Simple Rustic Bread

Artisan bread baking is a wonderful old world tradition.  It is the art of handmade bread that requires simple ingredients and no preservatives.  It is a wonderful baking skill that I would love to develop one day, but it does take practice to understand how to mix all the ingredients, how to knead the dough, and how to add the yeast to ensure the dough will rise properly.  

When I became interested in baking bread, I started with this simple rustic bread recipe that requires only four ingredients, but no yeast.  The advantage of this recipe is you can have homemade bread in less than one hour because the dough doesn't need to be set aside for a few hours to rise!  And it is a delicious compliment to soups or salads, or just a simple snack embellished with jam or butter!  

Ingredients

• 3 1/4 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 cups water

Baking Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a large bowl, mix the flour, baking power, and salt.
4. Add the water to the center of the flour mixture and gradually mix all the ingredients until the dough can be formed into a ball.
5. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead the dough until it is smooth, elastic, and non-sticky. While kneading, you may need to add sprinkles of flour to make the dough non-sticky. 
6. Form the dough into a round ball and place it on the baking sheet.
7. Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes.  
8. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.