This recipe will make 2 medium loaves or 4 baguettes or 20 buns.

Ingredients

• 1kg of flour
• 500ml warm water
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp dried yeast
• 2 tbsp oil

Time taken to work the dough – 20 mins.
Time taken to rise – 1hr 30 mins – 2hrs 15 mins.
Time to cook – 25 mins @ 225oc

Method

1. Add the flour to a large bowl, make a well in the centre and add the dried yeast. 
2. Add approx 50ml from the 500ml of warm water, mix with the yeast in the well with a wooden spoon. 
3. Add salt and the rest of the water, mix until a dough is formed. 
4. Turn out onto a floured surface and kneed for 10 mins, the dough should be soft, stretchy and slightly sticky, keep adding flour to your surface/work top and hands.
   With a pastry brush, oil the bowl you had used for mixing.
5.  Return the dough to this bowl and cover with oiled clingfilm. 
6. Put the dough in a warm place (I pre-heat my oven to 30/35oc then switch off and put the dough in there) for 1hr – 1hr 15 mins, or until the dough has doubled in size.
7. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface again and kneed for 5 mins.  Shape as you want it, either in a bread tin or as buns/baguettes – leave about 3cms between buns as they will rise/expand.
8. Once again put the dough in a warm place for another 30 mins – 1hr until well risen.
   To make the bread crusty, place a half full, shallow pan of water in the bottom of the oven. 
9. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 225oc for 25 mins.  If you decide to make one large loaf you may need to add another 5 – 10 mins to the cooking time. 
10. Remove from oven and leave to cool on a wire rack – or if you can’t resist, slice and eat whilst hot with melted spread/jam.