There are few things that are so simple yet so delicious as a loaf of freshly baked bread. While we were spoiled for choice in Europe, we found it trickier to source fresh bread in Trinidad which led to me learning how to bake my own breads and pizza bases using our galley oven.
After some trial and error, here’s my favourite bread recipe that's easy to make and work well when you’re living the sailing, liveaboard lifestyle.
Peasant Bread Loaf
This recipe makes one load of bread.
Ingredients
4 cups plain flour
1 tablespoon salt
2 cups lukewarm water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon instant yeast
room temperature butter to grease the pan
Method
Whisk the salt, flour, yeast and sugar together in a large mixing bowl
Add the water and mix until the flour is absorbed
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a tea towel and leave it in a warm place to rise for 1-2 hours
When it’s risen, preheat the oven to 220°C / 425°F (On the Eno oven I put it to setting 9)
Using two forks punch the dough down, scraping it off the edge and pulling it towards the center
Put the dough into a baking tin that’s been well greased using the room temperature butter
Let the dough rise again for 20-30 minutes but this time don't cover it
Put in the oven and bake for 15 minutes
Reduce the heat to 190°C / 375°F and bake for another 15 minutes (I change the Eno setting to 7)
Turn the loaf out onto a cooling rack to stand for at least 10 minutes before cutting. If it seems a little undercooked, bake it outside of the baking tin for another 5 minutes
