Enjoy a warm slice of this easy artisan no knead bread topped with a trio of garlic butters in this delicious Dracula-inspired dish! Pair this bread with Robber Steak from our Dracula menu or explore more gothic literary recipes such as our roasted garlic soup from our Frankenstein feast.
At a Glance: Easy Artisan No Knead Bread
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Rising Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Baking Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: ~3 hours 30 minutes
- Servings: 1 loaf
- Flavour: Warm and yeasty
- Skill Level: Easy
- Why this Works: This quick version of no-knead bread will give you a soft, warm homemade loaf of bread ready in under 4 hours.
Dracula, the Feast
Bram Stoker's Dracula takes us on a gothic journey like no other. The dark and dangerous figure, Count Dracula, ominously lurks in shadowed castles and slips quietly into candlelit bedrooms, revealing the fears and terrors of the story's central characters. To honour this gothic masterpiece, we are following the story through food, starting with a fateful journey into the Carpathian Mountains, terrifying encounters at the misty sea cliffs of Whitby, the drawing rooms of Victorian London, and the final dangerous race back to Transylvania. Each recipe draws on the places and people at the heart of the novel, echoing the themes of light and darkness, innocence and seduction, superstition and science, life and death. We invite you to sink your teeth into these recipes one at a time, at a Halloween gathering, or at your next book club!
A Wreath of Garlic Flowers
Lucy's midnight wanderings to the Whitby clifftops leave her pale and weak with two strange marks on her neck. Back home in London, she is cared for by Dr. Seward and his mentor, Professor Van Helsing, but their blood transfusions fail to cure her. As the true nature of Lucy's illness reveals itself, Van Helsing fills her room with fragrant garlic flowers and warns that they must not be removed. Unaware of their importance, Lucy's mother takes them away and opens the window . . . Lucy soon dies, only to rise again as a vampire, and Van Helsing must turn to garlic once more to lay her to rest
This soft, warm loaf is simple to make and the perfect accompaniment to the trio of garlic butters from our Dracula menu series: fresh garlic and herb butter with a sharp bite, roasted garlic and paprika butter that is mellow and savoury, and black garlic butter with a hint of sweetness.
Typically, no knead bread requires a fairly long fermentation period, and for good reason. A long fermentation will allow the gluten to develop slowly and gas bubbles to form to create light crumb and develop a complex flavour. The downside, of course, is that you need to plan ahead to allow the dough to ferment overnight. This easy version won't have quite the same texture or flavour as the longer version but it will allow you to make a soft, fresh loaf in just a few hours. Perfect for when you only have a few hours but still want a loaf of homemade bread!
If you're looking for more delicious no-knead bread recipes then check out our no knead bread with garlic and rosemary or our no knead beer bread.
Ingredients for Easy Artisan No Knead Bread
Flour: I typically use all-purpose flour for this recipe. You could use bread flour instead, if desired.
Yeast: For this quick version you have two options when it comes to yeast. You can either add instant yeast directly to the flour or use active dry yeast and bloom it in the water first. As I typically don't use instant yeast, I have provided the instructions for how to make this quick version with active dry yeast.
How to make Easy Artisan No Knead Bread
1. Activate the yeast
Warm the water to between 105°F and 115°F. Add the sugar along with the yeast and stir together. Let sit for 5 minutes or until the yeast has activated. The yeast should look bubbly and active with a pleasant yeasty aroma.
2. Make the dough
While the yeast is activating, combine the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the yeast mixture and stir together just until combined. The dough will be wet and sticky – this is normal. Cover the bowl with cling film or a towel and place in a warm area to rise for 2 hours. After rising, the dough should be triple in volume and very bubbly.
3. Shape the dough
Sprinkle a liberal amount of flour on the counter. Use a spatula to scrape the dough out of the mixing bowl onto the counter. The dough will be very sticky. Sprinkle the dough generously with flour. Use your hands to fold the dough over by picking up one edge and pulling it into the centre. Repeat several times until you have a rough ball shape. You will feel the dough begin to tighten up as you fold. Flip the dough over and shape into a ball, tucking the edges under if necessary.
Place a piece of parchment paper into a clean mixing bowl. Place the dough in the bowl on top of the parchment. Sprinkle the dough with flour. Cover with a tea towel and let rise for 15 minutes.
4. Bake the bread
After the dough has been rising for 15 minutes, turn on the oven to 450°F. Place a Dutch oven or clay baking dish in the oven while it is preheating. You want the Dutch oven to be as hot as the oven itself. Once the oven is preheated wait for another 10 to 15 minutes so that the dough will have been rising for roughly 45 minutes.
To bake the bread, remove the lid from the Dutch oven. Carefully pick the bread dough up by the parchment paper and lower it into the Dutch oven. Use a sharp knife to score a cross across the top of the dough. Lightly dust the top with flour. Replace the lid of the Dutch oven and place into the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and continue to cook for another 10 to 15 minutes until the bread is browned and fully cooked. The bread will sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
5. Serve the Easy Artisan No Knead Bread
Transfer the bread to a rack to cool. This bread is quite soft and it is easier to cut after cooling. Enjoy!
For more Dracula recipes, try our Robber Steak with Garlic and Paprika Cream or our Plum Brandy Cherry Sour.
More Literary Recipes for Breadmaking
- Black Beer Onion Bread with Black Garlic Butter
- Frey's Potato Rolls with Honey Poppyseed Butter
- Hazelnut Bread
- Cheddar and Herb Soda Bread
- Chive Blossom Butter
Easy Artisan No Knead Bread
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- 2 ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ½ teaspoon granulated sugar
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Warm the water to between 105°F and 115°F. Add the sugar along with the yeast and stir together. Let sit for 5 minutes or until the yeast has activated. The yeast should look bubbly and active with a pleasant yeasty aroma.
- While the yeast is activating, combine the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the yeast mixture and stir together just until combined. The dough will be wet and sticky – this is normal. Cover the bowl with cling film or a towel and place in a warm area to rise for 2 hours. After rising, the dough should be triple in volume and very bubbly.
- Sprinkle a liberal amount of flour on the counter. Use a spatula to scrape the dough out of the mixing bowl onto the counter. The dough will be very sticky. Sprinkle the dough generously with flour. Use your hands to fold the dough over by picking up one edge and pulling it into the centre. Repeat several times until you have a rough ball shape. You will feel the dough begin to tighten up as you fold. Flip the dough over and shape into a ball, tucking the edges under if necessary.
- Place a piece of parchment paper into a clean mixing bowl. Place the dough in the bowl on top of the parchment. Sprinkle the dough with flour. Cover with a tea towel and let rise for 15 minutes.
- After the dough has been rising for 15 minutes, turn on the oven to 450°F. Place a Dutch oven or clay baking dish in the oven while it is preheating. You want the Dutch oven to be as hot as the oven itself. Once the oven is preheated wait for another 10 to 15 minutes so that the dough will have been rising for roughly 45 minutes.
- To bake the bread, remove the lid from the Dutch oven. Carefully pick the bread dough up by the parchment paper and lower it into the Dutch oven. Use a sharp knife to score a cross across the top of the dough. Lightly dust the top with flour. Replace the lid of the Dutch oven and place into the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and continue to cook for another 10 to 15 minutes until the bread is browned and fully cooked. The bread will sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
- Transfer the bread to a rack to cool. This bread is quite soft and it is easier to cut after cooling. Enjoy!
