Roasted Garlic Crusty Soup Bread

Step 1

Line a small, oven safe skillet or dish with aluminum foil.  Place the garlic, with the top of the head removed in the center.  Pour the olive oil over the center and then close the aluminum foil around it to enclose it.  Roast in a preheated 375°F oven for 20 minutes or until garlic cloves are very soft.  Remove from the hot oil and let cool before squeezing each clove of garlic from the skin.

Step 2

Combine sugar and 100-110°F water in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook.  Mix in yeast and let proof for 5 minutes until foamy.

Step 3

In a medium size bowl, mix the kosher salt and flour together.  On low speed, add the dry ingredients to the yeast mixture slowly.  Immediately after adding all the dry ingredients, add the roasted garlic cloves and mix until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Step 4

Generously sprinkle flour over the top of the dough and flip over in the bowl.  Sprinkle flour over the top again and cover with a kitchen towel.  Let rise for 1 hour in a warm place.

Step 5

After the first rise, flour a flat surface and gently tip the dough out of the bowl onto the floured surface.  You want to disturb the dough as little as possible to keep all the air bubbles that formed during the rising.  Do not punch down the dough.

Step 6

Again, sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and gently fold the four side of the dough on top itself.  Turn over and shape into a loaf.  Transfer to a small, floured bowl.

Step 7

Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.  While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 460°F with a dutch oven (with the lid on) inside.

Step 8

Once the dough has rises and the oven is to temp, very very carefully remove the hot dutch oven and the lid.  Place a piece of parchment paper onto a flat surface and gently tip the dough out of the mixing bowl – seam side up – onto it.  Transfer the loaf and the parchment paper into the hot dutch oven.

Step 9

Cover the dutch oven with the lid and bake for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, remove the lid and bake uncovered for 10 to 15 minutes or until crust is a beautiful browned color.

Step 10

Use a spatula and oven mitts to transfer the hot bread to a cooling rack.  Let cool for about 15 minutes before cutting or tearing into it.