Or, “Now, all of my kitchen towels are covered in flour.” My mom has been making no-knead crusty bread for a while now, and I’ve seen her do it and eaten it (yum) but didn’t figure it fit in with our by-the-seat-of-our-pants days we’ve been having lately. But a couple of weeks ago, I tried it, and now we are all hooked. It literally is so easy and delicious—the ultimate money and time saver. The recipe I’ve been using is from Mother-Earth News, recipe by Roger Doiron—here’s the direct link if you want to read more about this technique and find other similar recipes, and I’ve pasted the recipe below.

http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/2007-12-01/Easy-No-Knead-Dutch-Oven-Crusty-Bread.aspx?page=2

The trick for me, is to mix up the bread mixture at night before bed. Then, you have all of the next day and evening to let it rise again and bake it – whatever works for your schedule. Because there is no kneading, it takes only 1-2 minutes for each step! A note on the recipe, I have found that it helps on the second rising step to put your towel/dough into a shallow bowl which makes it easy to move. And, once taking the lid off I have only been baking it for 10 minutes. Enjoy! Jenna

No-Knead Dutch Oven Bread

1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting. You may use white, whole wheat or a combination of the two.
1 1/2 tsp salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran for dusting

1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in water. Add the flour and salt, stirring until blended. The dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest at least 8 hours, preferably 12 to 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
2. The dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it. Sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let it rest for about 15 minutes.
3. Using just enough flour to keep the dough from sticking to the work surface or to your fingers, gently shape it into a ball. Generously coat a clean dish towel with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal. Put the seam side of the dough down on the towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another towel and let rise for about 1 to 2 hours. When it’s ready, the dough will have doubled in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
4. At least 20 minutes before the dough is ready, heat oven to 475 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in the oven as it heats. When the dough is ready, carefully remove the pot from the oven and lift off the lid. Slide your hand under the towel and turn the dough over into the pot, seam side up. The dough will lose its shape a bit in the process, but that’s OK. Give the pan a firm shake or two to help distribute the dough evenly, but don’t worry if it’s not perfect; it will straighten out as it bakes.
5. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and bake another 15 to 20 minutes, until the loaf is beautifully browned. Remove the bread from the Dutch oven and let it cool on a rack for at least 1 hour before slicing.