You won’t believe how easy this Italian bread is to make! With its soft interior and crusty exterior, it tastes like a loaf straight from your favorite bakery. With hardly any hands-on time and a very forgiving dough, this is a perfect beginner yeast recipe. Be sure to have a lot of softened butter ready to slather on these slices!
Well over a decade ago, I had planned to make spaghetti and meatballs on a regular ol’ Sunday afternoon when I was suddenly hit with the realization that I needed a loaf of Italian bread to soak up all of the extra sauce on the plate.
Not wanting to venture to the grocery store while in the middle of the meal, I began looking up recipes. I mashed a couple together and ended up with the most enormous, most delicious loaf of homemade Italian bread. For the very first time making Italian bread, I had seriously hit the jackpot. I’ve never wavered from this recipe and it remains a favorite of many of my friends.
It’s easy to see why – with a perfectly crisp outer crust and a soft, chewy interior with a tight crumb, it’s a bread dream come true!
The Case for Bread Flour
If you’ve made my favorite white bread recipe, you may remember that I opt for all-purpose flour there because it produces a super light and fluffy bread.
In contrast, we want to use bread flour for this Italian bread due to its higher protein content, which will create a bread that is chewier in texture and a bit denser. Since this is a free-form loaf of bread, using bread flour also helps the bread to retain its shape while rising.
Creating Steam for a Crisp Crust
The one unconventional step to this recipe comes during the baking step. While the oven is preheating, you’ll place a metal baking pan on the bottom rack of your oven. Once you place the bread in the oven, you’ll pour a cup of water into the pan, which will create a ton of steam, resulting in a wonderfully crisp crust on the bread.
Important Note: Please be sure to use a metal pan, NOT GLASS. If you pour water into a glass pan that has been heated, it has the potential to shatter. Go ahead and ask me how I know this ;-)
How to Make This Italian Bread
You won’t believe how many times I’ve received the comment, “I couldn’t believe how easy this was to make, and it was just like a loaf from the bakery!” It truly is incredibly simple and mostly hands-off; even better is that you can have fresh-baked Italian bread in just a few short hours.
Here’s what you’ll need to do:
Combine the yeast in warm water, then add to the flour, salt, brown sugar, and olive oil.
Mix on low speed until a dough starts to form (you may need to add more flour here!).
Knead for 7 minutes, then do a couple of minutes by hand for a smooth, firm, and elastic dough.
Rise! Put the dough in an oiled bowl and allow to rise until doubled in size.
Shape & Rise – The dough will be shaped into a torpedo and left to rise once more until doubled in size again.
Top & Bake – Brush the dough with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds, then pop it into the oven.
Tips for Bread Success!
Bread Flour – I outlined above why I’m a big advocate of bread flour for this particular recipe; you can find it in nearly all grocery stores or can buy it online. If you substitute all-purpose flour, there will be a definite difference in texture.
Yeast – This recipe calls for active dry yeast, but you can substitute instant yeast without an issue or any modifications.
Mixing by Hand – While using a stand mixer with dough hook makes this easier, you can absolutely mix and knead entirely by hand.
Extra Flour – Note that the recipe states you may need to add a little extra flour during the mixing process to get a dough to come together. I find that this varies during different times of the year, as well as what the weather is like. If it’s warmer/more humid, you may need more flour. When it’s colder and drier, I rarely, if ever, need to add more flour.
Metal Pan – I want to emphasize once more that the pan you place on the bottom rack of the oven to create steam needs to be METAL and not glass.
Baking Stone – This is the baking stone that I use, and this is the pizza peel you see pictured above. If you don’t have a baking stone, you can flip a baking sheet upside down and put a sheet of parchment paper on top and bake the bread on there (you would not need to place the pan in the oven during preheating).
Recipe video included. You won't believe how easy this Italian bread is to make! With its soft interior and crusty exterior, it tastes like a loaf straight from your favorite bakery.
Stir the yeast into ½ cup of the warm water. Let proof as you measure out the dry ingredients.
Combine 5 cups flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add the yeast mixture, remaining water, and olive oil. Using a dough hook attachment, mix on the lowest speed of electric mixer (stir setting on a KitchenAid) until a dough starts to form, adding more flour as needed, up to an additional ¾ cup. Knead on low speed (2 on a KitchenAid) for 7 minutes. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 1 to 2 minutes, or until a smooth, firm, elastic dough is formed.
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl and spray the dough with a thin coating of cooking spray. Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside to proof in a warm, draft-free place for 1½ hours or until doubled in size.
Remove the plastic wrap, punch down and flatten the rounded dough with the heel of your hand. Roll the dough up tightly, sealing the seam well after each roll. The dough should be elongated and oval-shaped, with tapered and rounded (not pointed) ends.
Place a baking stone on the center oven rack and preheat the oven to 425°F. Place a metal baking pan on the lowest rack.
Place the dough on a baker's peel heavily dusted with flour, or alternately on an inverted baking sheet. Allow the dough to proof, loosely covered with a floured dish towel, for 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
If using the topping, brush the dough with the egg white and sprinkle the sesame seeds over the top. Using a razor blade or sharp knife, slash the dough lengthwise about 1/4-inch deep, keeping the blade at a 45-degree angle.
Just prior to placing the bread in the oven, pour 1 cup of water into the metal pan you placed on the bottom rack of the oven. Then, transfer the loaf from the peel to the stone in the oven.
Bake the dough until golden brown and a hollow thud is heard when tapping the bottom of the bread (it should register at least 195 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer), about 30 to 40 minutes. Allow the bread to cool before slicing.
Recipe Notes:
Bread Flour - I outlined above why I'm a big advocate of bread flour for this particular recipe; you can find it in nearly all grocery stores or can buy it online. If you substitute all-purpose flour, there will be a definite difference in texture.
Yeast - This recipe calls for active dry yeast, but you can substitute instant yeast without an issue or any modifications.
Mixing by Hand - While using a stand mixer with dough hook makes this easier, you can absolutely mix and knead entirely by hand.
Extra Flour - Note that the recipe states you may need to add a little extra flour during the mixing process to get a dough to come together. I find that this varies during different times of the year, as well as what the weather is like. If it's warmer/more humid, you may need more flour. When it's colder and drier, I rarely, if ever, need to add more flour.
Metal Pan - I want to emphasize once more that the pan you place on the bottom rack of the oven to create steam needs to be METAL and not glass.
Baking Stone - This is the baking stone that I use, and this is the pizza peel you see pictured above. If you don't have a baking stone, you can flip a baking sheet upside down and put a sheet of parchment paper on top and bake the bread on there (you would not need to place the pan in the oven during preheating).
I make a LOT of bread and rolls…this recipe is excellent! Super easy to put together. I found it easiest to shape the bread on parchment paper on top of a sheet pan turned upside down. I simply slide the parchment from the pan to the baking stone. When removing it from the oven, I again slide the parchment off the baking stone right into my cooling rack. The bread looks like the perfect loaf of crusty Italian bread. The inside has an excellent chew but is soft. I like using the brown sugar rather than granulated sugar. Really, really great recipe!
This bread was the perfect project for a cold rainy day. The bread turned out perfectly even though it looked a little more crescent shape since it stuck to the bread peel as I was transferring it to the baking stone. The proof is in the eating and it was great. Thank you for sharing.
This is a great recipe, I have made it twice now, first time I did one one loaf….it was huge , second time I did two loaves, both times it was a challenge transferring the loaves to the baking stone. Any suggestion ?
Thanks for getting back to me Michelle! I actually made this recipe for the third time over the weekend…….I did six hoagie rolls and used your recipe for Philly cheese steak subs…..they were awesome! Probably my favourite bread recipe. I have made several of your recipes with great results. I love your blog, your family is beautiful and of course your goldens are pretty special too!
…made this loaf yesterday. I only did a half recipe for the two of us and I used my bread machine to do the mixing and kneading. Then I baked it on my pizza stone with the metal pan of water underneath. It made a lovely loaf of bread and it is a definite keeper recipe.
Thank you for posting this recipe! I am going to try making it tomorrow. Silly as it sounds, it’s my husbands birthday and he is a sucker for a good loaf of Italian bread. I am going to surprise him with this recipe. Let’s hope I don’t mess it up :). I love your blog and your recipes! Thank you!
A few people have been referring to a spray bottle. Am I missing this part of the recipe? I made this loaf and it turned out great but didn’t darken as much as the bread in the photo. Should I have misted it with water?
Hi Julie, An older version of the recipe had you mist the dough with a spray bottle in 3 minute intervals for the beginning part of the baking process, but I simplified it by pouring water into the pan on the bottom of the oven; a little more hands off :)
You have no idea how much I appreciate that you put the water temp for the yeast as part of your recipe. I can’t wait to try this; I love Italian bread.
I’m a novice bread baker, so I need more detailed instructions on how to use the pizza peel and baking stone. How do you get the loaf from the peel to the stone? And do you make a slit in the top of the load with a knife before you bake it? Thanks!
Well, yes, this IS an enormous loaf ! I divided the dough into 2 loaves so it would fit on my stone. It came out looking beautiful. My sister took both to a dinner party & it got raves. Didn’t alter the recipe at all (BTW, I live at 6,000 ft). Thank you for sharing your recipe. Will make it again so I can try it too!
You’re right; this is one massive loaf. It reminded me of the “I Love Lucy” episode where Lucy and Ethel add a few too many cakes of yeast to their bread dough and the resulting behemoth bursts out of the oven pinning Lucy against her kitchen counter.Thanks to my new KitchenAid mixer and my Brod & Taylor proofing box, the dough came together nicely and rose like a dream. I added the egg wash and sesame seeds and darn if the taste and texture of this bread don’t remind me of the Italian bakery products I remember quite fondly as a kid. It even freezes better than I thought possible.I will definitely be making this again. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
I followed the recipe exactly, almost, don’t have a spray bottle, so put a pan in the bottom of the oven and poured water in just before butting bread in. Also, didn’t do egg wash and sesame seeds. Beautiful crust, tender loaf. LOVED it. Family ate it before I could get a picture.
I have this loaf in the oven now, fourth time I’ve made it. I’ve baked about six or seven different bread recipes, this one is the most foolproof, right down the middle excellent bread, slightly tight crumb, perfect for toast, sandwiches, bruchetta, midnight snacking and general breadfulness
Thank You, I’ve made this recipe several times now without fail and many friends have enjoyed it. It’s delicious especially if allowed to cool for a few hours. I also put a pan of water under the rack of bread. I’m going to try your anadama bread recipe next to go with my Boston baked beans. Ciao!
I tried making this today and the dough was very stiff and crumbly after kneading it. It wouldn’t even come together into a nice ball. Should I have used less flour and added more as needed? I followed everything to a tee, what could have happened?
not sure about the baking time, as i left mine in for only 25 min and any longer it would have been way overdone. I have a gas stove, not sure if that made a difference.
I just ordered a French bread pan that hold two loaves and I intend to try it out using your Italian Bread recipe, since it is a very large loaf. I am relatively new to bread baking and was wondering, when putting dough on a stone to bake, should I line the stone with parchment paper? (I do not have a peel.) Thank you.
Hi Jan, As long as you have a large spatula or something else that you can move the loaves with, you don’t need parchment. If you don’t have a way to move the loaves, however parchment will probably make it easier.
This bread was great! So easy to make, dense, and the crust was incredible. I, uh, made the mistake of just chucking the water into my oven due to speed-reading the directions. My husband was mad but didn’t remain so after tasting this delicious bread! Next time around I’ll put a pan in. :D
Pingback: The Perfect Loaf of Italian Bread, At Home
Hi chef, I never make bread before, want to try this recipe. Just wondering “1 package active dry yeast” is how many grams or tablespoon? can not figure out how much us a package
Thanks so much for your reply so that I can try it this weekend.
Appreciate your kind feedback. Have tried the recipe for the first time in my life :), the bread outside was very crunchy when it was just brought out of the oven, when it cools down in some hours later, it became so hard and thick. What should I do to make it softer but still crunchy, not become so hard later on. Millions thanks to you! Best regards, Jenny
I’ve never made bread before, but have been wanting to try and replicate one I grew up eating. Stumbled on to this site while looking for a recipe that only needed 1 pack of yeast, as that’s all I had. I must say it turned out well for a first attempt. The interior was dense, like you said, and that’s one thing I need to copy. Next time, I won’t do the the water spraying- made the crust too crunchy-thick. Also, I will need to play with cooking times/temps, as the crust was way too brown, so I lowered the heat to 375°because there was still 30 minutes of cook time left. Even so, I took it out with 8 minutes remaining as it had the proper bread ‘sound’. All in all, this recipe was easy to follow, very good instructions, the extra hint info was a nice reference. I’m also glad that you had a good photo of the interior of the bread- that actually sold me on trying it.
I made this yesterday and it was delicious! Nice and crusty on the outside and soft inside. I mixed and kneaded all by hand as I do not, currently, have a kitchenaid. It was a very easy dough to work with and is very soothing to do by hand. We had it with the lasagna I made as well. Thanks for the yummy recipe!
I’ve made your Italian loaf 3Xs these past cpl weeks. Awesome!!! Thank you. We’ve been experimenting and substitute bout 1 /2 cups whole wheat flour. SOOOO YUMMY. Tonights vsion has added rosemary. Thank you so much for this great bread. The crust is so crunchy and the inside is just perfect. Gave such great inspiration for a beginner breadmaker.
How do you make the crust softer, mine came out hard as a rock the insides was still soft and lovely. I like my crust crisp just not that hard ps I used the roasting pan with boiling water instead of a spray bottle
Hi Jessica, You can place a roasting pan on the bottom rack of the oven and fill it with boiling water right before you place the bread in. Be sure to use a metal roasting pan and not glass – I’ve shattered a glass pan doing that once!
What do the sesame seeds add to this recipe? Usually, I like my bread seedless but in the picture it looks like there are no seeds. Also, if I choose to leave out the seeds does that mean I can nix the egg whites, too? These questions might be a little dumb, but I’m pretty new to baking.
Hi Meghan, Some folks like sesame seeds on the crust of their Italian bread. It’s an optional step, and yes you can omit the egg whites, too, unless you prefer a more glossy, golden crust.
Just made this to go with my baked shrimp for dinner. Great recipe! Easy to follow. Perfect the way written, especially if you follow the hints or (****). Great dipper bread consistensy. Instead of spraying the bread with wate, I put my cast iron grill in the oven on the bottom rack and used a turkey baster to splash water on that every 3 minutes as instructed. You won’t be sorry you made this bread. Thank you!
So I just made this today and it was my first attempt at making bread. I really don’t know the differences in flours and I didn’t have bread flour. I used 4 cups all purpose and 1 cup wheat. What are your thoughts on different types of flour. I also cooked mine on a Traeger pellet smoker. (I do a fair amount of bbq.) it came out really good. It finished like two hours ago and it’s mostly gone already. It his was my first attempt at branching out into baked goods on my smoker and it was a success.
I made two loaves of this bread yesterday, and it came out SO GOOD! The only thing is that my oven read 425 dead on with an oven thermometer, but the bread was a bit too brown at 39 minutes, so I didn’t bake it for 45. Once it came out of the oven, I let it sit for 15 minutes before I cut into it, and it was cooked perfectly inside. I baked my bread on an inverted cookie sheet, so I don’t know if that perhaps bakes a bit differently than a baking tile. the crust was really dark brown but for the most part not so brown that we couldn’t eat the crust. & the sesame seeds were perfect too. eating the bread was an experience of a perfect match between my idea of bread and the yeasty goodness I was wolfing slathered with butter.
i am baking two more loaves today, and they rose differently than yesterday, even though I think I did everything the same. It took longer to rise today for some reason, and also in the second rise the bread rose outwards rather than upwards!
This recipe is wonderful and it looks beautiful!! Not to mention it tastes amazing. My husband said we no longer have to buy bread downtown any more!! Thank you so much. I just started a blog on baking, please check it out and let me know what you think. http://www.apinchofluv.com Thanks again !!
I am new to the bread baking world and I just made this during a Nor’easter here and it came out so wonderful. It is a very dense dough, so I am glad the comment was there.
This bread is absolutely delicious. I was looking for something close to what my store sells. This is close to it, maybe even better. I’ll definitely be making this bread again. It’s not crispy, but next time I would like it to be. Definitely recommended.
A ver dense dough, indeed! The inexplicable has happened. It actually broke the hook off my dough hook for my KA!! Amazing. I hope this bread is amazing. I’ll keep you posted.
Ack! A verY dense dough. Pulled it out to prep for the second rise and it looked incredibly happy. Can’t wait for the lovely aroma from the oven. Soon!
Amazing. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! It will definitely be a keeper for me! I will be replacing the standard KA dough hook with one that’s made from stainless steel.
I’d like to try this recipe soon. I recently tried your white bread recipe and it turned out great! Hoping the same with the Italian loaf. One question though. I dont have a baking stone. Can I use just the inverted baking sheet or do I need to get a stone? Thanks and keep up the delicious work.
Made this Bread Saturday night it’s Moday and it’s gone (just me and my wife) it was great. crisp crunch outside soft dense inside. Just a grat recipie. Fairly simple and not all that time consuming. Will make over and over again.
I loved the bread, very tasty and it looked just as good as yours. Great for bruschetta or with pesto! Now my bread was a bit dry, any advise to make it a bit more moist?
This was my first time baking bread from scratch. My loaf looked just like yours. I used regular unbleached flour and it still came out very well. The measurements, baking time and temp are perfect. I sprayed my crust 4X but I would of liked it if my crust came out a little thicker and crunchier. Will spraying a few more times do the trick? It was relaxing and fun kneading the dough and smelling fresh yeast. Now I can’t wait to try your other bread recipes :)
Hi Debbie, So glad you liked the bread! More steam should produce a crisper crust. You could also put a roasting ban with boiling water on the bottom rack when you put the bread into the oven.
This bread was amazing, and I was surprised at how easy it was to make! I found that it only too 30 minutes to bake, though. I posted about it on my blog and would love if you’d take a look: http://piesandplots.net/italian-bread/ Thanks!
Just made 2 loaves this afternoon in our 300 room hotel. Fantastic recipe,great crust & texture,easy to train my staff on how to prepare. Just a comment but i reduced the temperature from 220c to 190 after the third steam injection but we use professional sized baking ovens.
Thank you for sharing this great recipe! I was shocked that I could produce a bread that turned out so well. Great directions! This will be my go to Italian bread recipe.
This was my first attempt at bread-making and it turned out beautifully! Thanks for the clear directions and great tips. If I decided to make two smaller loaves, do you think I could freeze half the dough after the first rise? I’ve done that with pizza dough, but I’m not sure the same rules apply here. Thanks!
Hi Annie, I’ve never done that actually. Usually with bread, I will bake the full recipe and then freeze a loaf once it has been baked and cooled. Then I just let it sit at room temperature to thaw when I’m ready to use it.
yes, you can freeze bread dough. Shape it, wrap in plastic wrap and they in foil. Freeze it. Before you use it, take it out the night before and let it rise as normal. It will take several hours to thaw and then rise. Bake as usual. Hope this helps
Yes, you could certainly divide this into loaves. Just be sure to adjust the baking time, as two smaller loaves won’t take as long to bake. The crisp outer crust is created by spraying the crust with water, as indicated in the recipe. Enjoy the bread!
Hi, do you think this could be devided for two small loaves? Usually, bread dough can be shaped however one wants, but I just wanted your opinion on this please. BTW, hopemine looks this good. How do you get the crust such a pleasing brown without drying out the inside?
ROLA — So sorry to ruin your diet, but glad that you enjoyed the bread! :) My bread was definitely dense, so I think your rise time was probably just fine.
I came upon your recipe on my second day of a diet….needless to say, the diet was forgotten and the bread won….My kids woke up to the smell of it and really enjoyed it before school. My question is: is it supposed to be on the dense side or I did not let it rise enough?
I tried out this recipe and it turned out gorgeously! I’m going to have to make it again soon because it disappeared so quickly. Also, I tried your tip and left my spray bottle on the counter, using the roaster with water in it worked very well. I might have to try that method with another bread recipe.
Hi Lori – I’m so glad that you enjoyed the spaghetti and meatballs! I have only ever frozen cooked meatballs, but I don’t see any reason why you couldn’t freeze them raw! If you try it let me know how it turns out!
Your bread does look amazing, and I plan on making it soon! But I’m actually posting here because I made your Spaghetti & Meatballs tonight and OH MY….that was so incredibly good. My husband and I greatly enjoyed them and will be making it again with fresh Italian Bread!
One question though, have you ever tried freezing the raw meatballs? I just thought that may be an easy way to be able to throw this together, even though it really didn’t take that long anyway. Thanks so much for the recipe!
OMG I CANNOT wait to eat like 10 sandwiches Thursday night when you come home with this deliciousness!! I’m going to stop at the Italian store and get the good stuff to go on it as well :)
Hi Heather – By inverting the baking sheet, I mean just turning it over. My largest pan has a lip the whole way around, so I flip it over so there is nothing preventing air from reaching the bread. I usually do this for free form loaves that are too big for my stone.
that loaf has an absolutely GORGEOUS color to it! I love making bread on weekends, too… and I also have a Nick that is just a sucker for a warm loaf of bread :) What do you mean by inverted pan? I’ve always just shaped mine and made them on parchment paper… is there a better way I don’t know about??
Yum. Your bread looks fabulous. I’ve made a couple of Italian bread recipes in the past month, but still haven’t found time to blog about either of them… *sigh*
Fantastic recipe. Huge loaf of Italian bread, who couldn’t love that. Enjoyed making and really enjoy eating. Bread as bread or toast.
Thank you!
I make a LOT of bread and rolls…this recipe is excellent! Super easy to put together. I found it easiest to shape the bread on parchment paper on top of a sheet pan turned upside down. I simply slide the parchment from the pan to the baking stone. When removing it from the oven, I again slide the parchment off the baking stone right into my cooling rack. The bread looks like the perfect loaf of crusty Italian bread. The inside has an excellent chew but is soft. I like using the brown sugar rather than granulated sugar. Really, really great recipe!
This bread was the perfect project for a cold rainy day. The bread turned out perfectly even though it looked a little more crescent shape since it stuck to the bread peel as I was transferring it to the baking stone. The proof is in the eating and it was great. Thank you for sharing.
This is a great recipe, I have made it twice now, first time I did one one loaf….it was huge , second time I did two loaves, both times it was a challenge transferring the loaves to the baking stone. Any suggestion ?
Hi Kathy, Just be sure the peel is well floured. You could also try a little semolina flour or cornmeal underneath.
Thanks for getting back to me Michelle! I actually made this recipe for the third time over the weekend…….I did six hoagie rolls and used your recipe for Philly cheese steak subs…..they were awesome! Probably my favourite bread recipe. I have made several of your recipes with great results. I love your blog, your family is beautiful and of course your goldens are pretty special too!
…made this loaf yesterday. I only did a half recipe for the two of us and I used my bread machine to do the mixing and kneading. Then I baked it on my pizza stone with the metal pan of water underneath. It made a lovely loaf of bread and it is a definite keeper recipe.
Hi Linda, I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Thank you for posting this recipe! I am going to try making it tomorrow. Silly as it sounds, it’s my husbands birthday and he is a sucker for a good loaf of Italian bread. I am going to surprise him with this recipe. Let’s hope I don’t mess it up :). I love your blog and your recipes! Thank you!
A few people have been referring to a spray bottle. Am I missing this part of the recipe? I made this loaf and it turned out great but didn’t darken as much as the bread in the photo. Should I have misted it with water?
Hi Julie, An older version of the recipe had you mist the dough with a spray bottle in 3 minute intervals for the beginning part of the baking process, but I simplified it by pouring water into the pan on the bottom of the oven; a little more hands off :)
You have no idea how much I appreciate that you put the water temp for the yeast as part of your recipe. I can’t wait to try this; I love Italian bread.
I’m a novice bread baker, so I need more detailed instructions on how to use the pizza peel and baking stone. How do you get the loaf from the peel to the stone? And do you make a slit in the top of the load with a knife before you bake it? Thanks!
Have you ever tried substituting half the bread flour with Semolina?
I substituted about 20% whole wheat and it came out great.
Well, yes, this IS an enormous loaf ! I divided the dough into 2 loaves so it would fit on my stone. It came out looking beautiful. My sister took both to a dinner party & it got raves. Didn’t alter the recipe at all (BTW, I live at 6,000 ft). Thank you for sharing your recipe. Will make it again so I can try it too!
You’re right; this is one massive loaf. It reminded me of the “I Love Lucy” episode where Lucy and Ethel add a few too many cakes of yeast to their bread dough and the resulting behemoth bursts out of the oven pinning Lucy against her kitchen counter.Thanks to my new KitchenAid mixer and my Brod & Taylor proofing box, the dough came together nicely and rose like a dream. I added the egg wash and sesame seeds and darn if the taste and texture of this bread don’t remind me of the Italian bakery products I remember quite fondly as a kid. It even freezes better than I thought possible.I will definitely be making this again. Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
I followed the recipe exactly, almost, don’t have a spray bottle, so put a pan in the bottom of the oven and poured water in just before butting bread in. Also, didn’t do egg wash and sesame seeds. Beautiful crust, tender loaf. LOVED it. Family ate it before I could get a picture.
I have this loaf in the oven now, fourth time I’ve made it. I’ve baked about six or seven different bread recipes, this one is the most foolproof, right down the middle excellent bread, slightly tight crumb, perfect for toast, sandwiches, bruchetta, midnight snacking and general breadfulness
I accidentjy set the temp..to 450 and baked for 30-35 minutes. Turned out great.Thanks for the recipe,loved it.
Why does my bread deflate after the 2nd rising just before I put it in the oven?
Thanks;
Heidi
Hi Heidi, Are you letting it raise for too long? If that happens, it will start to collapse on itself and deflate.
Here are a couple of pictures of the finished product. I split the dough in half once to yield two smaller loaves instead of one huge one
This has been my go to recipe for bread , it has always turned out great, does make a huge loaf but that’s good because it usually doesn’t last long.
Pingback: Happy Belated World Bread Day! | AlbuKirky.com
Thank You, I’ve made this recipe several times now without fail and many friends have enjoyed it. It’s delicious especially if allowed to cool for a few hours. I also put a pan of water under the rack of bread. I’m going to try your anadama bread recipe next to go with my Boston baked beans.
Ciao!
I tried making this today and the dough was very stiff and crumbly after kneading it. It wouldn’t even come together into a nice ball. Should I have used less flour and added more as needed? I followed everything to a tee, what could have happened?
Pingback: Italian Bread Pan Substitute - test
not sure about the baking time, as i left mine in for only 25 min and any longer it would have been way overdone. I have a gas stove, not sure if that made a difference.
I just ordered a French bread pan that hold two loaves and I intend to try it out using your Italian Bread recipe, since it is a very large loaf. I am relatively new to bread baking and was wondering, when putting dough on a stone to bake, should I line the stone with parchment paper? (I do not have a peel.) Thank you.
Hi Jan, As long as you have a large spatula or something else that you can move the loaves with, you don’t need parchment. If you don’t have a way to move the loaves, however parchment will probably make it easier.
This bread was great! So easy to make, dense, and the crust was incredible. I, uh, made the mistake of just chucking the water into my oven due to speed-reading the directions. My husband was mad but didn’t remain so after tasting this delicious bread! Next time around I’ll put a pan in. :D
Pingback: The Perfect Loaf of Italian Bread, At Home
I was all set to try this but you lost ne at the stone and tile oven stuff
hi could you convert the recipe into grams or ounces please. cant wait to try it
Hi chef,
I never make bread before, want to try this recipe.
Just wondering “1 package active dry yeast” is how many grams or tablespoon?
can not figure out how much us a package
Thanks so much for your reply so that I can try it this weekend.
Best regards,
Jenny Nguyen
Hi Jenny, 1 package is 2.25 teaspoons.
Hi Chef,
Appreciate your kind feedback.
Have tried the recipe for the first time in my life :), the bread outside was very crunchy when it was just brought out of the oven, when it cools down in some hours later, it became so hard and thick. What should I do to make it softer but still crunchy, not become so hard later on.
Millions thanks to you!
Best regards,
Jenny
Hi Jenny, If you prefer a less crisp crust, don’t spray the loaf after it goes into the oven – that facilitates the hard crust.
I’ve never made bread before, but have been wanting to try and replicate one I grew up eating. Stumbled on to this site while looking for a recipe that only needed 1 pack of yeast, as that’s all I had. I must say it turned out well for a first attempt. The interior was dense, like you said, and that’s one thing I need to copy. Next time, I won’t do the the water spraying- made the crust too crunchy-thick. Also, I will need to play with cooking times/temps, as the crust was way too brown, so I lowered the heat to 375°because there was still 30 minutes of cook time left. Even so, I took it out with 8 minutes remaining as it had the proper bread ‘sound’. All in all, this recipe was easy to follow, very good instructions, the extra hint info was a nice reference. I’m also glad that you had a good photo of the interior of the bread- that actually sold me on trying it.
Pingback: I Made Bread! (62/365)
I made this yesterday and it was delicious! Nice and crusty on the outside and soft inside. I mixed and kneaded all by hand as I do not, currently, have a kitchenaid. It was a very easy dough to work with and is very soothing to do by hand. We had it with the lasagna I made as well. Thanks for the yummy recipe!
I’ve made your Italian loaf 3Xs these past cpl weeks. Awesome!!! Thank you. We’ve been experimenting and substitute bout 1 /2 cups whole wheat flour. SOOOO YUMMY. Tonights vsion has added rosemary. Thank you so much for this great bread. The crust is so crunchy and the inside is just perfect. Gave such great inspiration for a beginner breadmaker.
How do you make the crust softer, mine came out hard as a rock the insides was still soft and lovely. I like my crust crisp just not that hard ps I used the roasting pan with boiling water instead of a spray bottle
Hi Victoria, For a softer crust, eliminate the spray bottle (or roasting pan with boiling water, in your case).
Can I use this recipe, but shape the dough into bread bowls?
Thank you in advance for your response.
Hi Virginia, I have never tried to do that with this recipe, so I’m not sure how it would work out. If you try it, please let me know!
What else can be done to achieve th super crunchy crust other than spraying it with water? Say you don’t happen to have a spray bottle
Hi Jessica, You can place a roasting pan on the bottom rack of the oven and fill it with boiling water right before you place the bread in. Be sure to use a metal roasting pan and not glass – I’ve shattered a glass pan doing that once!
When you say “kitchenaid” are you referring to the artesian mixer or the 575 watt pro 600? I bought this beast so I don’t have to knead by hand!
Hi Jeff, I was referring to any KitchenAid stand mixer.
Great recipe! Made the bread today and it was a huge success! Thank you =)
What do the sesame seeds add to this recipe? Usually, I like my bread seedless but in the picture it looks like there are no seeds. Also, if I choose to leave out the seeds does that mean I can nix the egg whites, too?
These questions might be a little dumb, but I’m pretty new to baking.
Hi Meghan, Some folks like sesame seeds on the crust of their Italian bread. It’s an optional step, and yes you can omit the egg whites, too, unless you prefer a more glossy, golden crust.
Pingback: I Picked Up A New Hobby | philipwang.net
Just made this to go with my baked shrimp for dinner. Great recipe! Easy to follow. Perfect the way written, especially if you follow the hints or (****). Great dipper bread consistensy. Instead of spraying the bread with wate, I put my cast iron grill in the oven on the bottom rack and used a turkey baster to splash water on that every 3 minutes as instructed. You won’t be sorry you made this bread. Thank you!
So I just made this today and it was my first attempt at making bread. I really don’t know the differences in flours and I didn’t have bread flour. I used 4 cups all purpose and 1 cup wheat. What are your thoughts on different types of flour. I also cooked mine on a Traeger pellet smoker. (I do a fair amount of bbq.) it came out really good. It finished like two hours ago and it’s mostly gone already. It his was my first attempt at branching out into baked goods on my smoker and it was a success.
will a normal home oven (lined with metal) work for this recipe?
Yes, I make this in a regular, residential oven.
thank you!
Pingback: Artichoke Bread | Eat Live Local
I made two loaves of this bread yesterday, and it came out SO GOOD! The only thing is that my oven read 425 dead on with an oven thermometer, but the bread was a bit too brown at 39 minutes, so I didn’t bake it for 45. Once it came out of the oven, I let it sit for 15 minutes before I cut into it, and it was cooked perfectly inside. I baked my bread on an inverted cookie sheet, so I don’t know if that perhaps bakes a bit differently than a baking tile. the crust was really dark brown but for the most part not so brown that we couldn’t eat the crust. & the sesame seeds were perfect too. eating the bread was an experience of a perfect match between my idea of bread and the yeasty goodness I was wolfing slathered with butter.
i am baking two more loaves today, and they rose differently than yesterday, even though I think I did everything the same. It took longer to rise today for some reason, and also in the second rise the bread rose outwards rather than upwards!
This recipe is wonderful and it looks beautiful!! Not to mention it tastes amazing. My husband said we no longer have to buy bread downtown any more!! Thank you so much. I just started a blog on baking, please check it out and let me know what you think. http://www.apinchofluv.com Thanks again !!
I am new to the bread baking world and I just made this during a Nor’easter here and it came out so wonderful. It is a very dense dough, so I am glad the comment was there.
Bread turned out amazing. Wad really good made into garlic cheese bread w/ a bulb of roared garlic in the bread too
When did you incorporate the roasted garlic n the dough?
This bread is absolutely delicious. I was looking for something close to what my store sells. This is close to it, maybe even better. I’ll definitely be making this bread again. It’s not crispy, but next time I would like it to be. Definitely recommended.
Pingback: You Never Forget Your First (Loaf) « Ali & Bread
A ver dense dough, indeed! The inexplicable has happened. It actually broke the hook off my dough hook for my KA!! Amazing. I hope this bread is amazing. I’ll keep you posted.
Ack! A verY dense dough.
Pulled it out to prep for the second rise and it looked incredibly happy. Can’t wait for the lovely aroma from the oven. Soon!
Amazing. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe! It will definitely be a keeper for me! I will be replacing the standard KA dough hook with one that’s made from stainless steel.
I’d like to try this recipe soon. I recently tried your white bread recipe and it turned out great! Hoping the same with the Italian loaf. One question though. I dont have a baking stone. Can I use just the inverted baking sheet or do I need to get a stone? Thanks and keep up the delicious work.
Hi Blake, I think a stone is the best for these types of bread, but you’ll still get a good loaf using an inverted baking sheet with parchment paper.
Made this Bread Saturday night it’s Moday and it’s gone (just me and my wife) it was great. crisp crunch outside soft dense inside. Just a grat recipie. Fairly simple and not all that time consuming. Will make over and over again.
Pingback: Italian Loaf | Pens and Pumpkins
This recipe is great. Really impressed my girlfriend with this one, and its easy to make!
I’m going to be working with fresh yeast to make this bread. Can you tell me the conversion? I’m looking forward to trying this out.
Hi Monika, I have some yeast conversions here: https://www.browneyedbaker.com/conversions/
The yeast is doing it’s “thing” as I type this. I will keep you updated….
What type of flour do you use for the Italian bread?
Matt, As stated in the recipe above, bread flour.
Yeah, get with the program, Matt # 2
Pingback: No-Bake Oatmeal-Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars | Brown Eyed Baker
Pingback: Top 10 Best Bread Recipes | Brown Eyed Baker
Pingback: Pasta e Fagioli « Momma T's Table
Pingback: No-Bake Oatmeal-Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bars | Biz Chicks
I loved the bread, very tasty and it looked just as good as yours. Great for bruschetta or with pesto! Now my bread was a bit dry, any advise to make it a bit more moist?
Hi Jorge, I’m glad you enjoyed the bread! I’m wondering if the bread was overbaked a bit if you found it to be dry?
This was my first time baking bread from scratch. My loaf looked just like yours. I used regular unbleached flour and it still came out very well. The measurements, baking time and temp are perfect. I sprayed my crust 4X but I would of liked it if my crust came out a little thicker and crunchier. Will spraying a few more times do the trick? It was relaxing and fun kneading the dough and smelling fresh yeast. Now I can’t wait to try your other bread recipes :)
Hi Debbie, So glad you liked the bread! More steam should produce a crisper crust. You could also put a roasting ban with boiling water on the bottom rack when you put the bread into the oven.
This bread was amazing, and I was surprised at how easy it was to make! I found that it only too 30 minutes to bake, though. I posted about it on my blog and would love if you’d take a look: http://piesandplots.net/italian-bread/ Thanks!
Pingback: Italian Bread
Pingback: Brown Eyed Baker » Two-Ingredient Ice Cream: Reese’s Mini Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
Pingback: Brown Eyed Baker » Beer Waffles with Cinnamon-Caramel Apples
Pingback: Sickness
Such a great recipe!!!
Just made 2 loaves this afternoon in our 300 room hotel. Fantastic recipe,great crust & texture,easy to train my staff on how to prepare.
Just a comment but i reduced the temperature from 220c to 190 after the third steam injection but we use professional sized baking ovens.
Pingback: Top Ten Best Breads | Ten Top
Pingback: 150 Best Fall Recipes | Brown Eyed Baker
Thank you for sharing this great recipe! I was shocked that I could produce a bread that turned out so well. Great directions! This will be my go to Italian bread recipe.
Very easy to make. The result was splendid and it really had a taste of Italy. Great recipe. Thank you for sharing.
This was my first attempt at bread-making and it turned out beautifully! Thanks for the clear directions and great tips. If I decided to make two smaller loaves, do you think I could freeze half the dough after the first rise? I’ve done that with pizza dough, but I’m not sure the same rules apply here. Thanks!
Hi Annie, I’ve never done that actually. Usually with bread, I will bake the full recipe and then freeze a loaf once it has been baked and cooled. Then I just let it sit at room temperature to thaw when I’m ready to use it.
yes, you can freeze bread dough. Shape it, wrap in plastic wrap and they in foil. Freeze it. Before you use it, take it out the night before and let it rise as normal. It will take several hours to thaw and then rise. Bake as usual.
Hope this helps
Hi Beth,
Yes, you could certainly divide this into loaves. Just be sure to adjust the baking time, as two smaller loaves won’t take as long to bake. The crisp outer crust is created by spraying the crust with water, as indicated in the recipe. Enjoy the bread!
Hi, do you think this could be devided for two small loaves? Usually, bread dough can be shaped however one wants, but I just wanted your opinion on this please. BTW, hopemine looks this good. How do you get the crust such a pleasing brown without drying out the inside?
ROLA — So sorry to ruin your diet, but glad that you enjoyed the bread! :) My bread was definitely dense, so I think your rise time was probably just fine.
I came upon your recipe on my second day of a diet….needless to say, the diet was forgotten and the bread won….My kids woke up to the smell of it and really enjoyed it before school. My question is: is it supposed to be on the dense side or I did not let it rise enough?
Thanks
I tried out this recipe and it turned out gorgeously! I’m going to have to make it again soon because it disappeared so quickly. Also, I tried your tip and left my spray bottle on the counter, using the roaster with water in it worked very well. I might have to try that method with another bread recipe.
Cheers!
I just made this the other night and it turned out fantastic! Thanks for sharing the recipe. Your loaf looks wonderful with its perfect slash!
Hi Lori – I’m so glad that you enjoyed the spaghetti and meatballs! I have only ever frozen cooked meatballs, but I don’t see any reason why you couldn’t freeze them raw! If you try it let me know how it turns out!
Your bread does look amazing, and I plan on making it soon! But I’m actually posting here because I made your Spaghetti & Meatballs tonight and OH MY….that was so incredibly good. My husband and I greatly enjoyed them and will be making it again with fresh Italian Bread!
One question though, have you ever tried freezing the raw meatballs? I just thought that may be an easy way to be able to throw this together, even though it really didn’t take that long anyway. Thanks so much for the recipe!
I have a fear of yeast but I think this might have to be the first bread recipe I try. It looks fantastic!
OMG
I CANNOT wait to eat like 10 sandwiches Thursday night when you come home with this deliciousness!! I’m going to stop at the Italian store and get the good stuff to go on it as well :)
ooh loving the new site!
The bread looks so good! I will definitly have to try this one I think, I haven’t had a nice slice of homemade bread in aages! mmmmm
Hi Heather – By inverting the baking sheet, I mean just turning it over. My largest pan has a lip the whole way around, so I flip it over so there is nothing preventing air from reaching the bread. I usually do this for free form loaves that are too big for my stone.
that loaf has an absolutely GORGEOUS color to it! I love making bread on weekends, too… and I also have a Nick that is just a sucker for a warm loaf of bread :) What do you mean by inverted pan? I’ve always just shaped mine and made them on parchment paper… is there a better way I don’t know about??
You have to be the queen of bread! this is awesome!! I’m bookmarking this one to!
Yum. Your bread looks fabulous. I’ve made a couple of Italian bread recipes in the past month, but still haven’t found time to blog about either of them… *sigh*
I love carbs. I love bread. I love ginormous portions of it.
I totally am going to bookmark this recipe, my last Italian bread was a failure.