Artisan Garlic and Herb Bread

Freshly baked homemade bread is the ultimate comfort food. There really is nothing like it! Artisan Garlic and Herb Bread is one of the most delicious and easiest breads you’ll ever make! Loaded with fresh chopped garlic and herbs, this bread is quite aromatic and very savoury!

We’ve been enjoying a lot of homemade soups lately. We tend to like soups and stews quite often when the weather changes from hot and humid to chilly and cold. And, at this time of year when the outdoors changes from bright and sunny to gloomy and gray, soups just make everything feel better. But, in our home, soup without bread is just not happening! We love to have a big slice of good, fresh, crusty bread to dunk into the broth. And, that’s just what we did with this Artisan Garlic and Herb Bread!

Who doesn’t love homemade bread?  I guess, in reality, it would be wise of me to stop making generalizations like that. But, in the case of bread, I believe it to be true!  Even those of us who are gluten-free or intolerant to bread can appreciate the art of homemade bread. I was fortunate enough to grow up in a home where bread was a meal staple.  It didn’t matter what was being placed on the table. Bread would most certainly always be a part of it.

It might seem obvious that bread was a part of breakfast, and perfectly paired with bacon and eggs.  But, bread is also quite common in lunch items too.  Who can forget those ham and cheese, or PB & J sandwiches found in your school lunch bag every day?

BREAD WAS A FAMILY STAPLE

Lunches in Newfoundland often consisted of leftovers from the night before. And, sometimes, mom would open a bottle of preserved moose or seal meat.  Those were paired with buttered bread and a cup of tea.  Honestly, I couldn’t have been happier with those things for lunch when I was a kid.

The same applied to dinner.  The bread was served with rice and potato all of the time.  Not dinner rolls, like some would expect from a child of the 80s, but homemade sliced white bread.  One of the quickest and easiest dinners mom would make was French fries and bread.

I would never eat it now, because I know how bad it is. But, I still look back at it fondly.  Mom would deep fry the fries until really crispy. She’d pile them on a plate and top them with a little spoonful of the frying oil. (I’m not kidding!) Then, she’d add a generous sprinkling of ground black pepper and some ketchup. That was then served with a slice of buttered bread.

The bread, you see, was needed as a filler. My mother never thought of potatoes as anything but a vegetable, and she knew we were supposed to eat those!  The extra spoonful of frying oil?  Well, that was for you to dip the buttered bread into, because clearly, the butter wasn’t enough!  She was priceless!

A DUTCH OVEN IS KEY TO RECIPE SUCCESS

A proper Dutch oven is needed to get this bread just right. I have several to choose from. But, that’s because I have purchased them over the years and not all at once. And, because I cook and bake all the time. Dutch ovens are a huge investment, but they are very much worth it if you use them often enough.

For this particular recipe, I used my 4.2 litre round Le Creuset. You can most certainly use a larger pot, but I wouldn’t use anything smaller. You may run into an issue with the bread hitting the sides if you use a smaller pot.

You most certainly can use an oval Dutch oven if that’s what you have! And, it does not need to be a Le Creuset brand either! In fact, I have a cheaper version that I often use. It’s a Pioneer Woman brand. I think I paid less than $50 for it!

If all you have is a cast iron pot with a heavy cast iron lid, then it will work perfectly as well. The key is to keep the heat in the pot, which will ensure that the bread rises and bakes properly. If all else fails, use a good heavy pot with a heavy lid.

INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR THIS RECIPE:

The following is a list of the ingredients needed to prepare this recipe. For exact amounts and measurements, refer to the printable recipe card located near the bottom of this post.

• Flour – No need for anything special. Just use regular all-purpose flour. I have not tried this recipe with any other type of flour.
• Active Dry Yeast – Do not confuse this with Instant Yeast. Active dry yeast needs to be dissolved in water before use, while instant yeast can be mixed right into dry ingredients.
• Salt
• Sugar – This will slightly sweeten the bread, but more importantly, it helps to grow the yeast once activated.
• Water
• Garlic – Use at least 4 cloves of fresh garlic that are very well minced. If you like the bread to be extra garlicky, add 6 cloves instead.
• Herbs – Any combination of your favourite fresh herbs will do. I like to use thyme leaves, finely chopped rosemary, thinly sliced chives, chopped sage, oregano leaves, and some tarragon as well.

HOW TO MAKE ARTISAN GARLIC AND HERB BREAD

In a glass bowl, add all of the ingredients, with the exception of the water, and stir together until well combined. Add the water and stir into the dry ingredients until a dough forms. This dough is meant to be wet and sticky. Don’t think that you will be able to form a perfectly smooth ball of dough. If you fear that the dough may be too wet, don’t add any extra flour to make the dough dryer. Put your fear aside and know that it will all work out in the end.

Form the dough into a ball – or as best you can! Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place the bowl in a warm part of your kitchen. (I placed mine in the oven to escape any breeze from an open window.) Let the dough rise for a minimum of 12 hours. You can leave the dough to rise for up to 18 hours, but no less than 12!

Once the 12 hours have passed, lay a large sheet of parchment paper on your countertop and lightly dust it with flour. With floured hands, remove the dough from the bowl and form it into a ball on the parchment paper. Dust the top of the dough with flour and loosely cover it with a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise for a minimum of 25 minutes, but no more than 40 minutes.

In the meantime, place your Dutch oven, along with the lid, into your oven and preheat to 450 degrees F. Once your oven is hot and the dough is proofed, remove the Dutch oven and lift off the lid. Using the parchment paper to assist, lift the dough ball and place it carefully into the hot pot. Keep the parchment paper under the dough. This will allow you to lift the bread out easily when baked. At this point, you can use a sharp knife to gently score the dough with any pattern you like, although it is not mandatory.

Place the lid back on the Dutch oven and pop it back into the hot oven. Bake the bread for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and bake for another 10 minutes. Once baked, lift the bread out of the pot using the parchment paper once again to assist you. Place the bread onto a wire cooling rack. Slide the parchment paper out from underneath the bread and discard it. Allow the bread to cool completely before slicing.

DON’T LET THE RISING TIME DETER YOU!

Bread requires patience, but this one not so much.  Yes, there is a 12-hour delay, but don’t worry.  You won’t spend 12 hours waiting for your bread to rise, you’ll be either asleep, at work, or binging on Netflix.  (I was sleeping!) I prefer to make the dough after dinner, which allows me to bake it off in the morning.

The proofing does require a full 12 hours.  Do not try to cut the time short or you’ll end up with a flat, dense bread that just does not taste good.  Wait it out, make the bread when you know you’ll have time – the crusty exterior, with that fluffy, moist center is so worth it! I should also mention once again that 12 hours is a minimum, but you can proof the dough for up to 18 hours.

HOW TO KEEP BREAD FRESH

If you really want fresh Artisan Garlic and Herb Bread, it’s best to bake this bread the day you plan to eat it. It’s best when it’s still warm from the oven. That will take some planning, of course, because this bread needs a minimum of 12 hours to proof.

If you bake the bread ahead of time, let it cool completely. Wrap it well in two layers of plastic wrap and then place it into a large freezer bag. Freeze the bread for up to two weeks. (After that, it loses its freshness and can be used for breadcrumbs or french toast!)

When you’re ready to enjoy your bread, remove it from the freezer. Take it out of the bag and remove the plastic wrap. Wrap it in a clean kitchen towel and let it sit for an hour. Next, remove the towel and microwave in 30-second increments until the bread is as warm as you want it.

That’s it! It will still be really fresh and will taste great. However, there is one big change in the bread. If you decide to bake and freeze it, once you thaw it out, you will lose that crusty factor. Enjoy!