Ingredients:
- 2 1/4 teaspoon active yeast (I have used instant yeast)
- 2 tablespoons warm water (105 degrees to 115 degrees)
- 1 cup warm tomato juice (110 - 115 degrees F)(I used 1/3 cup tomato puree plus warm water to make one cup juice.) Refer Note at bottom
- 2 tablespoons tomato sauce (You could use pizza ketchup instead)
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese (I did not use any)
- 1 tablespoon and 1-1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon butter or margarine, melted
- 1/2 teaspoon salt (Remember sauce has salt!!)
- 3 - 3 1/3 Cup All Purpose Flour
- 1 teaspoon mixed Italian herbs
- 1/2 teaspoon red chilli powder. (My addition, you could use chilli flakes)
Directions:
Mix together 3 cups of flour, salt and the seasoning in a bowl. Take the sugar and yeast in another large mixing bowl, add the warm water to it. Add the diluted tomato puree, sauce and butter to it. (Instant yeast doesn't need to be proofed.) Add in the flour mixture and bring the dough together. Oil your hands well and knead the dough on a greased working area. Add the remaining flour (from the 1/3 cup) one tablespoon at a time if needed. Knead for about 6-8 minutes or till the dough is smooth and elastic. Do not over knead or the bread will become dense. The dough can be quite sticky, so better use a dough scraper.
Coat the dough with oil. Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel and keep it in a warm place to rise. This may take about 45 minutes to an hour. Once doubled, knock down the dough gently to deflate. Shape the dough into a loaf and place it in a greased 9*5 loaf tin. Keep in a warm place till it doubled again. Towards the end of the final rise, pre-heat the oven to 190 degrees C (375 degrees F). Just before placing the loaf in the oven, brush with some room temperature milk. Bake for 20 minutes. Slide aluminium foil over the loaf if you find it browning too much. Lower the temperature to 60 degrees C (325 degrees F) and bake for 10-15 minutes more or till the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.
Remove the loaf from the oven, brush with some butter and allow the bread to cool in the tin for 10 minutes. Remove from the tin and cool on a wire rack till the bread comes to room temperature. Slice ony after it comes to room temperature.
Note: Try using 1/4 cup of puree plus 3/4 cup water to make the tomato juice. Do taste diluted juice and adjust seasoning if needed depending on the tartness of the juice. And do remember, the tomato sauce also adds to the tartness.