Le Quartier

FRESHLY BAKED

One of our campaign backgrounds is bread. Why? If you were on the internet over the last few months it was the one thing you couldn't escape: your friends making bread.

Get cooking with a Vans team member’s fave activity

When we showed Dominique Gaucher from the team over at Vans our campaign background featuring bread, she immediately started laughing. We knew we needed the full story.

Turns out the way she kept busy while working from home was by baking bread, “Sourdough, focaccia, raisin loaves, nuts, chocolate, any bread you can think of, I made it.” She made so much bread that one of her friends even started a bread diary with photos of her every creation.

 

If you haven’t gotten on the bread bandwagon yet, here is a surefire recipe that will impress even the biggest of gluten fans:

 

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons instant yeast

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups hot water

 

1. Combine flour, 2 teaspoons yeast, and salt in a large bowl. Stir in water until it’s well combined.

 

2. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour.

 

3. After 40 minutes, place a 3 to 6-quart Dutch oven with lid in a cold oven and preheat to 450° F.

 

4. After the dough has rested for the hour, plop it onto a well-floured surface and sprinkle with a little flour. Using a scraper fold dough over 10-12 times & shape into a rough ball.

 

5. Place in a parchment paper-lined bowl (not wax paper) and cover with a towel. Let sit on counter top for 15 minutes.

 

6. After 15 minutes, using oven gloves, lift the parchment paper with the dough and transfer gently into the Dutch oven (the dough sits inside a parchment “basket” inside the pot). Cover and bake for 30 minutes.

 

7. After 30 minutes, remove lid and return, uncovered, to oven and bake 10 – 15 more minutes. Let it cool at least 15 minutes before slicing.

 

That’s it.

Now you’re ready to flaunt your loaf all over the place you lil’ Martha Stewart!