Todd had planned to make Philly Cheese Steak sandwiches for dinner last Saturday. I was very excited because I have recently grown fond of those. Meat, cheese, and onions; where can you go wrong? Anyway, Todd decided to make them last Saturday night and I was happy to help out the best way I could. I made bread.
Lately, I have been using my "Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook" more. (For a LOST party last night, I made the fruit dip that was so good.) We've used it for French toast and pancakes before, but that's about it. I was looking through it last week and saw they have very basic bread recipes. So to go with our sandwiches, I made a French Baguette. It was really pretty easy and didn't take too much time out of my day.
Ingredients:
5 1/2 to 6 cups all-purpose flour
2 packages yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 cups warm water
Cornmeal
1 egg white, slightly beaten
1 Tablespoon water
Directions:
1. In a large mixing bowl, stir together 2 cups of the flour, the yeast, and salt. Add the 2 cups warm water to the flour mixture. Beat with an electric mixer on low to medium speed for 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly. Beat on high speed for 3 minutes. Using a wooden spoon, stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can.
2. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead in enough remaining flour to make a stiff dough that is smooth and elastic. Shape dough into a ball. Place in a lightly greased bowl, turning once to grease dough's surface. Cover; let rise in a warm place until double in size.
3. Punch dough down. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide dough into four portions. Shape each portion into a ball. Cover; let rest for 10 minutes.
4. Lightly grease two baking sheets ; sprinkle with cornmeal.
5. Roll each dough portion into a 14x5 inch rectangle. Roll up, starting from a long side; seal well. If desired, pinch and slightly pull ends to taper them.
6. Place shaped dough, seam sides down, on prepared baking sheets. In a small bowl, stir together egg white and water. Brush some of the egg white mixture over loaf tops. Let rise until nearly double in size.
7. Preheat oven to 375. Using a sharp knife, make three or four diagonal cuts about 1/4 inch deep across each loaf top. Bake for 20 minutes. Brush again with some of the egg white mixture. Continue baking for 15 to 20 minutes more or until bread sounds hollow when lightly tapped. Immediately remove loaves from baking sheet. Cool on wire rack.
The photo is not great, but the taste was. This bread was so good! And even though it sounds like a lot of steps, it doesn't take super long. Definitely worth making again.
If you are wondering about the reference in the title, go here.
1 comment:
Yes, we think alike. However, we don't bake alike. You have already made bread more times than I have! I'm sure I won't catch up.
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