French Bread
Servings: 12 servings
Yields: 2 loaves
Calories: 119kcal
That amazing smell of freshly baked bread alone will make you want to bake this easy french bread over and over again. Especially considering how easy it is to make this bread from scratch.
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Ingredients
- 1 cup warm water between 110°F and 115°F
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
Instructions
To activate the yeast
- In a large cup, combine water, sugar and yeast.
- Stir and let it stand for about 10 minutes. The mixture should become foamy, which indicates the yeast is alive. If the mixture doesn’t foam, you have expired yeast, or used too hot or too cold water.
To make the dough
- In a mixing bowl with a dough hook attachment, combine the flour and salt in a mixing bowl.
- Add the yeast mixture and mix on low speed for 5 minutes. The dough should be soft and not very sticky. (Depending on humidity, you may need to add a little bit more flour, but not much though.)
- Rest the dough for 5 minutes, then run the mixer on low again for another 3 minutes.
- Alternatively, you can make the dough by hand: Combine the flour, salt, and yeast mixture in a large bowl. Knead until the dough comes together into a ball. Transfer the dough onto a lightly floured kneading surface. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes, then knead again for 10 minutes.
To proof the dough
- Coat a bowl with a little bit of oil. (I use olive oil.)
- Place the dough in the bowl, turn the dough around to coat it with oil, and cover it with a wet kitchen towel.
- Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size, for 60-90 minutes. (My secret place: a microwave! First, microwave a cup of water for 2 minutes to create steam, then put the bowl with dough covered with a wet kitchen towel.)
- Once the dough is doubled in size, transfer it onto a lightly floured surface and punch it down.
- Knead it into a nice smooth ball and divide it into 2 equal parts. (You can also divide the dough into 4 parts to make smaller baguettes.)
- Slightly flatten each dough and pinch the long edges together. (This technique is Julia Child’s method). Repeat until the desired length. See the step-by-step pictures above.
- Place the logs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Cover with a dry kitchen towel and let them rise for another 30-60 minutes.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
To bake
- When ready to bake the bread, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C).
- Using a sharp knife, make deep diagonal cuts on the loaves.
- Bake the loaves for about 30 minutes or until the crust is nice and golden.
- Cool on wire racks before serving.
- Keep the bread at room temperature in an airtight container. Right before serving, I bake it for 5 minutes at 350°F (177°C) for a perfectly crispy crust.
Notes
Storing Tips:
- Store this French bread recipe in an airtight container or sealable bag at room temperature for up to 1 week. Just note that the longer it sits, the more stale the bread will taste. I like to bake it for 5 minutes at 350°F before serving for a perfectly crisp crust!
- Freeze leftover bread for up to 2 months. Let the baguettes cool completely. Then, wrap them tightly with plastic wrap, and transfer them to a sealable bag to store in the freezer.
- Thaw frozen French bread in the fridge overnight, bake at 350°F for about 5 minutes to crisp the crust back up, and enjoy!
- Store this French bread recipe in an airtight container or sealable bag at room temperature for up to 1 week. Just note that the longer it sits, the more stale the bread will taste. I like to bake it for 5 minutes at 350°F before serving for a perfectly crisp crust!
- Freeze leftover bread for up to 2 months. Let the baguettes cool completely. Then, wrap them tightly with plastic wrap, and transfer them to a sealable bag to store in the freezer.
- Thaw frozen French bread in the fridge overnight, bake at 350°F for about 5 minutes to crisp the crust back up, and enjoy!
Nutrition
Servings: 1 serving
Calories: 119kcal
Carbohydrates: 25g
Protein: 3g
Fat: 0.3g
Sugar: 1g
Sodium: 195mg
