Wonderful bread and so easy. I made 2 good sized loaves from my first batch. The loaves had a nice crisp crust when they came from the oven, but after cooling the crust was soft. I did bake them 30 minutes on parchment on a pizza stone and had a pan of water below. They tasted great, but why did the crust soften quickly?
Concetta, the moisture remaining inside the loaf migrates out to the crust, where it hits the cold air and condenses - thus making the crust moist, not crisp. To help combat this, when the bread is done, turn off the oven, crack it open a few inches, and let the bread cool completely in the turned-off oven. PJH
January 14, 2010 at 10:09am