Paul Hollywood’s Cottage Loaf
If you know us, bread is a must in our house. It’s been a must on our table since we lived back in Italy and since moving to England, that habit has not changed. Though we decided to experiment with some of the classic loaves here and that’s how the recipe of this cottage loaf came to be.
I am a huge fan of gluten, we all are here. In every shape and size, you can present it, it’s always a YES! Since I discovered a slight intolerance to wheat I can’t really dig in it anymore, but I love the smell of fresh bread nonetheless. If it wasn’t for the early mornings, that gluten doesn’t agree with me anymore and adding on top that me and baking are not the best of friends, I could be a baker. Or maybe I would ruin my business, more probable!
But as I am not and can’t it eat anymore, I put my passion for it into baking bread instead. This cottage loaf was first made on a hot summer day of my summer break spent in London with the girls while I was still in high school. No matter the years, it’s still one of our favourite recipes.
What I love most about bread- after the smell of course, who can forget that – is the whole process of making it. I must admit that I am the kind of baker that is not the most precise. So I usually leave it to Fred and Simona. But bread, I can make that. I can make a mean loaf I am said, so it must count for something, right? And this cottage loaf was a hit!
I love the time you spend working the dough, hands full of flour and a mix of oil. It always brings back great memories of holidays spent helping our grandma working the dough for pizza or making pasta. We all always bonded with food and cooking, so it’s always great to get back into it, until we can do it together again.
Simona was the biggest fan of crumbs when she was a kid and now she’s all about the crust. You really can’t beat a fragrant hot from the oven loaf with a crusty exterior. You know that cracking noise that comes from bread, heavenly.
As I was trying to say, before I got derailed, this Cottage Loaf is a recipe inspired by Paul Hollywood‘s one. He has some great bread recipes and this one caught our eyes while turning the pages of one of his cooking books. One of the thousands Simona owns and rarely uses.
It’s said not to be the easiest recipe to make. But to be honest, said from someone that bakes very rarely, I found it fun to make. It’s a great way to put your hands and arms to work. Even if your muscles might not be of the same opinion the next day. It’s tricky while baking for sure as it’s two doughs on top of the other, but it’s all worth it. I vouch for it!
Before we head for the recipe, I just wanted to add some fun facts I read about it. The cottage loaf is a classic white English bread, made of two round loaves placed on top of each other. No one knows where the name or shape originated from. But it’s said that the shape comes as a solution for using floor space on old bread ovens.
It used to be popular in the London area, but it’s now quite difficult to come by in bakeries. Most probably because of its shape, making it hard to slice. Paul Hollywood suggests it’s the best crusty loaf for soups and platters and I completely agree. It’s also great even for butter and jam in the morning.
Without further ado, let’s get to make our Cottage loaf!
Paul Hollywood’s Cottage Loaf
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 500 g of white flour plus some extra for dusting
- 10 g of salt
- 10 g of dry yeast
- 30 g of unsalted butter softened
- 330 ml of cold water
- extra virgin olive oil to help you knead the bread
Instructions
- Start by placing the flour in a large bowl – or the bowl of your standing mixer, if you have one – add the salt to one side and the yeast on the opposite side. Then add the butter and 3/4 of the water and mix or start the standing mixer on a low speed. Continue to add water until all the flour is incorporated into the rest of the dough.
- Move the dough onto a counter, greased with extra virgin olive oil, and work it for about 5-10 minutes, then let it rise in a greased bowl, covered only with a cloth until it has doubled its size.
- Move the dough on a floured surface, punch the dough to remove all the air from it, folding it over itself several times. Now divide it into two pieces, one of which will be double the size of the other, and start working on the larger piece.
- Create a ball with the larger piece, pushing the excess dough into the base of the ball. Repeat the same round movements more than once so that the ball becomes soft but resistant at the same time. Now do it all again with the smallest part of the dough.
- Place the smaller ball on the larger one and, after dipping a couple of fingers in flour, carve the centre hole by pushing it down. Now you are ready to practice some cuts on both parts of the Cottage Loaf, both to aerate it and decorate it.
- Let it rise again for 1 hour, turn on the oven to 210°C and, at the bottom of the oven, place a baking sheet that you have previously filled with boiling water from the kettle: this will help the Cottage Loaf to have that great crust.
- Bake it for 30 minutes on a tray, until golden brown and when tapping the bottom it sounds hollow. Let it cool completely before cutting.
Some suggestions before baking:
- Make sure you use a sharp knife to cut your cottage loaf before putting it in the oven on both doughs or if you have it, use a bread cutter, find one below;
- Baking is the trickiest part. Make sure the cottage loaf is golden brown and tap the bottom of it. If it sounds hollow, your loaf is ready to come out of the oven. If not, keep the loaf to cook for an additional 5 minutes, making sure to keep an eye on it;
- In the original recipe, it calls for cold water in a tray while we used hot water. In different recipes, people use either hot or cold water, which seems to work either way. What that water will do while evaporating, will create steam that will give you that great crust that is the signature of the cottage loaf;
- I know it’s tempting to just dig in as soon as it’s out of the oven, I feel you, but your cottage loaf needs to rest and cool before cutting. It will be too hot and hard to cut if you don’t wait.
Proofing Basket £14.99 | Bread Kit £34.99 | Bread Cutter £8.99
There’s nothing better than homemade bread, in my opinion! This cottage loaf would be perfect with this Easy foolproof beef stew. Or if you have a sweet tooth, it would be perfectly paired with the peach curd, rest assured on that, we tried it!
If you’re in a hurry though and still want some fresh bread, check out this No-knead three minute bread that is literally our go-to almost every day!
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Hope you enjoyed this cottage loaf recipe as much as I did! If you get to make it, let us know and make sure to tag us in your pictures. Lastly, do you like baking bread? Did you enjoy this recipe? Let us know down in the comments!
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I had no idea that the cottage loaf was made of two round loaves placed on top of each other. That makes more sense because of the shape of the bread. Personally I love bread to and I usually have bread in my house. I have though never made my own bread and would love to make some of my own one day.
Great recipe, we definitely prefer homemade bread more than buying from the store. This would be a perfect addition to our bread recipes. Thank you for sharing!
Indeed, so much better! Thanks for reading x
This looks amazing! I love fresh bread! There is nothing like the smell when it is baking the oven. I will definitely have to give this one a try. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
I completely agree, it’s the best smell! Thanks for reading x
Great recipe! This looks so delicious – I’ve never tried making bread before but I think I’ll have to now! Thanks for sharing x
Hope you get to try it! Thanks for reading x
Baking bread is something I’d love to do more of! That smell it gives off, while rising and baking and after baking- omg it’s the best. This looks like a very fun loaf to bake!
I love the smell of bread, it’s one of my favourites! Thanks for reading x
Oh wow!!!!!! This Hollywood cottage loaf look so lovely and delicious. Makes me wanna try it. Thank you for sharing.
Hope you get to try it, Fadima! Thanks for reading x
A great recipe, even if it is a little difficult to make! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
It can be a bit challenging, but love bread so it was worth it! Thanks for reading x
I love the smell of fresh bread! Well done for making your own. 🍞🍞
Indeed it’s one of. the best smells! Thanks for reading x
I can almost taste this gorgeous loaf as I write this. I would love to be that girl who makes her own bread but I’m not. Luckily for me, my little siter is! I’ll be sharing this with her to make for our bbq next week!
Rosie
Oh that’s amazing Rosie! I am the same, usually, Fred or Simona are the ones that bake, hope you like it! Thanks for reading x
This sounds so delicious! I’ve never actually tried to bake this kind of loaf. I’ll definitely try this recipe out.
Antonia || Sweet Passions
Hope you like it, Antonia! Thanks for reading x
I have baked (let alone baked bread) in such a long time but when the mood hits, I’m going to remember this recipe. Totally bookmarking!
Hope you like it Angasa! Thanks for reading x
My gran loves Paul Hollywood’s recipes, don’t think she’s tried this one though for cottage loaf, definitely sending her this. It just looks so delicious. Maybe this is something I can do with my gran and son together. Thanks for sharing
That’s amazing! It’s really delicious and i think it would be such a great idea for them to bake together, Thanks for reading x
Great recipe, it looks delicious! Thank you for sharing! I haven’t made bread in ages so this has made me want to make some!
Thank you x
OK you are right, that loaf is truly stunning! I’ve never made bread from scratch before, but I would love to be that person!
Katie | katieemmabeauty.com
You might not want to try this one, but the 3 minute no-knead loaf is just foolproof! x
Beautiful presentation! This bread looks amazing and I’m sure it tastes fantastic. My husband started making homemade sourdough bread when the pandemic began. That might be one of the only silver linings of being stuck at home during lockdown – people have returned to old fashioned homemaking skills. Warm bread out of the oven smells wonderful, tastes better than store-bought, and you can save a lot of money making your own!
It’s also soothing to the mind, stress-relieving and brings some happiness to some very dark days we have been having – couldn’t agree more! x
Damn this bread looks good! I just love bread, I need bread every day. This bread looks wonderful for soups or cheese! Fabulous recipe!
Thank you Melissa! x
This looks bloody incredible! I tried to make bread once during lockdown and it was a massive mess so I’ll be trying this recipe x
Oh no, Kayleigh! Cristina has made sure all her secrets are on this post, so you should be absolutely fine! x
Looks amazing and seems quite straightforward Might be one to try at half term!
Let me know if you do, Graham! x
This sounds lovely ? I love baking bread and buns. It’s such a nice homey thing that goes back to me being a kid baking with my parents and now I do it with my kids.
Thanks for sharing ❤️
Oh that is so sweet indeed! I am sure your kids love doing all the baking with you – I am pretty jelly! x
Lovely recipe, looks so good. This bread looks fab
Thanks for sharing
https://uncuaderno4cero.wordpress.com
Thank you for reading xx