Recipe: Italian Almond Bread with Anise Seed and Basic Italian Bread Dough

Here is one with eggs but it sounded so delicious I thought I would post it anyways...Following is the Basic Bread Dough recipe from an Italian Chef who specializes in authentic Italian Foods and it does not contain eggs...Best of luck to you on your quest!!

ITALIAN ALMOND BREAD WITH ANISE SEED

5 1/2 cups un-bleached flour
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs, beaten
2 packages dry yeast
2 cups warm water
1 tbls. Anise seed
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup almonds, ground

Preparing and Baking Bread
Using 2 cups warm water dissolve yeast in a large mixing bowl. Add all ingredients, except flour and almonds. Mix well. Add 3 cups flour and beat till smooth.

Add almonds and enough additional flour till dough is easy to handle. On a lightly floured board, knead bread till smooth. Place in a greased bowl then turn 180 degrees to where the greased side is up, cover and let stand in a warm place. When dough has risen and doubled in size(50 to 60 minutes), punch down and divide in half. Form each half into a loaf and place each into greased bread pans. Let rise till doubled in size. Bake at 350 degrees in a pre-heated oven for 40 to 45 minutes. Remove bread from pans and brush with warm butter.

Baking times may vary. To test, tap top of bread with finger. It should make a hollow sound. The loaves should look shiny and golden brown.

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BASIC BREAD DOUGH

1/2 cup Warm water
3 teaspoons Yeast (dry)
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Sugar
4 cups High-gluten flour
4 tablespoons Extra-virgin olive oil

Place warm water in a warm mixing bowl and add yeast. Stir to dissolve and let stand 3 minutes. Add salt and sugar and stir through. Add flour and olive oil and mix, using hands until you can knead the dough without it sticking to your fingers.

Wash and dry hands and remove ball to cutting board. Knead the dough, occasionally dusting with 1 teaspoon flour, until a firm, smooth homogenous ball is formed, about 15 minutes. Place ball of dough in a lightly-oiled mixing bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rise in a warm place until its size is doubled, about 2 hours. Punch down and divide into 4 pieces. Dough is now ready for use.

Source: MOLTO MARIO with Mario Batali