Recipe - Alexandrian Cumin Bread

3 cup Unbleached, allpurpose
Flour
1 pack Dried yeast
1 One half teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Cumin seed, ground
1 cup Plus 3 oz. lukewarm water

1) Place the flour, yeast, salt, and ground cumin in a large mixing
bowl. Blend well. Add the water and mix the dough for 23 minutes, until
all the water is absorbed and evenly distributed. The dough will be damp
and very sticky, but no internal dry areas should appear by the end of the
mixing. If they do, mix a few minutes more, or add a little more water and
mix again.

2) Let the dough rest 5 minutes. Now sprinkle 1 or 2 tbsps. flour over
the dough and knead, either in the bowl or on a lightly floured surface for
510 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic and only slightly
sticky. Add more flour if needed (e.g. in humid weather). Let the dough
rest for 2 minutes more.

3) The dough should now be very smooth and easy to handle. Knead 30
seconds more, return the dough to the bowl, cover the bowl with a dish
towel or large plate, and let rise at room temperature for at least 3
hours; the dough should almost triple in size.

4) Flour the top of the dough lightly, punch it down, and remove the
dough from the mixing bowl. Form the dough into a rectangular loaf and
place in a well greasad loaf pan, 9One fourth in. by 5One fourth in. by 2Three fourths in. Cover
with a towel and let rise 1 hr., until nicely risen.

5) Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 35 minutes, until browned on
top; the bottom of the bread should sound hollow when tapped with the
finger. Let the bread cool, then serve.

From Gemini's MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini