bonjour baguette!

Today, I´d like to share another favorite recipe of mine. Homemade French baguette. Imagine the smell and taste of fresh out of the oven baguette!! Hmmmmm!

I love to eat it as sandwich, as side dish, or just plain as a snack for the kids (and for me!) at the park.

If you like to attempt it please bring enough time. Start 3h before you want to eat it (don´t worry, you don´t have to work on it the whole time, it is mostly rising of the dough).

Ingredients

(you may choose to use only half of the ingredients-see useful tips)

2 cups (500ml) warm water

1 tsp. sugar

2 packages active dry yeast

5 to 5 1/2 cups (780 to 860g) all-purpose flour

2 1/2 tsp. salt

1 egg white, lightly beaten with a pinch of salt

And here are some useful tips before you get started:

• one a warm sunny day your dough will rise faster then on a chilly day (total time required: sunny day 2.5h, chilly day 3h)
• when using the measurement listed above your loaves will be much bigger (nice for sandwiches), when using only half of it - like I did today - your loaves will be thin and crisp (I prefer the thinner ones as a snack)
• don´t skip the part with the egg white and salt - it makes it so much better!!

Ok, lets get started:

Dissolve sugar in warm water, add yeast and stir gently. Let stand until foamy, about 5 min.

Combine 4 cups flour with salt. Slowly add the yeast mixture and beat until incorporated. Beat for 10 min while adding the rest of the flour until the dough is elastic and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Knead the dough with your hands to form a ball. Put dough in a flour sprinkled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place, 45 to 60 min.

Punch down the dough and knead for a few seconds. Form a ball and return it to the bowl. Cover again and let rise in a warm place, 20 to 30 min.

Punch down the dough, cut into 2 pieces and form two balls. Let rest for 5 min.

Line a French bread pan with a kitchen towel and sprinkle with flour. Roll each ball into a log and place on towel in the pan. Cover with the overhanging towel and let rise in a warm place, 20 min.



Place a shallow baking dish filled with boiling water on the oven floor and preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).

Gently transfer the loaves in the towel from the pan. Spray the pan with a nonstick cooking spray. Carefully flip each loaf into a well of the pan. Cut in the top of each loaf. Brush with the egg white mixture.

Bake for 30 to 35 min.

[I got the recipe when I bought one of these pans]

Unfortunately, it takes too long to make the baguette fresh for breakfast, but I found another recipe where the dough has to rise for 12 to 15h. That could actually work - if I remember to prepare it at night. I´ll try it soon!