Hello everyone! Jules here from The Sweet Spot Bakery in Harper’s Corner. I am so excited to share this bread recipe I call “The Perfect Date” Because it’s just the right blend of salt and chocolate and it’s simply extraordinary!

This recipe is so fun and easy. I’ve enhanced it here with chocolate, but you could add Rosemary to this, too. I’ve done that as well. I make fresh Rosemary bread in my bakery all the time.

• 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 1 3/4 teaspoons Kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Instant or Rapid-rise yeast (I personally like Rapid Rise yeast the best for this recipe)
• 1 1/2 cups water
• Chocolate to taste – and use any chocolate you like. I use semi-sweet chocolate chips for most of these types of things!
• Sea Salt to taste

If you activate the yeast with warm water, wait till the bread cools to add the chocolate, otherwise it’ll melt. Ideally you want the chocolate pieces to stay whole till it bakes. Chocolate should be added just prior to covering the bowl and letting it rise.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast.  Add water and mix until a shaggy mixture forms.  (add chocolate!) 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.  Sprinkle with Sea Salt.

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.

Couple of notes:

• • You don’t need an enamel covered cast iron pot. The one I use is a 5.5 quart one and it works great. You also shouldn’t oil the pot. With anything cast iron I use I’ve never had issues with it sticking.
  • When you get ready to put it in the oven, the dough will still look like a stringy mess, that’s ok. It’s supposed to!
  • Never refrigerate the dough as it’s rising. Never.
  • Make sure when you shape the dough into a round ball for baking, you do so on a heavily floured surface. It’ll be very sticky.