Peasant Bread

 This bread is easy, quick, and yummy!

Ingredients:

 4 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp sugar

1 TBSP instant yeast

2 cups warm water

Instructions:

In a large plastic bowl, mix together the flour, salt, sugar and yeast. Add water and mix with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon until the ingredients form a shaggy sticky ball and no dry streaks remain. (Dough will still be sticky/wet, you want it this way do not add more flour.)

Cover the bowl and let dough rise until doubled, about 1-1 1/2 hours. 

Place an oven rack in the center position, then preheat oven to 425 degrees. Generously grease a 9" pie pan with cooking spray/oil. (an enameled dutch oven or even just a cookie sheet will work too, the pie pan helps the dough keep it's nice round shape)

Coat your hands with oil. Scrape the dough away from the side of the bowl, and form into a ball, tucking the edges under and rotating while tucking to form a circle loaf. It does not need to be smooth or perfect, this dough will be sticky and that is normal/OK. Place into prepared pie pan.

Let dough rest 15 minutes while oven finishes preheating. Bake, uncovered for 15 min.  Then reduce the heat to 375 and bake an additional 15-18 minutes until bread is golden and cooked through. (If the top is getting too golden, you can cover with a loose piece of foil for the last 10 min or so).

Rub butter on the top after removing from oven, move to a cooling rack and let sit until cool/warm. Serve with butter, jam, or however you like!

Original Recipe from Mel's Kitchen Cafe