Crusty Artisan-Style Loaf

Make a poolish: Put 1/2 cup water, 1/2 teaspoon yeast, and 3/4 cup flour in a bowl and stir to make a thick batter. Cover and let stand for a minimum of 2 hours, a maximum of 10.

Then when you are ready to make the dough: In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer (or any mixing bowl you like, if you’re not using a mixer), pour 2 1/2 cups of water and 1/2 teaspoon of yeast. Let yeast dissolve in water. Mix the poolish into the water and yeast.

Add one cup flour to the mixture and mix until a thick batter forms. Add salt and mix. Add flour, a cup at a time, and mix, until a smooth, cohesive dough forms. If you are mixing by hand, it will be too thick to mix at this point.

Knead the dough: using the dough hook and with your mixer on medium-high, knead dough until it will form a “window”: break off a slightly-larger-than-quarter-sized piece of dough from the ball and stretch it gently between your hands. If it will stretch thinly enough to be able to see light through it without tearing or breaking, it is ready.

If you are kneading by hand, generously flour the surface you are using to knead your dough. Using the heel of your hand, push the bread down and away from you against the board, then fold it back toward you. Turn the entire mass a quarter turn on the board, then repeat. Knead until the dough will form a “window”: break off a slightly-larger-than-quarter-sized piece of dough from the ball and stretch it gently between your hands. If it will stretch thinly enough to be able to see light through it without tearing or breaking, it is ready.

If your bread is too wet and sticky, add flour a tablespoon at a time, kneading for 1-2 minutes between additions. The entire kneading process should take 10-15 minutes.

Oil a bowl or other container well, and put the dough in the container. Cover the container with a clean towel and place in a warm (not hot) place where it can rest undisturbed for 1.5-2 hours, or until bread has doubled in size.

Preheat oven: After dough has been rising for 60-90 minutes (check on it at 60 minutes; based on how close to having doubled it is, make a judgment about how much longer it should rise) turn your oven on to 450F. Put a heavy, oven-safe Dutch oven or lidded pot into the oven to preheat for 30 minutes.

Flour your hands well and gently form the dough into a compact ball, taking care not to “squish” all the air out of it. Using potholders and working very carefully (it’s all hot!) take the lid off of the preheated pot. Sprinkle cornmeal, if using, into the bottom of the pot, and place the dough in it. Put the lid back on and slide the whole thing back into the oven for 25 minutes.

After 25 minutes, remove the lid from the pot and bake an additional 20-25 minutes. Remove pot from the oven and turn the loaf out onto a wire rack to cool for at least two hours.