Le Creuset Enameled Cast Iron Bread Oven, Flame

I got the Le Creuset enameled cast iron bread oven as a gift for my husband, and he absolutely loves it!. Highly recommend it for serious bakers or anyone who appreciates quality cookware.Pros:•Excellent heat retention for perfectly baked bread•Durable enamel coating that’s easy to clean•Beautiful design that adds a touch of elegance to the kitchen•Versátiles, great for more than just breadCons:•It’s a bit heavy, but that’s part of its charm and quality•On the pricier side, but the performance and durability make it worth it

If you’re shopping this item, you know what it’s for and what its benefits are. Baking in a closed vessel traps steam to help give a boost to your oven spring. You can do it in your Dutch oven, so why this dedicated piece? Does it bake better? Not exactly. But it does bake a beautiful loaf. And its design with a shallow base and domed lid make handling it much easier.The major difference in this vs a Dutch oven is that you can remove the dome shaped lid easily mid cook, and allow more of your loaf to get direct heat from the oven so the crust comes out even. In that regard its design is great. The included instructions/recipe say to let your loaf proof right in the pan, covered. Which does work just fine. You can also proof normally in a basket if you like - it still works great. Some people have concerns about preheating Dutch ovens empty - I’m of the opinion that it’s fine because the whole thing is heating slowly and evenly with the oven. So I sometimes preheat this as well. Most often, I preheat the dome only, just so I’m not dealing with a 450 degree pan when I’m trying to put my loaf into it.The only negative - and it’s minor - is the rings and logo on the base. They prevent you from using the bread oven for anything else besides baking bread, so this is a true unitasker. I don’t need the bottom of my loaf to have circles and a ay le creuset on it (like the Dutch oven lids (see photo)). I’d rather have a smooth surface making it easier to slide a spatula underneath so I could use it for other things too.If you like baking bread, and find some therapeutic joy in the process this is a worthwhile purchase. If you’re more of a utility baker, there’s other options much cheaper that would work the same. Lodge makes a cast iron 5qt double dutch that has the same shallow pan as a lid, which mates to a Dutch oven to create basically the same design. its not enamel coated but it gets the job done just as well. I have one… I use the lid all the time for roasting other things in the oven, but I use this Le Creuset for baking bread because I just enjoy it more.

Beautiful Lavender Color, long-lasting enamel, and perfect for learning to bake bread! Heavy-Duty and has substantial weight to it.

Great color .. chose the color without knowing what it would look like .. makes sourdough bread beautifully!! If your looking for a special gift for the person making bread .. it’s well worth the price and look!

My wife is in her sour dough era. I got this for her as an anniversary gift and she loves it. We both win with this gift because she’s been making incredible bread with it. She never made bread before and this product made it easy and fun.

I was using a lodge cast iron Dutch oven and using it upside down. It was so heavy and a lot of effort and took a bit to get situated so my oven lost so much heat. But this pan is awesome. I can easily remove the lid and let the bread continue cooking without losing so much oven heat. Real game changer. Quite pricey but worth it.

This was a gift to my niece's husband, and he loves it. Bakes bread almost every day. I got him the black one which looks so perfectly rustic in his kitchen.

Great quality, beautiful color and bakes superb bread.