Rustic Italian Bread

Sorry for the MAJOR delay between posts. I'm full of excuses, but my most current is Cafe World on Facebook! It takes up ALL my time! I made this bread about two weeks ago, and it was so good that I want to post it right away. But I had hungry customers to feed in my virtual cafe, and I can't let my buzz rating slip below 100! ;) Anyway, I'm posting it now, and I must say it's totally delicious! I'll put it this way, it's yummy enough to eat WITHOUT any butter smeared on top! The crust is extra crunchy, and the interior is so moist and chewy. I used the "same-day" variation of the recipe, and the flavor was incredible. I can't even imagine how good it would taste if I took the extra time to make the sponge a day ahead! This recipe makes a loaf large enough to feed 8-10 people alongside a nice spaghetti dinner. The four of us polished off half of it, and I took care of the rest as French toast over the next few mornings. Breakfast has never been better!! (Well, except for the amazing muesli my mom picked up for me at Grandma's Pantry while she was in Harrisonburg!) :D

Rustic Italian Bread (from "The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book")

This recipe requires a bit of patience—the sponge, which gives the bread flavor, must be made 11 to 27 hours before the dough is made. We find it makes the most sense to prepare the sponge (which requires just 5 minutes of hands-on work) the day before you want to bake the bread.

On the second day, remove the sponge from the refrigerator and begin step 2 at least 7 hours before you want to serve the bread. If you own two standing mixer bowls, in step 1 you can refrigerate the sponge in the bowl in which it was made. Use the second bowl to make the dough in step 2. Have ready a spray bottle filled with water for misting the loaves.

Variation: SAME-DAY RUSTIC ITALIAN BREAD
If you don't have time for a sponge, this loaf can be made the same day, but the flavor won't be as complex, and the crumb will be finer and more uniform (like sandwich bread).
Omit the sponge. When assembling the dough in step 2, increase the amount of bread flour to 5 cups, increase the water to 2 1/4 cups, and increase the yeast to 1 envelope (2 1/4 teaspoons).

Sponge
2 cups (11 ounces) bread flour
1 cup warm water (110 degrees)
1/4 teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast

Dough
3-3 1/2 cups (16 1/2 to 19 1/4 ounces) bread flour
1 teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 1/4 cups warm water (110 degrees)
2 teaspoons salt

1. For the sponge: Stir all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl until combined. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature until the sponge has risen and fallen, at least 6 hours or up to 24 hours.

2. For the dough: Combine 3 cups of the flour and the yeast in a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook. With the mixer on low speed add the water and mix until the dough comes together, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer, cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and let sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.

3. Remove the plastic wrap, add the sponge and salt, and knead the dough on medium-low speed until it is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. If after 4 minutes more flour is needed, add the remaining 1/2 cup of flour, 2 tablespoons at a time, until the dough clears the sides of the bowl but sticks to the bottom.

4. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter, and knead by hand to form a smooth round ball. Place the dough in a large, lightly oiled bowl and cover tightly with greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

5. Turn the dough in the bowl with a dough scraper or large rubber spatula. Gently lift and fold a third of the dough toward the center. Repeat with the opposite side of the dough. Finally, fold the dough in half, perpendicular to the first folds. The dough shape should be a rough square. Cover, let rise for 30 more minutes, then repeat the turning process. Cover and let rise until the dough has doubled in size, about 30 minutes longer.

6. Top a rimless (or inverted) baking sheet with parchment paper. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured counter, press it into a 10-inch square without tearing it, and gently dimple it with your fingertips. Fold the top corners diagonally to the middle. Using your fingertips and starting at the top of the dough, pull the underside of the dough up over the top, stretching it considerably, and begin to roll the dough up into a rough log. With each roll, press the seam firmly to seal. Continue to do this, forming the dough into a taut log, 5 to 7 more times. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet, seam side down, and gently tuck the ends into a taut loaf. Mist the loaf with vegetable oil spray, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place until nearly doubled in size and the dough barely springs back when poked with a knuckle, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

7. Meanwhile, adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position, place a baking stone on the rack, and heat the oven to 500 degrees. Let the baking stone heat for at least 30 minutes (but no longer than 1 hour).

8. (I dusted mine lightly with flour before I slashed it.) Cut three 1/2-inch deep diagonal slashes across the top of the dough and spray the loaf lightly with water. Carefully slide the loaf and parchment onto the hot baking stone. Bake the bread for 10 minutes.

9. Rotate the bread, reduce the oven temperature to 400 degrees, and continue to bake until the center of the loaf registers 210 degrees on an instant-read thermometer and the crust is deep golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. (I think mine only took somewhere between 25-30 minutes to finish baking, so keep an eye on it.)

10. Transfer the loaf to a wire rack, discard the parchment, and let cool to room temperature, about 2 hours, before serving.