20 Reviews of Rustic Country Loaf

From: Fairy Nuff

On Oct 13, 2005

Lauralie I had no problems with this recipe. I did add almost 1/4 cup water extra but other than that I found the dough great to work with. I think the second rising really adds great texture to this bread. I used a bench mixer for the mixing (I'm too lazy to knead) and found that five minutes mixing on slow/medium speed was plenty. I loved the addition of the flour on top of the loaf...it really makes the bread look old-fashioned. Thanks for a lovely loaf that is easy to make and tastes great!!!

From: PanNan

On Oct 16, 2005

I had no problems getting the bread to rise, but also added more water to be able to knead it. I decided to knead by hand (something I haven't done for a long time), and it took about 8 - 10 minutes of kneading until it was "elastic" enough. I did score the bread (to allow the steam to escape), and spritzed with water (to get a crispy crust) before putting on a baking stone in the oven. The high temperature worked just fine for me. I used a digital probe thermometer (poked through one of the scores to the center of the bread) and when it reached 190F degrees, I removed it. At that point the exterior was perfectly brown. It took about 35 minutes. This is a heavy, dense loaf - I think a Polish rustic loaf is supposed to be that way. For my own taste preference, I might try adding a little oil to the recipe next time, to add some moisture. Overall a very nice recipe. It produced a beautiful rustic loaf.

From: FlemishMinx

On Jul 22, 2005

I'm sorry, but this one didn't work out well for me. I tried it out two ways. The first, as posted, by hand. I had to add an additional 1/4 cup water to get it anywhere near kneading texture; it didn't raise very well, and when it baked I had a much over-done crust with an underdone inside. I have since checked other bread recipes and 425° appears to be much to warm, and the amount of water given is usually for around 3 1/2 cups flour (also calling for 2 TBS oil, and possible even an egg added). I tried this again using my bread machine, with edible results. I purposely bought new yeast (though what I already had had worked fine for another loaf earlier in the week). Again, I had to add 1/4 cup water, but it did raise and bake better in the bread machine. Not a bad flavor at all. Sorry, but thanks for posting.

From: lilsis7080

On May 1, 2005

From: littleturtle

On Mar 15, 2007

After reading the other reviews I added a little extra water (1 1/2 cups instead of 1 1/3) and cheated anyway; I mixed this on the dough cycle of my bread machine. I think I should have had a little more faith - everything came together just fine and the dough was pretty sticky when I pulled it out; it probably would have been fine with just 1 1/3 cups water. At any rate it came out great. Dense but it rose nicely. My whole family liked both the taste and the texture. Thanks for sharing.

From: Chickee

On Sep 22, 2007

Great Lauralie! Something a little different but so so simple, lovely texture. I prepared the dough in the breadmaker and baked the loaf free form in the oven. The only thing I regret is not spraying the loaf to give a nice crust, but I'll do that next time. I served it with a spinach dip and it went really well! Also great with sweet or savoury for breakfast. Cheers!

From: Bippie

On Oct 4, 2007

YUMMY! I too made the dough in my bread maker then baked it in the oven. Came out a little lopsided, but that didn't affect the taste. Wonderful texture too! Ate most of this just plain with butter but used some as cubes for fondue. Held up really well to the hot cheese. Thanks!

From: FLUFFSTER

On Nov 9, 2009

This is a great recipe! I received a bread machine about a year ago, and haven't done much bread baking since. This was fairly easy for me.I'm not a whiz bread baker. Mine didn't come out quite so pretty as all of the pics I see, but it still tastes fantastic, and I made it with my vey own hands! Thanks for a great recipe! I will definately make this again!

From: LifeIsGood

On Nov 15, 2009

FABULOUS! We loved this bread (and probably ate way too much of it with dinner tonight)! The only slight change to the recipe was that I needed to add a bit more water to the dough to get it to the right consistency to knead (maybe about 1/4 C). This produces a crusty exterior and a dense, hearty interior. We absolutely loved this rustic loaf of bread. Worth the effort and wait!

From: Charmie777

On Oct 24, 2007

Very good, very rustic!!! Just as stated!!! I made the dough in the bread machine and then baked it off in the oven. Lovely!