Reviewed: Jan. 2, 2013

all I can say is OMG this bead is awesome I let the sponge set over night it really makes a difference I will make this bread over and over again I have made it in round loaf and also in reg loafs it is goo anyway you make it. It is a really easy recipe even a beginner can't mess this up give it a try

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Reviewer:

Debbie1018

Cooking Level: Professional

Home Town: Lakeland, Florida, USA

Reviewed: Aug. 5, 2011

didnt have wheat flour so ended up using all purpose for this. i let the starter stay out for 18 hours. turned out great. will make again. i did brush some melted honey over the top before putting it in the oven to give it a sweet crunch on top.

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Reviewer:

AndreaPoe

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Vancouver, Washington, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 6, 2011

Thank you Stephen for sharing this recipe. I free formed two loaves and baked on bread stone in oven. The best rustic, chewy crusty bread ever.

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Reviewer:

bax

Cooking Level: Professional

Living In: Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada

Reviewed: Nov. 4, 2010

Love this recipe. I did add 3 T of honey. We love it for toast.

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Reviewer:

bethee

Reviewed: Oct. 30, 2010

I made this but found that the batter(dough) was way too wet. I had to add several more cups of flour as it was VERY sticky.

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Reviewer:

ALMOSTHEAVEN56

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Morgantown, West Virginia, USA

Living In: Kingwood, West Virginia, USA

Reviewed: Sep. 1, 2010

This was not just delicious, but very forgiving. I mixed it in the bread machine, realizing halfway through that I'd mismeasured some ingredients, so I stopped it, fixed the ingredients, then mixed. I put it in a bowl to rise. I made loaves, but my daughter child-handled a bunch of the dough and made tiny rolls and "bread worms". I then forgot to set the timer on the oven. It all turned out wonderful - my husband said it was "outstanding". It was much softer than I expected - I was expecting more of a crusty, holey French bread, but I'll make this again and again. YUM!

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Reviewer:

ejymama

Reviewed: Jun. 29, 2010

I have made many, many breads from this site as well as others. This is really one of the best tasting breads you will make. The starter I think is what must helps take this from ordinary to a must have. I did not make any changes to recipe.

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Reviewer:

Shannon

Reviewed: Oct. 27, 2009

I made this because the overnight starter appealed to me. I like the more fermented flavor it gives to a loaf. I didn't have any whole wheat flour, so I used a combo of bread and all purpose. Based on other reviewers having to add more flour, I decided to decrease the water in the main dough to 1 cup and I added a tsp of honey. I still had to use an additional 1/2 cup of flour. The bread was wonderful and the flavor was certainly better than ones I've tried without the overnight starter. It rose beautifully, had a light, soft crumb and a nice crust. If I had used whole wheat flour, I probably would have added a Tbsp of molassas to deepen the color and add another layer of flavor to it. Good bread. I'll make this again. Thanks Stephen.

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Reviewer:

Susan

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Living In: San Jose, California, USA

Reviewed: Oct. 15, 2009

Great bread. I follow the recipe but before all the flour is mixed in I add some chopped kalamata olives and some rough chopped fresh garlic cloves about 1/4-1/3 cup each. Then add as much flour as to make a nice dough. When I put loaves in the oven I toss 2-3 Tblsp of water in the bottom of the oven to give them a nice crispy crust. Great bread for dipping in a seasoned olive oil.

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Reviewer:

Reviewed: Sep. 18, 2009

I didn't think this needed more salt. The flavor is derived from the sponge and it is excellent. I'm wondering if there is an error in the ingredient list however. The instructions call for all the flour to be added, then say add the rest of the flour 1/2 cup at a time. Since It produced such a very wet. loose dough I added an additional 1 cup of bread flour and 1/2 cup of WW to maintain the proportions. I still had a very wet dough, but I was able to work with it. It smelled great while baking, has a beautiful, rustic crumb and a crunchy, chewy crust. I threw 4 ice cubes in my oven to help crisp the crust. Thank you for a very nice bread.

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