* Exported from MasterCook *
Bread, Country French
Recipe By :Chef Lionel Vatinet
Serving Size : 12 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Bread Bread-Bakers Mailing List
Hand Made Low Fat
Muffins/Rolls Posted
Stand Mixer Vegetarian
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
3 1/2 cups unbleached unbromated white bread flour
1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 1/4 cups water -- plus
2 tablespoons water
Cornmeal -- for dusting
Country French Bread is classic all-purpose bread-great for
sandwiches, delicious for morning toast, and a wonderful loaf to set
at the center of the table. This is the style of bread that appeared
on the table throughout my childhood, and it has never lost its
appeal. It is frequently used to make croutons and breadcrumbs and
also as a thickener for soups, sauces, and dressings. It has a crisp,
crackling crust with a firm crumb that doesn't fall apart when
buttered or covered with a sandwich filling. For the home baker, it
is best baked on a stone under a stainless-steel bowl, as are most of
my recipes. Although I recommend mixing and kneading by hand, Country
French Bread can also be made in a heavy-duty electric stand mixer.
Editor's Note: This five-ingredient Country French Bread is a
deliciously rustic and versatile homemade bread recipe that's
suitable for many occasions. You've likely seen crusty, chewy bread
like this gracing the tables of upscale restaurants, but you can
easily make it at home and serve it with any meal - breakfast, lunch,
or dinner. It takes less than four hours to bake, making this a great
bread recipe to serve up on the weekend!
Makes: 1 boule
Total: under 4 hours
Scale all of the ingredients.
Place the flour in a large mixing bowl. Add the salt and yeast,
making sure that they do not touch each other.
Using your hands, bring the dry ingredients together. Once blended,
quickly form a well in the center of the mix.
Take the temperature of the water (it should be 82F to 84F for hand
mixing, or 65F to 70F for an electric mixer) and record it in your
Dough Log. Immediately begin adding the water to the well in a slow,
steady stream, rotating the bowl with one hand while simultaneously
mixing the water into the dry ingredients with your other hand. Stop
often as you work to scrape the bowl and your fingers with your bowl
scraper, making sure that all of the ingredients have been gathered
into the dough mass. The bowl should be quite clean. The dough will
be soft, slightly wet, and extremely sticky.
Pinch off a bit of dough and taste to see whether you have forgotten
the salt. If so, add it now and mix for another minute or so to fully
incorporate it into the dough. The dough should just be beginning to
come together.
When the dough begins to come together, use your bowl scraper to
scrape the dough out onto your work surface, taking care not to leave
any dough behind. The dough will still be very, very sticky. Do not
give in to your temptation to add more flour, since that will alter
the flour ratio of the dough. Stick with it; you can do it. The end
result will prove it.
Hold your hands, palms facing up, at opposite sides of the dough mass
that are closest to your body. Slide your fingers, still facing up,
under the dough and lift the dough an inch or so from the work
surface. Squeeze your thumbs and index fingers together to form a
tight "OK" sign through the dough. While holding the "OK" sign,
continue to curl your thumbs and index fingers tightly together to
pinch off a portion of dough. Working as quickly and smoothly as you
can, continue lifting and pinching the dough mass using the same
technique, moving up the dough mass in approximately 1" to 1/2"
increments, approximately 5 to 7 times, until you have gone through
the entire mass. You should begin to feel the dough coming together.
Remember, your hands are your memory-really get the feel of the dough
as it comes together.
Turn the dough a quarter turn and continue lifting, pinching, and
turning the dough until it begins to take on an identifiable shape
and is less and less sticky. Don't give up; keep working the dough
without adding additional flour, and it will begin to take shape.
This can take anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes. Remember, do not add any
flour to speed the process. Use your scraper to keep incorporating
all of the dough into the mass. The dough is sufficiently kneaded
when it can be formed into a ball. You do not want a stiff, dry
dough; you want a soft, pliable mass that still holds its shape.
To form the dough into a ball, using both hands, lift it up from the
front and fold it over and onto itself in one swift motion, quickly
dropping it down on the work surface. Repeat this process 4 to 5
times until a ball forms. At all times, use the scraper to ensure
that you are gathering all of the dough.
Touch the dough with the back of your hand to make sure that it is no
longer sticky. If it is sticky, use the OK-sign pinching method to
knead up and down the dough once or twice more, quickly folding the
dough over itself 4 to 5 times. Touch the top of the dough again to
ensure that it is no longer sticky. If it is, repeat the folding
process until it is no longer sticky.
At this point, you should take the dough temperature and record it,
along with the time, in your Dough Log. It should be between 72F and
80F. If it is not, make the necessary adjustments. It is particularly
important that you record the time you finish this step as you will
need to note the time required for the first (bulk) fermentation, in
this case about 1 hour.
Lightly dust a large bowl (preferably glass to allow observation of
the process) with flour. The bowl should be large enough to allow the
dough to rise without coming in contact with the plastic wrap that
will cover it. Transfer the dough ball to the bowl, smooth side up,
taking care to retain the round shape of the dough. Cover the bowl
loosely with plastic wrap.
Place the bowl in a warm (75F to 80F), draft-free place until the
dough has doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
Since you are making just 1 loaf, skip to Step 5!
If the dough is very sticky, lightly flour your hands, but do not add
more flour to the dough. If the dough adheres to the table, use your
bench scraper to lift it up; do not pull and stretch the dough. You
can, at this point, give a light dusting of flour to the work
surface. With the palm of your hand, lightly press the dough into a
rectangle. Then, using your hands, gently pick up the dough to make
sure it is not sticking to the work surface.
Carefully form the dough into a boule.
Place the shaped dough in its final fermentation spot-a banneton, a
couche, or a rimless baking sheet, carefully following the directions
for the appropriate preparation of whatever vessel you are using.
Lightly flour the top of the dough to ensure that the plastic wrap
does not stick to it.
Transfer to a warm (75F to 80F), draft-free place. Record the time in
your Dough Log, as well as the exact time required for the final
fermentation in your Dough Log, and set your timer. It should take
about 1 hour for the final proofing; however, you should keep a close
eye on the dough, because if it is overproofed it will be unusable.
If you are using the stainless-steel bowl method for baking, about 30
minutes before you are ready to bake, move one oven rack to the
lowest rung and remove the other. Place a large baking stone on the
rack, and preheat the oven to 450F.
To determine whether the dough is ready to be baked, uncover it and
gently make a small indentation in the center of the dough with your
fingertip. If the indentation slowly and evenly disappears, the bread
is ready to bake.
Place the dough, seam side down, on a cornmeal-dusted bread peel or
the back of a sheet pan lightly coated with cornmeal. For a rustic
look, lightly dust the top of the loaf with flour.
Working quickly with a lamé or single-edged razor blade, score the
top of the loaf in a traditional manner or use your own signature
score. Cut in quick decisive slashes, marking into the dough by no
more than 1/8".
Carefully slide the loaf, top side up, onto the center of the stone,
taking care to not touch the hot surface.
Quickly cover with the stainless-steel mixing bowl. It should be tall
enough to allow the dough to rise comfortably. Immediately close the
oven door. Bake for 10 minutes; then, using the point of a small,
sharp knife, pop up the bowl and, using oven mitts, carefully remove
and set the hot bowl aside. Continue to bake at the same temperature
for about 30 minutes or until the bread is a deep golden brown.
S(Internet address):
https://www.cookstr.com/Bread-Recipes/Country-French-Bread
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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 146 Calories; 1g Fat (4.3%
calories from fat); 5g Protein; 29g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber;
0mg Cholesterol; 237mg Sodium. Exchanges: 2 Grain(Starch); 0 Lean Meat; 0 Fat.
NOTES : 2019 - 0514