HOW TO HAVE THE REAL ITALIAN HOMEMADE BREAD - PUGLIESE TYPE (recipe)

In our days it is really hard to buy bread at the supermarket or at the bakery, especially in Europe and particularly in Italy, which is my Country. Now prices for bread and even simply for wheat are raising quickly; if this increase continues, families will surely have problems in the future to satisfy their hunger.

It is absurd, but it is reality.

I have found a nice solution for the problem.
We can not have a price cutting for wheat without the help of the institutions, but we can save money avoiding to buy bread at the bakery or at the supermarket.
Are you curious to know how to solve the situation? The answer is simply "with the homemade bread".

You can prepare a fantastic bread in a few quick and easy steps, you do not need to worry if you have never tried to cook/knead/bake, with my following recipe you will have a genuine real Italian homemade bread, the Pugliese type, typical from the Apulia region (Southern Italy) and believe me about the ingredients and the method as I am a real Italian girl.

INGREDIENTS

350 gr durum wheat semolina,
3 handfuls durum wheat semolina,
2 teaspoons fine salt,
2 spoons extra virgin olive oil,
1 cube yeast,
3-4 fingers water.

NECESSARY

1 pan for electric furnace,
1 high big bowl + 1 small bowl,
1 glass,
1 spoon + 1 teaspoon,
2-3 blankets,
dishclothes,
waxed paper.

METHOD

1 - Put 350 gr of durum wheat semolina in the big bowl, put a pinch of salt and winnow well with a teaspoon. Pour the extra virgin olive oil, prepare 3-4 fingers of warm water, but not hot, in a glass and melt completely the cube of yeast mixing with a teaspoon, then pour and add to the other ingredients into the bowl.

2 - Mix all well until you obtain a solid and not chewy dough, if necessary add some pinches of durum wheat semolina. Work the dough quickly and with vim for 5-10 minutes, give it the shape you prefer and put onto the pan for electric furnace already covered with waxed paper.

3 - Cover immediately the dough onto the pan with a high bowl and then with some blanket to keep it warm and make it rise. Leave it in that position for 2 hours.

4 - At the end, check if the dough rose and turn on the electric furnace at 180C. When it is at the right temperature, put the dough into it for about 30-40 minutes, it is be ready when the lower part of the bread will appear golden.

5 - Once the bread is dragged out, leave it onto the pan covered by a pair of clean dishclothes until the bread will be chilled. Keep it in a paper bag for foods for at max. 3 days.

SUGGESTIONS FOR A BETTER RESULT

- use good fresh ingredients to have a better result, especially for the yeast which has to be really fresh to make the dough rise;
- it's important to willow the salt with the durum wheat semolina before adding every other ingredient or you'll have lumps in the dough hard to remove;
- be careful to avoid to use too cold or too warm water for the cube of yeast or it won't work at best and don't use too much water, the best is 3-4 fingers;
- it's also important to knead the dough quickly and with dim for no more than 5-10 mins.

If you want to get a better idea of every step, you can visit the pages I prepared and look at the explanatory photographs, reach the website at http://digilander.libero.it/et ernity2002/cooking.html and choose the recipe of the real Italian bread (Pugliese type). If you need suggestions or have questions, simply write me at my email address desi.italy@yahoo.it, I will be available and glad to help you.

You will not be sorry for your decision to learn this great recipe and your families and hosts will be grateful of this yummy Italian fundamental food.

Learn more about this author, Desi Zavatta Musolino.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

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