What can I say I love bread and nothing better than a Soft Baguette to make a sandwich. Making bread is so easy to do without all the added chemicals that are found in some bread at the grocery store.
After researching what each chemical in most bread does I was shocked. Yet in France, the best baguette has 4 ingredients and one is the warm water to pour. In America, the list is usually: Dough strengtheners (diacetyl tartaric acid esters and sodium or calcium stearoyl-2-lactylate) Dough softeners (mono- and diglycerides of fatty acids). and more!
What is up with that? One thing I found out was it makes us fat, not the bread but all the added chemicals. Yes, these are chemicals in our food to help them have a shelf life. How long does bread stay on the shelf before it goes bad? I tested a loaf from the store and left it out in a bag for well over a month and still no mold.
So the bread-making began! Yes! for over 3 months I have been making all kinds of bread and I finally have become pretty good at it with a little practice. It was easier than I thought once you get the dough consistency right, the rest is just waiting for the rise. So here we go, for 2023 I will be sharing some of my homemade bread recipes. They are so easy to make and today we start with homemade soft french bread which is perfect sandwich bread.
Tools I Use
I ain't going to lie you need a dough hook attachment mixer unless it is kneaded by hand, which can be tough when you're not used to it. I have a Kitchen-Aid which cost me $300. It was pricy but it has made baking and cooking so much easier and has paid for itself many times over. For example, 3 Soft Baguettes costs me $2.00 to make which is .67¢ a baguette. The average cost of organic, no chemicals in bread costs me $7.00 for a loaf at the farmer's market. If I buy 1 loaf a week for a year = $416 vs $34.84. And I used organic bread flour!
Now there are tons of recipes out there for NO Knead bread and those are great when I make a round loaf but there is a different taste and it doesn't work for all bread types.
What Flour to Buy
What flour you buy matters and they are very different from one another which is why I do not use all purpose flour. Now I'm not going to mill my own flour, as of right now but maybe in the future. For now, I am buying flour at the grocery store, to make my favorite bread recipes, and here is what I buy and why.
All 3 are from real grain that grew from the soil in the grown. To think all it takes is to read the label and my health improves. I get very sick from eating flour that contains additives and so do a lot of people.
When the flour is bleached flour it has no nutrient-rich bran and the germ of the wheat kernel has been removed, stripping the grain of many of its valuable vitamins and minerals and leaving only the endosperm so now things need to be added to make it like flour.
Grocery Items
- Active dry yeast or instant yeast.
- King Arthur Organic Bread Flour - the only flour that never lets me down.
- Salt - I only use Himalayan salt and not iodized salt which is very bad for you.
- Spring Water - It gives the bread a better taste than tap water.
How to Make Soft Baguette
Mix
You can weigh the flour; or measure it into a cup, then sweep off any excess. In a bowl of a stand mixer, start on low speed to mix together dry ingredients, then add water, add additional water with a tablespoon if necessary to make a soft elastic dough.
Knead the dough
This can be done by hand, mixer, or bread maker. Knead until the dough is smooth, then make a ball of dough.
Rise
First Rise: place the dough into a lightly greased bowl. put plastic wrap on the cover, and put the dough in a warm place to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 ½ hours.
Second Rise: Fold the dough over itself several times. Return it to the bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled in bulk again, another 1 ½ hours.
Shape
You may need a little extra flour for your surface to transfer the dough to it. Divide it into three pieces.
Stretch the dough pieces into 15" to 18" long loaves to make a loaf of bread into a baguette shape, and place them on a lightly greased or parchment paper-lined baking sheet.. Cover the loaves with a towel and let them rise for about 1 hour.
Bake
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Place a pan of water in a pan to create steam in a hot oven. Place it on the bottom of the oven on the lower rack.
With a sharp knife slash the loaves diagonally, and generously spray them with warm water. Bake the baguettes for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they're a deep golden brown. Remove them from the oven and take them out of the oven and return to the oven on the rack. Turn the oven off, and crack the oven door open about 1". Allow the baguettes to cool fully in the oven.
Lifestyle Diet
- Vegetarian
- Vegan
Variations
This bread dough can be used for garlic bread, or make dinner rolls. My favorite is Bánh mì which is a Vietnamese Baguette for a sandwich. Instead of making a long baguette, I will make it half the size.
Tips And Tricks
- The perfect way to measure flour is on a scale but cups of flour will work just as well for this recipe.
- Do not use hot water, to make sure the water is lukewarm, It will kill the yeast. I use half cold and half warm to make lukewarm water,
- The best way to create a good rise is to place the dough in airtight container or cover it with plastic wrap tightly.
- To score the top of the bread, use a sharp knife or a razor blade which is what bakers use to design the top of loaves.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make it ahead of time? Yes, sometimes I will prepare the dough at night so it can rise overnight.
What if my bread does not rise? Sometimes it is too humid I have noticed the bread won't rise the same way and will take much longer. The other problem that I have seen is if the water is too hot, it will kill the yeast which will not make it rise.
More Bread Recipes from Around the World
Once you have homemade French bread, it's hard to go back to store-bought average bread. One of my favorite things to make on Sunday morning now is some type of bread. Which my husband and dog seem to love more than me. I hope you will stay tuned for my next science experiment with bread. See ya next time as my quest continues in search of the perfect bite!
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Soft Baguette
Equipment
- I mixer with a bread hook
- 1 Bowl
- 1 pan
Ingredients
- 3 cups King Arthur Organic Bread Flour
- 1 cup lukewarm water and ¼ cup more if needed
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 1 teaspoons salt
Instructions
Mix
- You can weigh the flour; or measure it into a cup, then sweep off any excess. In a bowl of a stand mixer, start on low speed to mix together dry ingredients, then add water, add additional water with a tablespoon if necessary to make a soft elastic dough.
Knead the dough
- This can be done by hand, mixer, or bread maker. Knead until the dough is smooth, then make a ball of dough.
Rise
- First Rise: place the dough into a lightly greased bowl. put plastic wrap on the cover, and put the dough in a warm place to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 ½ hours.
- Second Rise: Fold the dough over itself several times. Return it to the bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled in bulk again, another 1 ½ hours.
Shape
- You may need a little extra flour for your surface to transfer the dough to it. Divide it into three pieces. Stretch the dough pieces into 15" to 18" long loaves to make a loaf of bread into a baguette shape, and place them on a lightly greased or parchment paper-lined baking sheet.. Cover the loaves with a towel and let them rise for about 1 hour.
Bake
- Preheat the oven to 450°F. Place a pan of water in a pan to create steam in a hot oven. Place it on the bottom of the oven on the lower rack.
- With a sharp knife slash the loaves diagonally, and generously spray them with warm water. Bake the baguettes for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they're a deep golden brown. Remove them from the oven and take them out of the oven and return to the oven on the rack. Turn the oven off, and crack the oven door open about 1". Allow the baguettes to cool fully in the ove
Video
Notes
Do not use hot water, to make sure the water is lukewarm, i use half cold and half warm to make lukewarm water,
The best way to create a good rise is to place the dough in airtight container or cover with plastic wrap tightly.
To score the top of the bread, use a sharp knife or a razor blade is what bakers use to design the top of loafs.
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