French Bread

While it is not a quick recipe, this bread is yummy, easy-to-make, and pretty! We baked these and gave them to neighbors, friends, and family for Christmas this year. If you don't have a french bread pan, you can buy them at Sur La Table, Williams Sonoma, or any other cooking store. It is totally worth it!

Combine:
2 C warm water
1 tsp sugar

Gently stir in:
3 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

Let stand for 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine in a stand mixer (we use our Kitchenaid):
4 C all-purpose flour
2 tsp salt

With dough hook, slowly mix in the proofed yeast for 1 minute. Increase the mixer speed to medium low, and mix for 10 minutes. Add 1/4 C flour at a time until the dough is elastic and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. (I usually ended up adding a total of about 1 C - the wetter the better, as long as it is workable.)

Knead the dough by hand for about 1 minute, form into a ball, and cover with plastic in a lightly floured bowl. Let rise in a warm place (at least 75-80 degrees) for about an hour. (I put the bowl on a rack above a pan of steaming hot water to achieve the "warm place" effect during a cold Utah winter.)

Punch down, knead, and form into another ball. Cover and let rise for another 30 minutes.

Punch down into a flat rectangle, then cut into two equal pieces. Fold each piece into a fat cube/ball/shape, and let rest for five minutes.

Roll each ball into a cylindrical loaf the length of the bread pan. Place each loaf on a kitchen towel that covers the pan, and fold the excess towel up to cover the bread. Let rise for 20 minutes.

Gently remove the towel and flip the loaves onto the nonstick-spray coated bread pan. Using a sharp knife, cut five diagonal 1/4-inch slashes into each loaf. With a pastry brush, cover each loaf with a basic egg wash:
Lightly beat:
1 egg white
dash of salt

In a saturated oven (I achieved this by placing a skillet of boiling water on the floor of the oven) preheated to 425 degrees, bake the loaves for 30-35 minutes on a rack on the bottom third, or until they sound hollow when tapped. Remove the pan and place on a cooling rack. Let the loaves cool in the pan until room temperature.

Call/email me with questions - I typed this from memory so I know it's probably not worded very effectively. I made enough loaves this month that I'm sure of the ingredients, I'm just not very eloquent in my instruction-giving. :)