Worth waiting for...
When my Claudia gave me the recipe, she included two options for making it. Either making it the same day in the usual fashion of mixing the ingredients, kneading and allowing it to rise or mixing the ingredients and putting it in the fridge over night. Although both produce a very nice loaf of bread, I prefer the latter as it adds a unique taste that a shorter rise cannot produce. I will give both methods in the directions below.
Durum vs Semolina...
The semolina we see in the market is a coarse grind of durum wheat. It is what's used to make pasta and some other dishes. The flour used for this bread is a finer milled product made from the same hard winter wheat as semolina. I have not tried to substitute the one for the other as I have recipes calling for semolina that use a larger ratio of regular flour.
Claudia's Durum Bread
350 gr finely milled durum wheat flour (3 cups)
150 gr all-purpose unbleached flour (1 1/3 cups)
2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
350-400 dl lukewarm water (1-1 1/2 cups)
1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (plus more for oiling the bowl if using the first method.)
Short Method
Mix the dry ingredients together. Mix in about half the water and then the olive oil. Continue stirring and adding water until dough comes together.
Remove to a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes, adding more flour to the surface as needed.
Place in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise 2 hours.
On a lightly floured surface, shape into a loaf. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a bread peel and place the loaf on it covering it with a clean kitchen towel. Let rise 45 minutes.
In the meantime, place a pizza stone on a rack in the middle of the oven and a shallow baking pan on a bottom rack.
Preheat the oven to 430°F (220°C)
When the 45 minutes has elapsed, make several slashes in the bread with a very sharp knife or razor blade taking care not to use much pressure lest the bread deflates.
Slide both bread and paper onto the waiting stone and pour a cup of hot tap water into the pan on the lower rack. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove to a cooling rack.
No-kneading Long Rise Method
Mix as in the above directions.
Once the dough has come together, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
The next morning, remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let set at room temperature for about an hour.
On a lightly floured surface, shape into a loaf. Place a sheet of parchment paper on a bread peel and place the loaf on it covering it with a clean kitchen towel. Let rise until almost doubled in volume,
Proceed as above to bake.
