Herb Bread with Lemon and Rosemary Infused Olive Oil
You might be amazed by how flavorful this bread is, especially since the ingredient list is not very long. Please do yourself a favor and make some of this for yourself.
1tablespoonyour choice of fresh herbs(thyme and oregano would be lovely), chopped or 1 teaspoon of your favorite herb blend (such as Italian herbs or Herbes de Provence)
2teaspoonsactive dry yeast(I don't like instant or rapid rise, but if you like it, go for it)
2teaspoonskosher salt
Instructions
Put the oil, rosemary and zest in a small sauce pan. Gently heat this on low heat for about 30 minutes.
Remove from the heat and set aside to cool down to room temperature.
Strain the oil through a fine mesh strainer to catch the zest and rosemary leaves, making sure to press down on the solids.
In your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together 2 ounces of the infused oil, flour, water, yeast and salt on low speed. The dough will be very wet, so make sure to scrape down to the very bottom of the bowl a few times to be sure all the flour is incorporated.
Knead on medium-low speed for 6-8 minutes, or until the dough all climbs up the dough hook.
Oil your hands (with plain olive oil) and then pull out the very sticky dough, shape it into as much of a round as you can manage and then put it right back into the mixer bowl. Drizzle 2 teaspoons of the remaining infused oil over the dough and spread it to keep the dough from drying out.
Cover the bowl and let rise until tripled in size. This will take about 3-4 hours at room temp.
Press out the gases and fold the dough over on itself a couple of times to redistribute the yeast. Spread 2 more teaspoons of the infused oil on top to keep it from drying out, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight, or for eight to twelve hours.
With oiled hands, press the gases out again (the dough will be much easier to handle by now), divide the dough into two equal pieces (about 18 oz apiece) and shape into rounds or ovals, pulling the surface of the dough taught on the top of the loaves. Place the loaves on a baking stone or cookie sheet.
Spread the last of the infused oil onto the loaves, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise for a couple of hours, or until the dough is at room temperature and has about doubled in size.
Preheat the oven to 400F and set a rack to one-above-the-center.
Slash the loaves decoratively with a very sharp knife or a lame
Bake for 20 minutes and then reduce the heat to 375F and continue to bake for an additional 8-10 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the bread is around 200F-205F.
Remove to racks and cool until room temperature before slicing (or pulling apart) and enjoying.
Notes
*or a mixture of whole wheat and bread flour to equal 20 oz. I used a local stone ground flour from The Grain Mill in Wake Forest and purchased through Carolina Grown**I use filtered water from the fridge and then heat it on the stove until it's right around body temperature. This only take a couple of minutes.While I didn't add anything extra in this bread, some toasted pine nuts or walnuts would be welcome. You might also consider adding some coarsely chopped roasted garlic, too.