Tessa’s Recipe Rundown
Taste: I absolutely adore the fresh, earthy, piney taste of rosemary, especially when combined with salty Parmesan cheese! Texture: The bread develops a wonderfully crisp rich crust, while the inside is light and tender. Ease: Ridiculously easy. Pros: The dough comes together in a matter of minutes and using the cast iron pan means no shaping. Not to mention it creates a beautiful crust! Cons: None!! Would I make this again? Yes and yes.This post may contain affiliate links. Read our disclosure policy.
If I could only eat two things for the rest of my life, it would be bread and chocolate.
What would you chose?
I generally try to avoid white bread unless I make it from scratch, just to keep things balanced.
I actually think I’ll give this recipe a go with half-whole wheat flour, half all-purpose flour next time because I think it could still be delish.
But man, there’s nothing like a still-warm fresh baked loaf of bread from the oven. The smell is absolutely intoxicating. I think I was born to bake bread. It just seems to come naturally to me, which is something I can’t say for MANY things (singing, math, doing anything outdoors).
But getting to see a few simple ingredients that almost everyone has in their pantry turn into a living growing dough and then again into something that everyone wants a bite of… it’s pretty magical.
Bread really doesn’t need to be intimidating or complicated, which is why I love to share recipes like this No Knead Rosemary Parmesan Skillet Bread which is almost too simple and easy to believe.
You can use whatever sturdy herbs or cheese you prefer. Dip the bread in oil & balsamic, slather with butter, or dip into a tomato sauce. Add in garlic, olives, or whatever else you like. Make this recipe your own!
If you have any questions or want to learn more about homemade bread baking, check out this free guide I created:
No Knead Rosemary Parmesan Skillet Bread
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 package) instant yeast
- 2 cups lukewarm water
- 4 1/2 cups (574 grams) all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary, plus more for sprinkling
- 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the yeast and water. Add half the flour in and stir with a wooden spoon. Add the rosemary, salt and remaining flour and stir until combined. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Or, you can let the dough rise in the skillet (next step).
- Brush 2 tablespoons olive oil over the bottom of a 10 or 12-inch cast iron skillet. Sprinkle the dough and your hands with flour before shaping it into a disk. Dough will be sticky, it doesn’t have to shape perfectly. Place in the skillet, cover loosely, let rise until puffy, about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F.
- Drizzle additional olive oil over the top of the bread. Slash the dough with a sharp knife to create an X shape. Sprinkle with rosemary leaves. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle all over with the Parmesan cheese. Return to oven and bake for an additional 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
Recipe Notes
Photos by Jess Larson.
My husband hates rosemary, what herb do you recommend substituting it with?
I love baking bread as well and knew as soon as I read your directions you were a bread baker as you said to use a wooden spoon! This recipe is great – I love cast iron baking and this bread is perfect. Thanks for sharing.
Was amazing! Especially love how the bottom doesn’t f the bread cooked in the skillet! Super easy to make 🙂 THANKS!
Hi Tessa! Can sourdough starter be used in this recipe in place of the instant yeast? If so, do you have any pointers for me? Thanks.
My first time to make bread….and this was super easy, super fun and tasted amazing. I love Rosemary. Thank you for sharing.
Yay! That’s wonderful to hear, Pam 🙂
I love to bake, but have always been intimidated by bread. This is the first bread I’ve made and it came out PERFECTLY! I chopped up about 4 cloves of fresh garlic for mine and it’s delicious by itself or with oil/balsamic. THANK YOU!!!
Yay! That makes me so happy Abby. Thanks for sharing this!
Can I use dried rosemary? If so, how much?
Also, doesn’t salt retard the yeast? Can’t we add it after the first rise?
Hi. I really want to bake this bread tomorrow since it looks delicious. I’ve got a question though, how should I bake it if i want to skip the parmesan? I want to make it dairy free. Do i need to keep in the oven for about 40 minutes instead of taking it out after 20 minutes?
My cast iron skillet is 8 inch. Should I divide the dough and bake in two loafs?
EDIT: NOT “Paul”, but “will”! Ugh
I made this for the very first time, it was too good to be true, and something I know my Hungarian husband Paul want me to make again ☺️
While a little messy, it was very easy because I have a breadmaker, which saved time. I serve mine with olive oil balsamic vinegar and a little extra Parmesan cheese. Can you recommend the best way to cut this, I ended up cutting it like a piece of pie???
Also, how is the bread best stored? Thank you!!
This was so easy and so delicious. It was my first successful bread so thank you!!!