Reviewed: Jul. 14, 2008

Easy recipe, and excellent bread! I probably ended up using about 8 1/2 C flour in all. One reviewer said that this is a sticky bread, but with the right amount of flour and kneading, it should not be, and weather and environment play a big part in bread making, so my advice to all, escpecially new bread-makers is don't be afraid to use extra flour. You will get the proper texture if you work the dough well. Also, during the second rise, why bother separating? It will grow back together in the bowl anyway. This made three small loaves. I think next time I will make two larger ones with it, but I will definitely use this recipe again!

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Muffinmom

Cooking Level: Expert

Living In: Syracuse, New York, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 6, 2008

This was my first attempt at making Italian bread and it came out great. About 5 minutes before it came out of the oven I brushed it with egg whites to give it a nice golden color.

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Underboss

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA

Living In: Nashville, Tennessee, USA

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Reviewed: Jul. 1, 2008

Excellent Italian style bread! A few things I did differently: I used bread flour for the four cups of flour used in the beginning to make the sponge, and AP flour for the remaining 3cups. Bread flour, because of its high protein content, results in a chewy bread without being solid or dense. It also results in a thin crispy crust. All-purpose flour gives you a thicker crust. I found this combo to produce a perfect crumb and crust. I also placed a dish of water in the oven with the bread to provide a constant source of humidity rather than misting the bread. This changes the texture of the crust and I prefer it this way. Also, for those of you who talk about using 9 cups of flour instead of 7: This will make a very yummy simple bread. BUT to get the dense, chewy texture of a true Italian style loaf, you need a MUCH stickier dough. I ended up using ~6.5 cups. You can't measure whether the kneading is done in traditional ways, it's too sticky. That's why the directions say knead until smooth. When the dough is smooth (no bumps left) and almost taffy like it's ready. If you have a mixer with a dough hook this is best. But if you don't, just take 1/3 of the recipe at a time, place in in a large bowl and use a spatula to knead the bread. Use the spatula to pull the dough from the sides of the bowl and push it into the center. This is an arm buster, to be sure. But kneading by hand with a dough this sticky is just awful (in my opinion).

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Stephanie P

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Puyallup, Washington, USA

Living In: Olympia, Washington, USA

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Reviewed: May 14, 2008

Absolutley the best bread I have ever had it was amazing fresh out of the oven with butter... mmm I will keep this recipe and definatley make it agian. Keeper!

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Libby

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Reviewed: May 13, 2008

This bread was very good! I think if I make it again I will not make the full recipe, as it makes so much bread (I've served it 3 times and still have 1 loaf in the freezer!) But the directions were excellent and it made my first time italian bread a success!

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PamperedVictoria

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Bear River City, Utah, USA

Living In: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA

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Reviewed: May 6, 2008

Wow, this made up a great, simple bread. I halved the recipe and used one cup of whole wheat flour. I made one large loaf and it was so soft on the inside with a nice, chewy crust. After I slashed the top, I brushed with a bit of melted butter and YUM!!! It was great with dinner last night and the leftovers are going to be made into french toast today!

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VTmom

Cooking Level: Intermediate

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Reviewed: May 6, 2008

I made this bread over the weekend to go with some sauce and meatballs. When my very picky brother tried some he said, "This is going to be a long day...because I am going to have to eat all three loaves." Although I cook and bake a ton, and am always coming up with new things to try, my father also (while eating his 2nd piece) said; "Is this really from scratch?" I followed different reviewers suggestions and added about 9 cups of flour. Thanks for the recipe!

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ashley

Cooking Level: Expert

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Reviewed: May 5, 2008

Not a great recipe for me...the bread was kind of hard and didn't have great flavor. I probably won't make it again.

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Ktietje85

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Akron, Ohio, USA

Living In: Columbus, Ohio, USA

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Reviewed: May 2, 2008

OHMYGOD. YUM. Keep in mind that less handling after rising has started, the better the flavor. My first loaf was good, but after I read up a bit on proper dough handling, the flavor increased tenfold - it went from good to great bread. Bring the ingredients together and let sit for 15 minutes before you knead to hydrate and relax. After 15, knead like crazy until smooth like a baby's bottom. Coat with oil, place in a bowl, cover and let rise until doubled. INSTEAD OF KNEADING THE LIVING TAR OUT OF THE DOUGH, gently but firmly smoosh the dough out, fold in thirds and press with your palm, fold in thirds and press, fold in thirds and press. Form a ball, coat, cover, and let rise again. Divide into two or three loaves (we prefer two larger loaves), fold and press again and shape for final rise. Score the loaves, spritz 'em with water, and slide 'em on into the oven. Pour some water into a preheated pan under the loaves for steam and quickly shut the door (no need for opening and spritzing!). A baking stone REALLY helps with the crust texture. I also love using those perforated "professional" loaf pans (sans cornmeal, of course). Better handling DOES equal better flavor! The difference is amazing!!!

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Endorphins

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Juneau, Alaska, USA

Living In: San Angelo, Texas, USA

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Reviewed: Apr. 7, 2008

Everyone loved this recipe! I misted the bread as Rodney suggested in his review (thanks Rodney!)and my husband lovd the texture of the crust. I will definitely make this again!

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ELLENE2

Living In: Penticton, British Columbia, Canada

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Reviewed: Mar. 23, 2008

So good! This bread has the taste and texture I've been looking for! I added a tablespoon of olive oil to the dough just to help the bread last better on the counter, it worked but we ate the bread so fast it didn't really matter :) Freezes well too! *This bread dough makes the best olive bread, homemade or store bought, that I've ever had. Using the basic recipe add about a cup of each kalamata olives (pitted) and green stuffed olives no need to chop the olives. Also add 4 cloves of garlic, finely chopped. I sprinkle the olives with a bit of flour and add them to the bowl before kneading. You could scale down the recipe but the olive bread freezes really well and disapears fast!

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Lori

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

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Reviewed: Mar. 14, 2008

Great recipe! I've only just started making my own bread recently, so I have read a lot of advice that others give. I found that adding as much flour as needed until it was smooth and stiff worked well. Advice from my early failed attempts: Be sure water is hot enough (appr. 110), and knead for 7-10 minutes. I also substituted 2 cups of whole wheat flour which turned out great!

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Amy M

Cooking Level: Expert

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Reviewed: Mar. 8, 2008

This is exactly what I was hoping to find! My husband (very fussy Italian) loved the crust and flavor--me, too! No more buying $4-5 loaves at the bakery! Thank you!

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Chris S.

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Reviewed: Mar. 6, 2008

easy and yummy!

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Samantha

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Reviewed: Mar. 4, 2008

My husband and I thought the bread tasted bland even with butter, dipped in olive oil, etc. But I might try it again adding some olive oil, italian herbs, cheese.

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singaporegirl99

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Reviewed: Feb. 27, 2008

absolutely fantastic! i had no experience whatsoever making italian bread, and my very first attempt turned out wonderfully. easy to make, delicious to eat. lovely crust, soft interior. we had italian veggie and mozzarella sandwiches for dinner with it, and it held up very well to all the fixings. i was really stoked to have such success with this, and will definitely make it many more times.

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faeriecat

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

Living In: Columbia, Missouri, USA

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Reviewed: Feb. 22, 2008

Outstanding! I cut the recipe in half and used part of the dough for a pepperoni roll recipe(Easy Pepperoni Bread) from this site. I shaped the remaining dough into a 'football' and a large round loaf. It took about 40 minutes in a 375 degree oven to get it golden brown with a nice, crispy crust.

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Jillian N.

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Farmington Hills, Michigan, USA

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Reviewed: Feb. 11, 2008

Made this into pizza bread it was great. The dough is very easy to work with and makes a great product

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Nelly

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Reviewed: Feb. 4, 2008

This was my first attempt at making bread EVER! Was very easy, followed all instructions exactly and they came out perfectly. I did use the other reviewer’s suggestion of spritzing water on the loaves every few minutes for the first part of the baking.

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