Hail my Romertopf collection...thanks to Allie

On my visit  to Allie last spring another life altering thing happened.....  Her husband Robert was baking bread using a Romertopf (clay baking pot) and getting the most wonderful crust of rustic artisanal breads which DH adores...

I learned to bake bread in the 50s and it has been a lifelong passion... I love the smell of yeast, the feel of kneading the dough and the smell of it baking.... but alas some time  in the late 90s DH started buying the  artisanal breads at Costco...  I bought special artisanal bread cookbooks, used a baking stone and experimented with ways to inject moisture into the baking process but never could get it "right." Finally just gave up but I surely missed baking bread...

Now Romertopfs are a pretty pricy new ($50+) so they were at the top of my thrift store list.  It took a while but I found the deep round one  (back left) and it makes a large round loaf.  It was a 50% discount  day so I got it for $3.. I kept looking for a loaf shaped one  and found it for $5 and then I had seen the shallow round several times and passed it over...  Finally the light came on and I realized that it would be perfect for Tuscan flat breads so it now part of my collection ($5). I even found one for a friend.

You preheat the Romertopf in a 425 degree oven.  Mix dough of your choice and do the final rising in a bread pan lined with baking parchment.  When it is risen you use the baking parchment as a carrier and drop the dough (paper and all) into the hot Romertopf and cover. 

But do they make the best crust EVER...  I'm now looking for someone with a well seasoned sour dough starter...  I have one going but one aged years  is better.... I'll keep looking...   I am now baking bread  a couple times a week... Husband is over-the-moon happy and me too!!!