No-Knead Chocolate Bread
YIELD: One 10-inch round loaf; 11½ pounds
EQUIPMENT: A 41/2- to 5½/-quart heavy pot
INGREDIENTS
all-purpose flour - 2¼ cups/275 grams
cocoa powder - 3 tablespoons/24 grams
ground cinnamon - ½ teaspoon/3 grams
table salt - ½ teaspoon/3 grams
instant or other active dry yeast - ½ teaspoon/2 grams
miso paste - 2 teaspoons/10 grams
honey - 1 tablespoon/20 grams
extra virgin olive oil (or any oil) - ½ teaspoon/3 grams
cool (55 to 65 degrees F) water - 1 cup/250 grams
chocolate chips - ¾ cup/128
grams
1. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, salt, and yeast. In a large bowl, combine the miso paste, honey, olive oil, and water and whisk together until well mixed. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and, using a wooden spoon or your hand, mix them together until you have a shaggy dough, about 30 seconds. Add the chocolate chips and mix until incorporated. Let the dough sit at room temperature for at least 20 minutes, but no more than an hour.
2. Using lightly floured hands or a bowl scraper or spatula, lift the edges of the dough in toward the center twice, forming the dough into a ball. Turn it so it is seam side down. Cover the bowl again and let sit at room temperature until the dough is doubled in size, 2 to 4 hours.
3. When the rise is complete, uncover the bowl and fold the dough once more. Cover the dough and let sit until it has again doubled in size, about 1 hour.
4. Half an hour before the end of the second rise, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, with a rack in the lower third, and place a covered 4½- to 5½-quart heavy pot in the center of the rack.
5. Using pot holders, carefully remove the preheated pot from the oven and uncover it. Quickly but gently invert the dough into the pot, seam side down. (Use caution—the pot will be very hot; see photos, here.) Cover the pot and bake for 40 minutes.
6. Remove the lid and continue baking until the bread is very dark brown but not burnt, about 5 minutes more. Use a heatproof spatula or pot holders to gently lift the bread out of the pot and place it on a rack to cool thoroughly.
NOTE: The number of turns during fermentation can vary from 2 to 4, and the fermentation time can range from 4 to 9 hours, depending on the quantity of the yeast and its freshness, and the temperature. For optimal results, ensure that the dough remains somewhat cold to prevent the chocolate chips from melting into it.