Crusty, Rustic, No Knead Bread

In a large glass bowl whisk together the flour, salt and yeast. Stir in the water with a wooden spoon until a shaggy looking ball forms. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise for 12-18 hours. Alternatively, you can place the bowl in the oven with only the light turned on. The dough should rise in about 6 to 8 hours like this.

When ready to bake the bread, preheat your oven to 450ºF with a rack in the middle position.

Turn the dough out onto a well floured counter. Add additional flour to the top of the dough and quickly form into a ball. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes. While the dough is resting, place a large Dutch oven, with the lid on, into the pre-heated oven to warm for 30 minutes. You can also use any large, lidded cast iron or Pyrex dish, so long as it can handle 450ºF.

After rising, place the dough ball into the heated Dutch oven, put the lid on, and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove the lid and return to the oven for an additional 15 minutes, until the loaf is golden brown, sounds hollow when knocked on, and an instant-read thermometer registers between 190ºF and 200ºF.

Let cool on a wire rack before cutting.

Recipe adapted from Jim Lahey—his recipe was featured in The New York Time’s Minimalist column.