Crusty French Bread

 

Today . . .

the news stated that at least 1 glass of wine a day, will make women healthier.

A can of beer, will help ward off Kidney Stones and make your brain more alert.

Dad, I guess you need to drink beer – he just had surgery to remove some big ones!

I don’t drink . . . neither does Dad.

I’m counting on the news telling me that homemade bread will make us

Smarter, leaner & get rid of wrinkles!

So I made bread . . . just in case.

Another sweet friend of mine had a bit of surgery today.

I thought cheesy lasagna, fresh bread and Apple Raspberry crisp . . . would make her heal much quicker.

French Bread is not difficult to make, especially if you have a stand mixer with a dough hook.

This recipe comes from The Sisters Cafe – it’s their Grandma’s recipe.

Grandmothers always have the best recipes, so I figured this recipe was for me.

This recipe is easy and straight forward.

It makes 2 nice loaves of french bread.

Once you finish making the dough . . . plop it down on a floured surface.

Split the dough in half.

Roll it out into a 9×13 rectangle . . . or darn close to it.

Roll dough up, starting from long edge of loaf to seal.

The seam will need to be at the bottom.

Now repeat all those steps with the other half of the dough.

I lined a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Sprinkle the paper lightly with cornmeal or grease it lightly.

Place your loaves of bread – seam side down on one cookie sheet.

With a sharp knife, cut 3 gashes at an angle on the top of each.

Cover lightly with a clean towel and let rise for about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Take 1 egg + 1 tablespoon of water and whisk it together.

Brush the egg wash lightly across the top of each loaf.

NOTE: For a crustier loaf, a pan of hot water may be set on bottom rack of oven while bread is baking . . . which I did!

Bake for about 30 minutes or until done . . . make sure the bottom is a bit golden as well.

 Let cool on wire rack.

Smell . . . Smell . . . this bread will make you happy, even if it doesn’t make you wrinkle free.

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French Bread

2 ¼ c. warm water

3 Tbsp sugar

2 Tbsp yeast

1 Tbsp salt

2 Tbsp oil

5 ½ -6 cups flour-stirred before measured

Directions:

First dissolve sugar and yeast in the warm water. Let this proof—or sit for a few minutes until it bubbles. Then add salt, oil and 3 cups of flour and beat well (At this point I switch to my dough/kneading attachment on my Bosch mixer) Add in 2 1/2 -3 more cups of flour. The dough should clean off the sides of the bowl and not be too sticky. Knead for a few minutes. Leave the dough in the mixer to rest for 10 minutes and then stir it down (turn on your mixer for 10 seconds) and then allow to rest another 10 minutes. Repeat for a total of 5 times. Then turn dough onto a floured surface and knead it 2 or 3 times to coat with flour. Divide into 2 equal parts. Roll each part into a 9×13 rectangle. Roll dough up, starting from long edge of loaf to seal. Arrange seam side down on large baking sheet that’s been sprinkled with corn meal, allowing room for both loaves. Repeat with second part of dough. With a sharp knife, cut 3 gashes at an angle on the top of each. Cover lightly; allow to rise 30 minutes. Brush entire surface with egg wash (one egg beaten slightly with 1 Tbsp of water). If desired, sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for 30 minutes at 375. Cool on wire rack

NOTE: For a crustier loaf, a pan of hot water may be set on bottom of oven while bread is baking.

*Recipe adapted from The Sisters Cafe

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