Grady Loaf

3 cups all-purpose flour (my go-to: Anita’s Organic)
1 1/2 cups water (tap water is just fine)
2 teaspoons salt (fine table or sea salt works great)
1/2 teaspoon of instant yeast/bakers yeast

Loaf life? Don’t you mean love life?

With so much time on our hands and fewer chances to take your fave out for dates on the town, it’s time to bring things back to the kitchen.

And what could be cozier in December than enjoying the warmth of a homemade loaf of bread with your love?

This recipe has developed over the years and has now become affectionately known by friends and family as ‘Grady Loaf’.

It’s a foolproof way of bringing a smile to anyone’s face – especially if it’s unexpected! Foolproof? Yup.

This simple bread recipe only has 4 ingredients and is super adaptable:

Flour.

Water.

Salt.

Yeast.

Ready to give it a shot? Aces.

I’ll try to keep it short with a few pro-tips thrown in to make sure you surprise yourself with a new-found life skill.

Directions to the best baking you’ve done in a long time:

1. Add 1 1/2 cups of water to a drinking glass/mason jar.

2. Add a heaping 1/2 teaspoon of yeast to the water and let it sit for 10 minutes until it blooms. You’ll see bubbles/foam start to form quickly around this point, letting you know the yeast is healthy and ready to go.

3. While you wait for the yeast to activate, scoop 3 cups of flour into a large mixing bowl.

4. Add 2 teaspoons of salt to the flour and stir together with a dinner fork.

5. Gradually add the water/yeast to the flour about a 1/4 cup at a time and mix with your fork. If the yeast hasn’t bloomed by the 15-minute mark, it may be expired and you’ll have to get some more from the store.

6. Ensure every dry bit of flour gets moist. Especially the bottom! The goal is to get all of the water mixed in with the flour so all of the dough has a consistent feel + there aren’t any dry pockets. If it seems like you need more, dip the fork in some water and mix the dough further, being careful to not over-do the water.

7. Cover the bowl with a dish towel or re-usable beeswax wrap and leave in a warm-ish part of your kitchen until the dough as fully risen.

8. Check back in every few hours; depending on the temperature of your home, it may take 6 hours up to 18 hours to rise. I’ll often make the dough the night before I want to bake it, giving it plenty of time to rise over night and a fun way to start the next morning.

9. Now that your dough has at least doubled in size, complete with delightful air bubbles, it’s time to preheat your oven to 425 F degrees with a clean dutch oven (or other baking container with a lid) that can handle high heat on the middle rack already inside the oven.

10. While the oven is pre-heating, pour a 1/2 cup of flour in a little pile on the counter, lightly dust your countertop with flour + use a rubber spatula/dinner fork to gently pull the dough onto the floured surface.

11. Lightly dust both hands (especially your fingers!) with flour, gently pinch one side of the squishy dough and pull it overtop of itself to the other side (kind of like wrapping a Christmas present).

12. Repeat until you’ve folded all sides twice (8 total folds) with the dough starting to form a round shape + feel springier to the touch. Let the dough rest until the oven is ready. ps. flour your hands +countertop often so they don’t stick to the dough, otherwise it’s really tricky to check back in on your phone/computer for the next steps!

13. Oven just beeped and it’s at 425 F? Time to lightly dust the top of your loaf then safely use your sharpest (non-serrated) knife to score cuts across the top of the loaf. Kind of like this if your loaf is long: ( / / / ) or 1 arching slice if your loaf is round like this: ( ) ).

14. Place a few pot holders on the counter/cold stovetop + safely open the oven. With an oven mitt, pull the middle rack out slightly (without tipping the pre-heated baking dish over!) to remove the hot lid + place it on your prepped pot holders.

15. Pinch a small handful of flour from the countertop and carefully dust the bottom of the baking dish. Lightly dust your hands, gently pull the loaf from the countertop, VERY CAREFULLY place the loaf into the middle of the baking dish in the oven Bonus Points: wishing your loaf good luck, ie.“Good luck, little loafie!”

16. With an oven mitt, put the hot lid back on the baking dish, carefully slide the rack back into the oven, close the oven + start a separate timer for 30 minutes.

17. Tidy up your workspace (especially the mixing bowl before any extra bits of dough don’t harden). Future you will thank you for this.

18. Go back to binge-watching Mad Men before your Amazon Prime trial expires as your kitchen begins to smell like your favourite bakery.

19. At the 30 minute mark, use an oven mitt to safely remove the hot lid and place on your oven mitt/pot holder setup on the counter/stovetop. Close the oven and set the timer for another 15 minutes.

20. Beep! Time to turn off the oven, place oven mitts on both hands, and use the oven mitts to gently place the finished loaf on a cooling rack on the counter.

21. Yay! Savour this moment, listen closely to the crackle of the loaf and breath the deliciousness of the air in your home. Wait at least 10 minutes before slicing into your very own, home-baked bread and share it with your favourite loav-er. Enjoy!

ps. ovens make things VERY hot, just be careful and take your time – the only part you need to rush with this recipe is getting the next slice before your partner does!

It may seem in-depth, but once you’ve done it a few times, this method starts to go on auto-pilot.

Your loaves will get even better looking and now you too can make delicious fresh bread at home whenever you like.

And, if you want to add a little flair, make this festive version as seen in our video, with kalamata olives and fresh-plucked rosemary. Decadence!

I’d love to hear how it works out for you!

xo
Grady