Rustic Rosemary Bread

My rosemary tree is still alive, but it's not looking nearly as good as when I bought it. By some miracle, it will stay alive and I can enjoy its fragrant leaves for a long time to come.

This rosemary bread was fantastic!! The cast iron skillet really gave the bread a unique crust - hey I just realized what it reminded me of - pan pizza from Pizza Hut. Okay, that's probably not an appetizing analogy, but when we were younger, if we got straight As on our report card, our reward was a family dinner at Pizza Hut. And, of course, everyone likes pan crust best. And that pizza must have been delicious, because most of us earned all As each quarter...

I'm rambling. Does anyone read the lead-ins to recipes? I don't.

One more thing...I adore my cast iron skillet! I can now add cookies and bread to my list of things to do with a cast iron skillet.

Rustic Rosemary Bread
adapted from Cooking After Five

4 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cup warm water (115 degrees)
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 tablespoon honey
3 Tbsp. olive oil, plus more for brushing dough
1 generous tablespoon finely minced fresh rosemary
1 garlic clove, finely minced
1 tsp. kosher salt or coarse sea salt

Add flour and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. To the warm water, add the yeast and honey, and stir to combine. With the motor running, drizzle the water into the flour and knead for 5-10 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic. It shouldn't be sticky.

Turn out the dough into a large bowl coated lightly with oil. Turn the dough to coat, then cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm, draft free place until doubled in size, about an hour.

In a small bowl, combine rosemary, garlic, salt, and enough olive oil to make a loose paste.

Preheat the oven to 450. Brush a cast iron pan generously with olive oil. Turn the dough out into a cast iron pan and shape into a round loaf. Flatten the loaf slightly to fill the pan and even out the thickness. Score the bread with an X shape, then brush with about half of the oil. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the crust is deep golden brown and the bread sounds hollow when tapped from the side.

Transfer to a cutting board and brush with the remaining oil. Let cool to room temperature before serving.