Rosemary Bread

• 1 C water
• 3 T olive oil (plus more for shaping the dough)
• 1 1/2 t sugar
• 1 1/2 t salt
• 1 1/2 t Italian seasoning
• 1/4 t black pepper
• 1 T chopped fresh rosemary (or 1 t dried)
• 2 1/2 C bread flour
• 1 1/2 t active dry yeast

Bread Maker/mixer/food processor: Put into machine in the order shown above, mix on dough setting.  I don’t bake it in the bread maker though because I prefer it in a round loaf.

Non-bread maker: mix yeast and slightly warm water and sugar, let sit about ten minutes, it sort of gets foamy, then add other ingredients & knead for ten minutes.

This dough is easiest to shape if my hands are rubbed in olive oil. So I pour oil into the bottom of a bowl, then use my hands to oil the sides, then with oily hands I shape the dough into a nice smooth ball and put it in the bowl, cover with a tea towel and rise 1 hour.

Punch. Knead, re-shape turning in the bowl to recoat with oil (upper surface should be slightly oily). place on flat baking tray, cover and let rise 1 hour. Pre-heat oven this entire hour so that it’s really stable and hot. I usually set the tray on top of the stove while the oven is warming.

Sprinkle with parmesan and sea salt and black pepper. Bake 20 minutes at 375 and then 10 minutes at 425 – it will sound hollow when you knock it. Cool on wire rack before slicing (if you can wait that long…)

Notes: Keep the salt away from the yeast, including re-using the measuring spoon. I recommend King Arthur Brand Bread flour, it makes a noticeable difference for pizza, buns and breads like this versus all purpose flour. If it’s a really humid day then add a T of flour at a time until it firms up a bit.  This recipe doesn’t “double” right, it’s better to just make it twice in a row if you want two loaves while you have everything out.