Italian Bread

This is a recipe from online with a lot of good reviews. The warm bread just out of oven gave the best aroma of home. My kids approved that this is a recipe to keep.

Ingredients

All-purpose flour - 4 cups
Light brown sugar - 1 TBSP
Warm water -1 and 1/3 cups
Salt - 1 1/2 tsp
Olive Oil - 1 1/2 tsp
Active dry yeast - 2 and 1/4 tsp
Cornmeal or flour - 2 TBSP
(Optional) Egg wash - 1 egg + 1 TBSP water

Steps

1. Place brown sugar, warm water, salt, olive oil and yeast in the bread machine first, then add flour. Complete a dough cycle.
2. Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Form dough into two loaves. Place the loaves seam side down on baking sheet generously sprinkled with cornmeal or flour. Cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let rise, until doubled in volume about 40 minutes.

 3. Preheat oven to 375°F.
4. Optional - Brush the risen loaves with egg mixture. I skipped this because of food allergy.
5. Make a single long, quick cut down the center of the loaves with a sharp knife.

6. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.