How to Make French Bread

Do you need a great French bread recipe? Perfect straight from the oven, French bread is simple and satisfying. With its crispy crust and chewy interior, French bread is surprisingly easy to bake. By learning how to make French bread, you can have your kitchen smelling like a Parisian bakery in just two hours.

French bread can be a nice choice for the novice bread baker. Using just four ingredients, you can make two crispy and chewy baguettes or one loaf of French bread. Not only will the smell of French bread baking provide what warm smell of yeast to circulate the house, the finished product will add a touch of European cuisine to your next meal.

While many yeast bread recipes require several hours of work from the baker, French bread is relatively quick and easy to make. When a loaf or baguette has passed its point of freshness, it makes wonderful toast, bruschetta, French toast and croutons. Once you master the art of how to make French bread, you are well on your way to making other types of yeast-leavened breads.

• French bread traditionally calls for water, yeast, flour and salt as the only four ingredients. However, brushing the loaves with egg makes the crust even more crispy and shiny. In addition, placing a pan of water in the oven with the loaves while they bake improves the texture of the crust.

• 1 teaspoon active dry yeasthttp://www.baking911.com/pantry/leaveners_yeast.htm

• 1 cup warm water + extra

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 2 1/2 cups flour

• 1 beaten egg

• Small bowl

• Large mixing bowl

• Mixing spoon

• Measuring cups and spoons

• Cookie sheet, baguette pan or French bread loaf panhttp://www1.foodtv.com/terms/tt-r2/0,4474,225,00.html http://www.recipetips.com/images/glossary/f/frenchbreadpan.jpg

• Metal oven-proof container

• Pastry brush

• Towel

Yeast is a plant.http://www.baking911.com/pantry/leaveners_yeast.htm It produces carbon dioxide, which is what causes the bread to rise.http://www.taunton.com/finecooking/articles/yeast-role-bread-baking.aspx Proofing the yeast means mixing it with water and letting it sit so that it can produce carbon dioxide.http://www.baking911.com/howto/yeast_proof.htm If the surface of the water turns foamy and bubbly, it means the yeast has proofed properly.http://kokoscorner.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/2007/12/24/yeast_bubbling_away.jpg If it doesn't foam or bubble, the yeast is probably too old and needs to be thrown out.http://www.baking911.com/pantry/leaveners_yeast.htm

1. Mix the cup of warm water with the yeast in the small bowl.
2. Let sit 10 minutes or until it becomes foamy.

One of the most difficult aspects of bread baking is knowing when you have added enough flour. The surface of well-made bread dough should be soft and slightly sticky to the touch.http://www.baking911.com/bread/101_knead.htm French bread dough will be quite pliable and cling a bit to the counter and your hands. You need to add enough flour so that the dough is not sticking stubbornly to everything and is fairly easy to handle, but be careful that it does not become too dry.

1. Pour the yeast water into the large mixing bowl.
2. Add salt.
3. Add about 1 1/2 cups of flour to the yeast water or enough so that it forms a ball of dough.
4. Put a handful of flour on the counter and dump the dough out onto the flour, scraping dough from the bowl.
5. Immediately soak the mixing bowl and spoon in water. Bread dough hardens quickly and is difficult to remove.

Kneading the dough is crucial to breadbaking.http://breadbaking.about.com/od/beginnerbasics/ht/kneadhowto.htm Kneading breaks down the gluten, a protein present in flour.http://extension.usu.edu/saltlake/files/uploads/pdf/KeysMakingBread.pdf When the gluten is broken down, it forms strands that trap the carbon dioxide produced by the yeast and provides a framework for the bread.http://extension.usu.edu/saltlake/files/uploads/pdf/KeysMakingBread.pdf In general, the longer you knead bread, the better its texture and quality will be.

1. Sprinkle some flour on the top of the dough.
2. Press the heels of your hands into the center of the bread, gently stretching it out into a circle.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWj8oHMPFm0
3. Pick up the edges of the circle and fold them back into the middle to make a ball.
4. Turn the ball around.http://breadbaking.about.com/od/beginnerbasics/ht/kneadhowto.htm
5. Sprinkle some more flour on it.
6. Repeat the process and gradually work flour into the dough until the dough is smooth, elastic and moist, but does not cling.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWj8oHMPFm0
7. When the dough has reached the right consistency, knead it for an additional 8-10 minutes more.http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/French-Bread/Detail.aspx

• Most yeast-leavened bread recipes call for a rising time. During this time, the yeast is still at work producing carbon dioxide and making the bread dough fluffy and light.http://whatscookingamerica.net/Bread/yeastbreadtip.htm Bread rises best in a warm, moist environment.

1. Thoroughly clean the mixing bowl and grease it.
2. Place the bread dough in the bowl.
3. Flip it over once to grease dough all around.http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/French-Bread/Detail.aspx
4. Cover with a towel.
5. Place somewhere warm and draft-free.
   • Try placing a pan of boiling water in a cool oven along with the bread dough.http://www.dianasdesserts.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/bakingtips.breads/Breads.cfm The steam and heat from the water will help the bread rise.
6. Let rise for one hour.

• TIP: For fuss-free bread rising, you can even let the dough rise in the fridge overnight in order to bake in the morning. Simply cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge where the dough will rise slowly. In the morning, shape the loaves, let them rise 30 minutes and bake to enjoy fresh bread for breakfast with little fuss.

• This recipe will make two French baguettes or one French loaf, depending on what pan you have and which version you want. If you don't have a baguette pan or French loaf pan, make two baguettes on a cookie sheet. Baguettes made on a cookie sheet may be a bit misshapen, but they will still taste just as good.

1. For baguettes, divide the dough in two. Leave in one piece if making one big loaf.
2. Roll each piece of dough into one long tube, stretching and rolling it between your hands.
3. Place each loaf of dough in loaf pans or on cookie sheets.
   • -If using cookie sheets, pat each loaf between both hands and smooth it out so it is even and straight.
   • -Baguettes will shrink in length: this is normal.
4. Cover with a towel.
5. Let rise 30 minutes.

• Make sure the oven is preheated before putting the bread in. Having steam in the oven is important for developing the bread's crust, so put a pan of water in the oven along with the bread. Make sure to use a metal container: a glass container full of water may shatter in the oven. When you open the oven to check the bread, be careful of the steam coming out of the oven.

1. Put about an inch of water in the bottom of the metal pan.
2. Place pan on the bottom rack of the oven.
3. Make sure that there is another rack positioned in the middle of the oven.
4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
5. With a sharp knife, make several shallow slash marks on each loaf.http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/French-Bread/Detail.aspx This helps the crust expand.
6. Brush each loaf with the beaten egg.
7. Bake bread in preheated oven.
   • -For baguettes, bake about 22 minutes.
   • -For a French loaf, bake about 30 minutes.
   • -The bread is done when it is a deep golden brown color.http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/08/23/AR2005082300291.html
8. Let cool. French bread is best the day it is baked.
9. Store in paper bags.