Easy Artisan Dough

Directions

1. 1
   Spoon out flour into a measuring cup , level with a knife or your finger and dump into a 16 cup mixing bowl. Add the yeast and salt and stir together with a wooden spoon. Pour in the water and stir together until just moistened . Beat for 40 strokes , scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl until dough forms a sticky, lumpy mass. (I didn't beat it 40 strokes with the spoon...I did it with my hands).
2. 2
   Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature in a draft free area for 2 hours or until the dough has risen to the top of the bowl and has a sponge like appearance. Use right away or place in the fridge , covered with plastic for up to 9 days before baking.
3. 3
   If using the dough right away transfer your dough to a lightly floured surface. work the dough as little as possible, adding a little flour as necessary but make sure all the stickiness is gone and the dough is soft but not sticky. Form your dough into a shape and place on a 3 sided cookie sheet sprinkled with corn meal. Cover with a towel and let rest at room temperature for 40 minutes.
4. 4
   About 30 minutes before baking, place a broiler pan on the lower oven rack and a baking stone on the middle rack. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Artisan breads do their last rise in a hot oven. Making sure your bread has no cracks or seams slide the bread dough off the cookie sheet onto the preheated baking stone. Slide the stone back into oven. Slide out the bottom rack and add hot water to the broiler pan and slide the rack back into the oven. Bake approximately 27 minutes or until an instant read thermometer reads 190 degrees F. It might sound complicated but it was so easy and the bread was delicious. I only used half of it and I have dough for a fresh loaf whenever I want!!