Rosemary-Garlic Bread for Weekend Cooking Series

Should I change my site’s name to Simply Slacking? No, I have just gotten out of the routine of posting as I've been involved with other things. Fun things though (for me)……I am deeply committed to George Martin’s book Storm of Swords, the third in the Fire and ice series.

Book two was action, action, action…………….this one has action, less than book 2, but wow….a lot goes on and I am always anxious to get back to the individual stories. Lots of food in all three books I have read so far.

Right now, I would like to share this rosemary-garlic bread……..bread is always a welcome on the dinner table. Always.



This bread was very hearty with a strong aroma of herbs – the parsley and rosemary scents were strong. Next time, I think I would use less rosemary and maybe substitute one of the cups of whole wheat flour with AP.

Great loaf, went extremely well with a marrow bone beef-vegetable soup. The strong wheat and herb flavors would be too overpowering for a simple roast chicken or a pasta dish…but for a beef, pork or hearty soup this works quite well.




Rosemary-Garlic Bread
adapted from Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads

3 cups whole wheat flour
2½ cups AP flour
4½ tsp instant yeast
2½ tsp salt
2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
2 cups warm water
¼ cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
¼ cup chopped fresh rosemary (half that amount, if dried)

In your stand mixer - add everything except the AP flour. Mix for 2 minutes and then add the white flour, ¼ cup at a time, until you have a nice feeling dough that cleans the bowl.

Continue to beat (with dough hook) for a few more mi tnutes.
Form into a ball, toss into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover and let rise for about 1 hour.

Punch down and divide dough in half. Form into two loaves and let rise 1 more hour, covered.

Preheat oven to 400°F. Bake in center rack for about 35 minutes, or until golden brown with an interior temperature of over 200°F - I used a meat stick/thermometer to check temp.
The bread should sound hollow and hard if you tap on it. Now let it cool on a rack.

This is a snap of the bread in my French loaf pan, waiting to popped into the oven.



I am sharing this with Beth Fish Reads Weekend Cooking Series
Weekend Cooking is open to anyone who has any kind of food-related post to share: Book (novel, nonfiction) reviews, cookbook reviews, movie reviews, recipes, random thoughts, gadgets, quotations, photographs. If your post is even vaguely foodie, feel free to grab the button and link up anytime over the weekend.