Miracles of baking

When a classmate brought this bread to one of our potlucks and I was skeptical that she had made it herself until I tried the recipe at home. Not only is this the best bread I've ever made - fantastic texture for sandwiches and gorgeous looking with fabulous crust - it's unbearably easy to make. You don't even have to knead it!

Do note the long rising time, though. This one does require a little advance planning.

No-Knead Bread
*Courtesy of the New York Times
Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery
Time: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours’ rising

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Yield: One 1½-pound loaf

Notes:
* I like to bake it in a slightly cooler oven - around 400º (vs. 450ºF). It still gets a good crust, but it isn't as overwhelmingly crusty.
* I tried this with 1c whole wheat flour and 2c white flour. It came out ok, but still not quite the whole wheat bread I'm looking for.
* The 18 hour rise time (vs. 12) is really worth the wait!
* Since I've been letting this rise over cool(ish) winter nights, I found that setting the bowl over the pilot light on my gas stove helps keep it warm... another reason I love gas stoves.