From scratch · Yeast breads
Italian bread
A soft-crusted, golden loaf with a little olive oil and sugar, often topped with sesame seeds.
✋ 30 min hands-on
⏱ 3 hr 38 min start to finish
🍽 One large loaf, about 1¾ lb (or two smaller ones).
ContainsWheat.
Ingredients
- 500 g bread flour
- 7 g active dry yeast
- 10 g table salt
- 12½ g granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1⅓ cup water, about 110°F
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)
Time
Hands-on time is when you’re busy; the rest is rising, simmering, chilling or cooling, when you can do something else.
| Step | Hands-on | Waiting |
|---|---|---|
| Mix and knead the dough | 20 min | 1 hr 20 min |
| Shape the loaf | 10 min | 50 min |
| Bake at 425°F | – | 28 min |
| Cool | – | 30 min |
| In all | 30 min | 3 hr 8 min |
How long it keeps
- Counter: wrapped, about 3 days (NDSU’s figure for bread and rolls). Cornell Extension advises against keeping bread in the refrigerator.
- Freezer: cool completely, wrap in plastic and then foil or a freezer bag, up to 3 months (University of Missouri). Slice first so you can take out what you need; a whole loaf thaws in its wrapping on the counter in about 3 hours (Cornell).
Nutrition
Estimated from the ingredients’ USDA FoodData Central numbers.
Steps
You’ll need: large bowl, baking sheet, cooling rack.
- Stir the yeast and sugar into the warm water and let it stand 5 minutes. Add the oil, salt and flour and mix.
- Knead 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Cover and let it rise until doubled, about 1 to 1½ hours.
- Shape into a 14-inch log (or two 10-inch logs), set on a baking sheet dusted with cornmeal, and let it rise until puffy, 45 to 60 minutes. Heat the oven to 425°F.
- Brush with water, sprinkle with sesame seeds if you like, and slash one long cut down the top.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until golden and hollow-sounding (about 200°F). Cool 30 minutes.
⚖️ Scaling10 g salt and 7 g yeast per 500 g flour.
🛡 SafetyDon’t taste raw dough or batter, and wash your hands and the counter after handling flour: raw flour can carry germs that only baking kills (FDA).
Sources
- Food Storage Guide (FN579), NDSU Extension, reviewed January 2023. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- Tips for Storing Bread, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Herkimer County, 2020. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- How to Freeze Home-Prepared Foods (GH1505), University of Missouri Extension. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- Handling Flour Safely: What You Need to Know, U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Accessed 2026-10-25.