Crusty No-Knead Bread

I've heard about this bread for a while, but finally made it over the Christmas holiday. It really is amazing! I've made four more loaves in the past three days for some visiting teaching socials I was holding at my house. It is so nice to have recipe that is so easy that turns out so delicious when you have a lot of food to make. I just mixed it up the night before and threw it in the oven an hour or two before people came. I've only made the normal recipe so far, but I definitely plan to make loaves with combinations of wheat flour, nuts, spices, citrus zests, dried fruit and whatever else I can think of. My understanding is that it is pretty hard to mess up this bread. You don't have to cook it in a cast iron pot, any pot with a lid that can go in the oven will work. I've even heard that a pan with an oven safe bowl over it works just fine. Try it. Trust me. You will be so happy you did. This version of the recipe comes from simplysogood.blogspot.com

3 cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 3/4 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon yeast

1 1/2 cups water

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast.  Add water and mix until a shaggy mixture forms.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12 - 18 hours.  Overnight works great.  Heat oven to 450 degrees.  When the oven has reached 450 degrees place a cast iron pot with a lid in the oven and heat the pot for 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, pour dough onto a heavily floured surface and shape into a ball.  Cover with plastic wrap and let set while the pot is heating.  Remove hot pot from the oven and drop in the dough.  Cover and return to oven for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes remove the lid and bake an additional 15 minutes.  Remove bread from oven and place on a cooling rack to cool.