To Mare English Bread
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a brisk oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the dough
Sift the flour into a large bowl and make a cavity in the center.
Mix the yeast and lukewarm water together, then strain through a fine sieve into the cavity.
Lightly mix the yeast mixture with some of the flour until it forms a light paste.
Cover and let it prove in a warm place for 1 hour.
Knead and prove
Add the remaining lukewarm water and a little salt, then knead until stiff.
Let it prove for another hour, then knead again.
Let it prove for a final hour, then shape into loaves or combine two pieces.
Bake
Bake in a brisk oven at 400°F (200°C) for about 1.5 hours.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- White flour
- Forms the main structure of the dough as its proteins develop during kneading.
- Yeast
- Produces gas that makes the dough rise during each proving period.
- Lukewarm water
- Hydrates the flour and activates the yeast, forming the dough.
The step that matters
Kneading until stiff. Kneading develops the gluten network that traps the gas yeast produces. Too little kneading leaves a weak structure that rises poorly and bakes dense.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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