Bread is life.
I love a fresh loaf of bread drizzled with olive oil and fresh crushed tomatoes, with a tiny bit of salt. That was essentially breakfast in Spain.
What I love about this recipe is that you have a hard crust complemented by a perfectly chewy and soft middle.
Read on to learn a simple rustic bread recipe that is just perfect.
Can You Have Bread on the Mediterranean Diet?
The thing about learning the Mediterranean Diet is that there really aren’t rules. There are a bunch of guidelines to follow.
You can have bread on the Mediterranean Diet in moderation. Bread can be part of an appetizer or a way to soak up juices of a stunning meal.
Experts do agree that bread should focus on whole grains as much as possible. So, you may want to try this recipe with whole-grain flour instead of all-purpose flour.
Easy Rustic Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
- 1/2 Tbsp Yeast
- 1 Cup Warm Water
- 1/2 Tbsp Salt
Instructions
- Measure out the flour in a large bowl.
- In a smaller bowl, combine the salt, yeast, and warm water(about 100 degrees to activate the yeast). Let it stand for 5-10 minutes.
- Slowly pour the mixture into the large bowl of flour. Mixuntil all of the flour is incorporated. You’ll have a glob of dough.
- Take a dishtowel and cover the bowl. Let it sit for 2 hours.
- At this point, you can take the dough and refrigerate it forlater use or bake it now. If you refrigerate it, let it go for about a week.
- Ready to cook now? Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or tin foil (lightly grease tin foil). Bake at 450 for about 30 minutes.
Once you pull the bread out of the oven, you’re going to want to eat it right away. Let it cool for about 20 minutes or so to rest.
It’ll still be warm enough so when you cut a slice, the heat will rise and you’ll feel the warmth of the bread.
A Brief Lesson About Yeast
Yeast is one of those things that you have to have when you bake bread.
Here’s how it works. Yeast feeds off of flour. Well, sort of. Yeast converts flour into simple sugar, which it then feeds off of.
As the yeast feeds, it releases carbon dioxide. That gas is what causes dough to rise and give bread that soft spongy texture.
When you let yeast sit for about 10 minutes or so, it’s called proofing. Back in the day, you wanted to make sure that the yeast would be effective. Like any kind of living organism, most of the yeast could be dead or otherwise useless.
When you give yeast time to activate, and you see the foam rise, you know that the yeast is alive and well and will make your bread dough rise.
And now you know….
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It’s OK to Enjoy Bread
Bread is not the enemy. Unfortunately, the way that bread has been produced over the years, more people have developed sensitivities to bread.
Various fad diets have also made bread forbidden. The truth is that bread has been a part of life for thousands of years. There’s not reason why it has to change now. You just have to be sensible about it.
Homemade bread is a gift that keeps on giving. It is meant to be enjoyed in moderation. You can have it every now and again, and like everything else about the Mediterranean Diet, truly enjoy it. Appreciate the fact that you just created this wonderful loaf of bread.
What is a great compliment to this bread recipe? You can go for plain olive oil or Greek Fava.
