ARTISAN BREAD TOPPINGS RECIPES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the milk, sugar, butter, egg yolk, 1-1/2 teaspoons salt and 2 cups flour. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough (dough will be sticky). , Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a bowl coated with cooking spray, turning once to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. , Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide in half. Shape into two round loaves. Place each on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Beat egg white and water; brush over loaves. , Combine the poppy seeds, sesame seeds, caraway seeds, onion and remaining salt; sprinkle over loaves. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes., Bake at 375° for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Cut into wedges; serve warm.

Steps:

• Place flour, salt and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer (or a large mixing bowl). With mixer running on low speed, pour in nearly all of the water (2 1/4 cups or 500g), stirring until all of the flour is moistened. (If mixing by hand, use a large wooden spoon.) Continue mixing until dough is no longer ragged, about 3 to 4 minutes, adding 1 to 2 tablespoons (14 to 28g) water if needed. The dough should be pretty sticky and wet and will cling to your finger if you touch it. It will have a slightly coarse or irregular texture, but no dry flour should be visible. Coat a large lidded container (at least 12 cups) with cooking spray. Scrape dough into the container and cover.
• Let dough rest at room temperature 15 minutes. Uncover for stretching and folding: Gently reach under one side of the mixed dough, pull out and away from the mass, stretching as far as the dough will allow without tearing, then fold dough back onto itself. Do this for each side of the dough. Cover again and let rest another 15 minutes. Repeat the stretch-fold-rest process three more times. With each round, you'll find the dough smoother and stronger. Once dough has been stretched and folded four times, place covered container in the refrigerator at least 8 hours. (If the dough's texture seems underdeveloped, do another stretch-and-fold before fridging). Dough will last up to 7 days, but works best within 3 or 4 days.
• To shape a boule: Gently scoop a blob of dough (either half of it for two large boules or one-third for three petite loaves) out of the container onto a generously floured surface. Bring sticky edges of the blob up toward the center, pinching in the middle, like a drawstring purse. Remove excess flour from work area and flip the rounded dough over. Tighten boule by rotating it a few times clockwise on the work surface between your hands, taking advantage of the stickiness of the bottom dough to pull the edges underneath, so it draws up into a perky loaf. Sprinkle a small amount of flour on top and rub across top.
• Transfer loaf to parchment paper. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and let rise until double in size, 1 to 2 hours, depending on how warm your kitchen is.
• Place a baking stone or an upside-down large rimmed baking sheet on the middle oven rack. Place an empty metal pan (such as a 13x9-inch baking pan) on the bottom rack. Preheat oven to 475°. Measure 1 cup water; set aside. When dough has risen, slash loaf top with a baker's lame or sharp knife; use a peel or rimless cookie sheet to transfer loaf (with parchment paper) onto the hot stone. Immediately pour the water into hot baking pan to create steam. Close the oven door and reduce oven temperature to 450°. Bake until well browned, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool at least 1 hour before slicing.