Bread to Die For

Rob Lewis

Ingredients

• 1 lb European-style artisan bread flour

• 2 tsp salt

• 1 tsp active dry yeast

• 10 Oz lukewarm water (1-¼ cups)

• 1 Tbs artisan bread topping (a mix of several kinds of seeds)

• &#188 Cup cornmeal

Instructions

Put the water in the bread machine, add the yeast, and swirl to dissolve.
Add the flour, then the salt, and set the machine to the &#034dough only&#034 cycle (on my machine, this mixes the dough, kneads it, lets it rise once, and punches it down).
Dump the dough on a floured surface and gently roll and shape it into a long oval by tucking under the edges.
Transfer the loaf to a pizza peel (or cutting board) that has been liberally sprinkled with cornmeal.
Dust with flour, cover loosely with a kitchen towel, and let rise at room temperature until at least doubled (this can take a few hours).

About 45 minutes before baking, start the fire in the BGE. Place the pizza stone on the grid and set the temperature to 500 degrees.
Mist the loaf with hot water from a pump spray bottle, and sprinkle on the seed topping. Using a very sharp knife, slash the top diagonally in a couple of places.
When the BGE is thoroughly preheated, throw a large sprig of fresh rosemary onto the coals. Quickly sprinkle the pizza stone liberally with cornmeal and slide the loaf onto it. As you are closing the lid, pump 3-4 blasts of mist from the spray bottle into the BGE. Repeat this in 2 minutes. Then reduce the temperature to 425 degrees and keep it there.
After 20-25 minutes, stick an instant-read thermometer into the center of the loaf. It's done when it reaches 200 degrees F. Cool on a rack for at least 15 minutes before cutting.

Notes

You can of course experiment with other toppings and herbs.
If you don't have an accurate scale, you will have to judge the flour quantity by the dough consistency (don't make it too stiff). It should take between 3-1/3 and 4 cups of flour.

Number of Servings:

Time to Prepare: