I had high hopes for this bread – who can resist beer bread? I know I can’t. Plus I love baking bread in my Le Crueset pots. Although this is a no-knead bread, it still takes some planning for the rise time and then the second rise and baking. I actually don’t mind kneading and shaping bread, it’s the time planning that’s required in baking traditional bread that doesn’t really work with my busy schedule.

One of the reasons I love Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day is that it allows a lot of time flexibility – I know I can grab a hunk of dough and have freshly baked bread in about an hour.

The crumb on this bread is really nice – big holes, chewy and flavorful. The problem I had is that the crust ended up overdone and it ruined the flavor of the bread. The inside was perfectly baked, though.

• Crusty Seeded Pale Ale Pot Boule (Kneadlessly Simple, p. 47)