FRENCH BREAD

Dub Egbert

Equipment:  Food Processor.  One gallon rising bowl with nearly vertical sides.  Damp towel.  2 - Pastry canvases.  2 - U shaped bread pans or three long rolling pins.  Peel.  Cornmeal.  Oven stone.  Water sprayer.  Cooling rack. 


1 lb. bread flour  (3 1/2 cups) or All-Purpose Flour plus 2 tablespoons Glutton
1/3 cup water @ 110 degrees
1 package dry yeast
1/4 teaspoon sugar
2 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup water, room temp. (75 degrees)

Mix the warm water, yeast and sugar in a container that has been brought to 110 degrees..  Let foam for 5 minutes.  Put flour and salt in food processor and using the plastic dough blade process for a few seconds.  Combine yeast mixture and remaining water.  Start the food processor and slowly add the water/yeast mixture.  Process until dough forms a ball.  Add additional water or flour as appropriate.  Let dough rest for 5 minutes.  Restart machine and let dough rotate 30 times.

Let dough rest for 2 minutes.  Turn dough out onto a floured board and hand knead dough for about 50 quarter-turn rotations.  Form dough into a ball and let rise in a vertical bowl, covered with damp towel, until nearly triple in size (approximately 2 hours).  Place rising bowl in a room temperature, draft-free area.  Punch down and knead a few times and form into a ball.  Return to covered bowl and let rise until nearly triple in size (approximately 2 hours). 

Punch down.  Cover and let rest 2 minutes.  Cut dough in half.  Roll each half into a loaf about 12 inches long and 2 inches in diameter.  Place dough in floured canvas covered U shaped bread pans.  (Or use three rolling pins and the flour covered canvas to form two U shaped cavities and place loaves in each cavity.)  Cover with damp towel.  Let rise until double in size (approximately 1 1/2 hours).  Using the canvas as a holder, gently roll each loaf onto a peel that is covered with cornmeal - place the loaves at the edge of the peel.  Slash loaves with a very sharp razor - make slashes about 1 inch deep.  Spray the top of the loaves with water.  Gently shake the peel to make sure the loaves are free to move.  Using the peel slide the loaves onto the oven brick that has been preheated at least 30 minutes at 425o.  Throw 4 or 5 ice cubes onto the bottom of the oven. Spray the side of the oven with water (don’t spray the oven light) when bread is first put in and every 2 minutes thereafter for a total of three times. After 15 minutes, rotate the bread 180 degrees on the oven brick for more even browning. Bake for a total of 30 minutes.  Cool on a cooling rack.  Do not cut until bread is completely cooled.  To freeze (after completely cooled), place in plastic baggie.