Rosemary Bread ..... A recipe for Rosemary Bread that is a close production to the chain restaurant that serves it with "Italian Butter"

Rosemary Bread

The restaurant chain that made famous serving Rosemary Bread with Italian Butter is a favorite of ours. However our son-in-law from Italy was shocked to learn what Italian Butter was as he had never tasted it. Olive oil with fresh cracked pepper was his surprise. This bread has the crispy crust which will be a favorite recipe of yours. Try it with "Italian Butter"

Ingredients:

For the Starter:

1 cup tepid water

1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast

2 cups unbleached all purpose flour

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For the Bread Dough:

2 Tablespoons active dry yeast

1/2 cup starter

2 cups warm water

3 Tablespoons olive oil

2-3 Tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary

2 teaspoons salt

3-4 cups unbleached all purpose flour

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Directions:

To make the starter: place all ingredients in a mixer bowl. Beat with the paddle attachment on a medium speed until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about three minutes. Transfer the starter to a 2 quart plastic container that will allow the mixture to triple in volume.

Cover and leave at room temperature overnight or leave in refrigerator for 1-2 days before using. You will have about 2 1/2 cups starter.

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To make the bread dough: In a heavy duty mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the yeast, starter and warm water in the bowl. Beat until the water is chalky and foamy, about 5 minutes. Change to the dough hook and add the olive oil, rosemary, salt and three cups of the flour and beat until well combined and pulls away from the sides of a bowl, adding more flour if dough is too sticky. Turn dough out on a lightly floured board. Knead by hand until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes, adding more flour as needed to prevent sticking.

Shape the dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl, and turn the dough to coat all surfaces with the oil. Cover with a dampened kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm draft free place until triples in size. 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Punch down the dough and divide in half. Shape each half into a free form loaf and place on a baking sheet. Cover with a towel and let rise until doubled in size, about 45 to 60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 F. Make four shallow slashes in the top of each loaf. Bake until golden brown and the bottom of each loaf is sounds hollow when tapped, about 45 minutes. Let cool on wire racks. Makes 2 loaves