2 tbsp active dry yeast
2 1/2 cup water (110-degrees)
7 1/2 cup bread flour to 8 cups
1 tbsp salt
1 egg white (for glaze)
1 tbsp water (for glaze)
Directions
In large bowl of electric mixer, dissolve yeast in
2-1/2 c water. Add 2-1/2 to 3 c flour; stir 1 minute. Batter will
have consistency of soft pudding.
Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place, free
from drafts, overnight or at least 8 hours. The longer the sponge
ferments, the better the flavor will be.
The next day, stir in salt and 1 to 1-1/2 c of remaining flour. Beat
at medium speed with electric mixer 6 minutes, or beat 600 vigorous
strokes by hand. Stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough.
Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. Clean and lightly flour
bowl. Knead dough 15 to 20 minutes or until smooth, elastic, and no
longer sticky.
Place dough in floured bowl. Dust surface lightly with flour; cover
with a slightly damp towel. Let rise in a warm place, free from
drafts, until tripled in bulk, about 1-1/2 hours.
Grease 2 large baking sheets or 4 French-bread pans.
Punch down dough. Knead 2 minutes. Cover and let rest
10 minutes.
For oblong loaves, divide dough into 3 or 4 pieces, depending on
desired thickness of loaves.
On a lightly floured surface, shape each piece into a smooth log,
gently tapering ends. For round loaves, divide dough in half. Shape
each half into a smooth ball.
Place shaped dough on prepared baking sheets. Cover with a dry towel.
Let rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Adjust oven racks to 2 lowest positions. Place a shallow roasting pan
on lowest shelf; pour in 2 c boiling water.
Preheat oven 15 minutes to 425-degrees.
Slash tops of oblong loaves with 5 diagonal slashes each. Slash tops
of each round loaf with 3 horizontal slashes and 3 vertical slashes
in a tic-tac-toe design.
Brush loaves with cold water.
Bake 15 minutes.
Brush loaves with egg-white glaze; bake 10 minutes longer.
Brush again with egg-white glaze. Remove roasting pan from oven.
Bake loaves 10 to 15 minutes longer, for a total of 35 to 40 minutes,
or until bread sounds hollow when tapped on bottom.
Remove from pans; place loaves directly on oven rack.
Bake 5 minutes longer. Cool on racks. Makes 2 to 4 loaves.
Servings: 1 servings
24 Hour French Bread Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Bread; Breads; French
The History of Recipes
We can track the history of meal recipes back into the distant past, in fact as far back as the Egypt of the Pharoahs, and maybe even further. Interesting though that is, mostly, these early recipes were just basic pictorial instructions for preparing meals.
In an interesting twist, the most ancient recipe discovered, according to food historians are a few stone tablets in Sumerian which show the baking of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made drinkers feel wonderful and blissful. Progressing into Roman times 25BC a roman called Apicius wrote a number of scripts showing how to cook the recipes enjoyed by the Romans. In his publication, he tells us how the roman meals were split into hors d`oeuvres, entrees and afters, a style of dining still practiced today. Aspicius describes how the ancient Romans were skilled in the use of many different aromatic flavors, including some familiar names like bay, rue and parsley. Later on, in the 15th century, people returning from the crusades brought back a variety of foods, spices and herbs from the holy land, including basil and coriander. The introduction of these new herbs and spices created an outbreak in manuscripts on cookery, many of which are now in private collections. Over the succeeding few centuries, the powerful and rich houses strove to serve up the best banquets, and consequentially the best cooks and their recipe collections were at a premium. Even so, it wasn`t until the 1800s that cooking and recipe collections became popular. The Famous Mrs Beeton in the UK, and the equally well-known Fannie Farmer in the USA, devoted much of their lives to collating, trying out, and writing down recipes to allow everyone to enjoy them. When we get to the twentieth century, cook books are greatly in demand due to better eduction, people having increased free time and having more money to spend. The TV revolution gave us TV chefs and the spin-off recipe books. And that brings us to the present day and the invention of computers and the internet, permitting everyone to access massive numbers of recipes like those on sites such as this. |
We hope you enjoy this 24 Hour French Bread recipe.
