Rustic Italian Bread

Yesterday I bought Manitoba flour at my local grocery store in Copenhagen, and I noticed a recipe on the back for manitoba bread. It was so simple just yeast, water, flour, and salt. I decided to try it, and was blown away by the results. This is just the kind of Italian bread recipe I have been searching for, and it's so simple. It has a crunchy crust, but it's soft in the middle, and tastes pretty amazing. Not only that but I was surprised how pretty it came out, with little effort.

If you want to see how I made a Rustic Italian bread with Manitoba flour check out my video here:


        

Rustic Italian Bread
(1 large bread or 2 small breads)
Ingredients
3 grams dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
2 dl warm water (.84 US cups)
240 g manitoba flour (1 - 1 1/2cups)
5 g salt (1 tsp) regular or sea salt

Directions
1. Combine the yeast and water in a tall cup, cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 5 - 10 minutes.
2. Combine the salt and flour in a large bowl.
3. Add the yeast mixture to the flour/salt mixture.
4. Stir together until a dough forms.
5. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead it for 10 minutes.
6. Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover and let it rise for 1 hour.
7. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface to shape.
8. Pre-heat the oven to 230C/446F.
9. Pinch the sides of the dough together to create a smooth surface on top.
10. Hand roll the dough to form a baguette or shape it into a round ball or any way you want.
11. Dust the dough in flour, and cut slits in the dough with a sharp knife (optional).
12. Bake the dough for 20 minutes at 230C/446F and an additional 8 - 10 minutes at 200C/392F.