Ingredients
1 cup 2% milk
5 cups all-purpose flour, divided
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 Tbsp quick-rising yeast
1/3 cup chopped fresh rosemary leaves
2 tsp coarse sea salt
¼ cup + 1 Tbsp Buona Cucina herbaceous Extra Virgin Olive Oil or Buona Cucina Tuscan Herb Infuse Oil for a fun twist
Directions
In a small pot, heat the milk with 1 cup water to 115F.
STAND MIXER METHOD In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine 2 ½ cups of the flour with the sugar, yeast, rosemary, and salt.
Start the mixer on low speed and slowly pour in the water/milk mixture and the ¼ cup of olive oil. When the dough begins to come together and pulls away from the bowl, sprinkle in the remaining flour is combined and the dough is soft and elastic to the touch.
HAND MIXING METHOUD In a large bowl, combine 2 ½ cups of the flour with the sugar, yeast, rosemary, and salt. Make a well in the flour, add the water/milk mixture and ¼ cup of the olive oil, and mix with a wooden spoon until the flour is well combined. It should be pulling away from the bowl but still be sticky. Place 1 cup of the remaining flour on a clean work surface, turn out the sough, and knead until all the flour is absorbed. Dust with the remaining flour and continue to knead until it is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. dusting with more flour as you knead.
To make the bread shape the dough into a ball, rub all over with the remaining 1 Tbsp of the olive oil, and place in a large, lightly oiled bowl. Roll it around a bit to pick up the oil then cover with a clean damp kitchen towel or plastic wrap and set in a warm, draft-free spot until doubled in size 10-15 minutes.
Once the dough has risen, cut it in half and shape each half into an oval loaf. Dust the tops with a little flour and cover with a damp towel. Let rise until doubled again about 40 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 400F with a baking stone or 2 stacked sheet pans set upside down in over (doubling the sheet pans will help prevent the loaves from burning on the bottom).
Once the dough has doubled again, spritz the loaves with water and score the tops with a sharp knife in a crisscross fashion. Carefully place the loaves on the hot stone/sheet pans, spritz one more time with water and bake for 20 minutes. spritz the loaves again with water turn down the oven to 350F and bake for an additional 20 minutes until the bread sounds hallow when tapped. Let cool on a wire rack before cutting-or slather with EVOO while its warm if you cannot wait.
Recipe by Emily Lycopolus