- Combine the yeast, warm water and ½ teaspoon
sugar in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup. Set
aside until slightly foamy, 5 to 10 minutes. - Mix the flour, salt and 2 tablespoons sugar
in a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook
on medium speed. Add 2 whole eggs, the egg
yolk, honey, vegetable oil and yeast mixture.
Mix on low speed until a shaggy dough forms.
Increase the speed to medium high and knead
the dough until soft and smooth but slightly
sticky, about 5 minutes (if the dough is too sticky,
add 2 more tablespoons flour while kneading).
Lightly coat a large bowl with vegetable oil. Put
the dough in the bowl, gently turning to coat.
Loosely cover with plastic wrap and set aside
until nearly doubled in size, 1 to 2 hours. - Transfer the dough to a clean surface and cut
into quarters. Lightly dust the surface with flour,
then roll each piece of dough into a 12-inch-long
log, about 1½ inches in diameter and slightly
tapered at the ends. Place the 4 logs side by side
a few inches apart. Gather them together at the
end farthest from you, pinching the ends together. - Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
To braid the dough, lift the log on the far right
over the 2 middle logs. Then take the log on the far
left and lift it over the 2 middle logs. Then cross
the 2 middle logs over each other. Starting from
the right, repeat the process until you reach the
other end. Do not braid too tightly; you want the
dough to maintain an even shape. Pinch the very
ends of the loaf together and tuck underneath.
Rock the loaf back and forth a few times to help
tighten the braid. Carefully transfer the loaf to the
baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and
set aside until slightly puffed, 1 to 1½ hours. - Position a rack in the middle of the oven;
preheat to 375 ̊. Beat the remaining egg and
½ teaspoon sugar with a whisk and brush it all
over the dough (you will not need all of it).
Sprinkle with the seeds. Bake until the bread is
dark golden brown all over, 25 to 30 minutes.
Transfer to a rack to cool completely.
SWEET POTATO–SAGE
COUNTRY BREAD
ACTIVE: 40 min l
MAKES: one large boule
4¼
1¾ teaspoons active dry yeast
1⅓ cups warm water (100 ̊ to 110 ̊)
1
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil,
plus more for the bowl
2½
2
1 teaspoon sugar
Cornmeal, for dusting
- Meanwhile, prick the sweet potato in a few places with a knife and microwave until
tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool slightly. Peel the potato and transfer to a food processor
along with the olive oil and pinch of salt; puree until very smooth. (You should have
about 1 cup puree; if you have more than 1 cup, reserve the extra for another use.) - Stir the yeast mixture with a spoon to deflate it, then add the remaining ⅔ cup warm
water and 1½ teaspoons yeast and stir. Add 2½ more cups bread flour, the sage, sugar
and remaining 2½ teaspoons salt; mix until the dough is shaggy and there is no dry flour
in the bowl. Let stand until the flour absorbs some of the liquid, 5 minutes. - Put the remaining ¾ cup flour in a small dish for kneading. Lightly dust a work surface
with some of the flour and turn out the dough onto the surface. Lightly flour the top of
the dough. Knead the dough, adding a little bit of the flour as needed, until very smooth,
elastic and a little tacky, about 5 minutes. (Alternatively, you can knead the dough in a
stand mixer with the dough hook on medium speed for about 5 minutes.) - Generously flour the surface under the dough, then pat the dough into a rough square.
Top with about half of the sweet potato puree. Pull and fold the edges of the dough over
the puree and then begin to knead together (it will get messy at first but the dough will
come together). Add more flour as needed to knead and swirl the puree into the dough,
about 1 minute (use a dough scraper or butter knife to scrape up any puree that comes
out and add it back to the dough). Pat the dough flat and add the remaining puree. Keep
kneading the dough, using the remaining flour, until the puree is mixed in but not fully
blended and the dough comes back into a ball, 2 to 5 minutes (it’s OK if the surface is a
little rough). Put smooth-side up in a lightly oiled large bowl, turning to coat. Cover the
bowl with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, 1 to 2 hours. - Gently turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Gently press the dough to
deflate it. Stretch and pull the edges into the middle of the dough, starting with two sides,
then two other sides; repeat until the dough looks like a round. Using a bench scraper,
turn over the dough onto a spot with little to no flour. Cup your hands around the dough
and gently pull the dough toward you about 1 inch. Rotate the dough a bit and gently pull
toward you again. Continue with five to seven pulls. The dough should sit a bit taller
than before and the top should feel taut. - Line a large bowl with a clean towel and dust with flour. Add the dough seam-side up,
dust with flour, then cover with plastic wrap. Set aside until it’s puffy and rises by about
50 percent, about 1 hour. (If the temperature is higher than 75 ̊, let rise in the refrigerator.) - Place a large dutch oven on the middle oven rack; preheat to 450 ̊. Uncover the dough
and brush off any excess flour from the bottom. Dust the top with cornmeal. Put a piece
of parchment against the dough and then carefully flip it out onto the parchment. Trim
the parchment so it fits inside the dutch oven, leaving enough parchment around the
dough for you to lift it. Carefully remove the dutch oven from the oven and transfer
the dough to the hot pot using the excess parchment. Cut a long slash in the top of the
dough with a sharp knife, about ¼ inch deep. - Cover the pot and bake the bread 15 minutes. Uncover and bake until the bread is
golden brown and feels hard and hollow when tapped, 15 to 20 more minutes. Let the
bread cool in the pot, 5 to 10 minutes. Using a large metal spatula, transfer the bread to
a rack to cool, at least 1 hour; the crust will soften slightly.
116 FOOD NETWORK MAGAZINE ●NOVEMBER 2020
TOTAL: 2 hr 15 min (plus 4 hr rising)cups bread flour, plus more for dustingmedium-large sweet potato (12 ounces)teaspoons plus a pinch of kosher salt
tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage_M ix 1 c~p bread flour, ~teaspoon yeast and% cup warm water in a large bowl. Cover
w1th plastic wrap and set aside until it rises and looks very bubbly, 2 hours..
.
SEEDED CHALLAH
ACTIVE: 30 min
TOTAL: 1~ hr (plus 2 hr rising)
MAKES: one 13-inch loaf1 ~-ounce packet
active dry yeast
% cup warm water
(1oo· to 110·>
2 tablespoons plus
1 teaspoon sugar
4 cups bread flour,
plus more as needed
1% teaspoons kosher salt
3 large eggs, plus 1 egg yolk
~ cup honey
~ cup vegetable oil, plus more for the bowl
2 tablespoons sesame and/or poppy seeds