French Bread
Tuesday night, I made Chris’s day! Yes, that’s right, I made French Bread.
Chris is a guy who loves his bread. I think his favorite is probably sourdough, but baguettes are right up there too.
I am also a fan of baguettes because they conjure many fond memories. I remember eating a baguette sandwich from a street cart in Paris while waiting in line to go into the Louvre, a picnic dinner in Florence on the steps beneath Piazza Michelangelo, and even our trip to Vietnam, where “banh mi”, Vietnamese baguettes, were quite common.
Adapted from Branny Boils Over.
Ingredients:
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup warm water (about 110°F)
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup warm (about 90°F)
- 1 large egg, beaten
Directions:
- Combine yeast with 1/4 cup warm water, and sugar in a small bowl. Let it sit for about 5 minutes, until the yeast dissolves and the mixture becomes frothy.
- Place the flour and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer and lightly blend.
- Add yeast mixture and 90°F water, then mix until dough begins to come together.
- If the dough is too dry, add water 1 ounce at a time until the desired texture is reached.
- With a dough hook, kneed for 5 minutes.
- Place dough into an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a towel, and set in a warm place to rise until it has doubled (about 1 hour).
- Divide the dough into two pieces.
- Roll each piece into an oval about 15 x 8 inches.
- Starting on the long side, roll dough into a 15-inch cylinder, pinching the edges to the body of dough as you go.
- Place dough seam-side down onto greased sheet pans
- Cover dough with a towel, and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes.
- Before baking bread, pre-heat oven to 425°F.
- Place a shallow pan on the bottom shelf of the oven.
- Before putting them in the oven, slash loaves diagonally with a sharp blade, about 1/4-inch deep, then brush the loaves lightly with egg glaze.
- Place 1 cup of ice cubes in the hot pan on the bottom shelf of the oven.
- Quickly place loaves on shelf above and close door to preserve the steam you’ve created.
- Bake bread for approximately 20 minutes.
- Remove baguettes from the oven and cool on a rack to prevent crust from becoming soggy.
- Makes 2 loaves of French Bread.
Servings ~ 8 (about 4 servings per loaf)
Calories ~ 184, Fat ~ 1 g, Carbohydrates ~ 37 g, Protein ~ 6 g
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