogether. However, this is what will give your bread a couple more days of staying power, without going completely brick hard and stale within 24 hours.

No matter how many hungry critters you have in your house, a few extra storage days can make the difference and that's why we prefer the Italian version if we know we won't eat both loaves in one sitting.

My recipe below calls for 3 tbsp of fat and over the last several months I have used whatever fat I happen to have on hand. We go through copious amounts of bacon around here and I always save the drippings, as I do the chicken fat from making chicken soup, which adds such a lovely texture and flavor, that it has become my fat of choice over butter. If I don't have either or want a straight forward flavor, I will also use coconut oil, which again, is a staple in our house. Experiment. Either way, it makes for a lovely baguette.

Oh, and one other tip: I use a two-loaf baguette pan with a silpat. It isn't entirely necessary, but I don't like the bumps on the bread when the dough rests on the holed baguette pan. The bread won't stick, but I prefer the texture of "unholy" bread. lol!

The silpat fits perfectly on top of the baguette pan, draping over each channel nicely and ensures a no-stick situation. Just easy cleanup, too and it makes for a nice tender bottom crust too.

Italian Bread:

• 6 1/2 c flour
• 3 cups warm water, 1 1/2 tbsp of yeast
• 1 1/2 tbsp salt
• 3 tbsp of garlic butter, margarine, lard or bacon grease
• 3 tbsp sugar

1. In a stand mixer, put flour and salt into the bowl. Using the dough hook attachment, mix the two for a minute or so on the lowest speed.
2. Add your fat to the flour mixture and mix on lowest speed for another minute or two. Room temperature or cold, no matter. I've used both and if you bloom the yeast in warm water, it doesn't change the speed of the initial rise.
3. In a bowl or large 4 cup measuring cup, I bloom the yeast with the water and sugar. All that means is add the yeast to the warm water and it begins to activate the yeast immediately. It will start to dissolve and feed on the sugar and begin to bubble a little bit. A good sign your yeast is healthy and your bread will rise perfectly. 
4. While the mixer is still on the lowest speed, slowly pour in your yeast mixture until all of the water is incorporated. Don't worry about kneading for too long. You really just need to get everything incorporated and the dough will begin to clean the sides of the bowl as well as cling to the hook. This is perfect. 
5. Turn off the mixer and put the dough into a large 6 qt rising container or cover with a heavy dish towel and check on it after about a half hour to an hour. In a warmer kitchen this goes fast! That's why I use a proofing or rising container because I can easily see when the dough has risen and doubled in size. That's what you want.

**What I have found over the years, is that if you have cold ingredients or room temperature water, it takes longer for the yeast to activate. What does that mean for you? Well, it means it could take an hour for your first rise or it could take 3 hours, depending on the ambient temperature of your kitchen. Why fuss with that? Instead, if you start with warm water (not hot or boiling!) and add your sugar and yeast to the water, you can almost always have a very quick, very predictable rise. And as we all know, when entertaining guests or feeding hungry kids, timing is everything!

Shape and Rise again:

1. Divide the dough in half. I actually weigh it but you can eyeball it. Doesn't have to be perfect. At this point your dough will be so relaxed, it will be fairly easy to shape, if not a bit unwieldy. Don't fret, just hold one end and stretch it so it looks like a roll of sorts. You can stretch it and tuck it once on the baguette pan, if you have one. If not, just put it on a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat, no worries.
2. Once you've shaped two loaves (or one giant loaf), let it rest and rise again. This time, definitely keep any eye on it because the yeast is active and it will likely rise quickly unless your kitchen is on the cool side.
3. Optionally, cut slits either down the middle of each loaf for vents or diagonally across the loaf. I don't find this to be entirely necessary but it does give a nice place to put butter or garlic butter once it comes out of the oven. Again, optional. Do whatever appeals to you.

Bake:

Preheat your oven to 425 F during the second rise if your rise is moving along nicely. 

Bake for about 15-20 minutes, checking it just to make sure it doesn't get too brown. If it seems to be browning too quickly, lay a piece of tin foil or parchment over the top of the pan at about the 15 minute mark if you don't want your bread too brown.

Notes for friends and family (yes, that's you, too!): ***Oh my gosh, for me, this is one of the best behaving doughs. First of all I used the organic flour I mill myself so its fresh. But I also have on hand organic white flour from Hodgson Mill in 2 lb bags that I get delivered from Amazon, just in case I'm short on time. Fresh flour always makes a difference.

It takes one unopened 2 lb bag plus 1 c from a new bag to make this dough. This little tidbit is more for myself and Tsunami as we refer back to this blog all the time for our favorite recipes. :)

I also bloom the yeast in warm water, as I mentioned. This has made such a difference in a predictable rise time. Won’t do it differently from now on. 

My notes from the first time I made it and I apologize for the enthusiastic language, in advance...

"Holy shit. Don't change a thing! Perfect italian bread!!!!"

And that's because it was so fabulous, the boys ate the whole thing in one sitting and I noticed that someone had taken a few slices before it even made it to the table!

Hope you like it as much as we do!