Ingredients
1 1/2 cup warm water
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup sourdough starter
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
5 cup all-purpose flour (or 6)
1 water for tops of loaves
Directions
Warm a large bowl. Pour 1 1/2 cups warm water into warmed bowl.
Sprinkle yeast over water. Set aside to soften 5 minutes. Stir in
sourdough starter, sugar and salt. Beat in 3 cups flour until
blended. Cover with a cloth and set in a warm place free from drafts.
Let rise 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until doubled in size. Lightly grease a
large baking sheet; set aside. Stir down dough. Stir in enough
remaining flour to make a medium stiff dough. Turn out onto a
lightly floured surface. Knead dough 8 to 10 minutes or until smooth
and elastic. Add more flour if necessary. Shape kneaded dough into
two 10x3 1/2" loaves. Pull out ends of each to make them narrower
than center of loaf. Or shape into 2 round loaves. Place on prepared
baking sheet. Cover with a cloth and set in a warm place free from
drafts. Let rise 1 to 2 hours or until almost doubled in size.
Preheat oven to 400F. Pour water 1" deep into a 12x 71/2" baking
pan. Place in bottom of preheating oven. Use a pastry brush to brush
tops of loaves with water. Use a very sharp knife to cut diagonal
slashes across tops of loaves. Bake in preheated oven 45 minutes or
until crust is golden brown and loaves sound hollow when tapped with
your fingers. After 30 minutes, if loaves are golden brown, cover
with a tent of foil to prevent further browning. Remove from baking
sheet. Cool on a rack. Makes 2 loaves.
Servings: 4 servings
San Francisco-Style French Bread Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Bread; Breads; French
The History of Recipes
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In an interesting twist, the oldest recipe discovered so far, according to academics is a series of stone tablets in Sumerian which show the making of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as having made anyone who tried it feel `wonderful`. During the time of the Romans a man called Apicius compiled some documents describing recipes prepared by wealthy Romans. In his works, he recounts how the meals were separated into appetizers, entrees and dessert, something we still use today. Aspicius tells us how the ancient Romans used many aromatic flavors, including a few you will know for example thyme, fennel and parsley. Over the next few hundred years, the wealthy families of Europe competed with each other to offer the most extravagent meals, and because of this the best cooks and their collection of recipes were at a premium. However, it was during the 1800s that fine cookery and recipe books became popular. The Famous Mrs Beeton in the UK, and the equally well-known Fannie Farmer in the USA, devoted their lives to collecting, trying out, and writing down the recipes of their peers. The arrival of TV brought us TV cookery programs and the demand for the accompanying recipe books. And that pretty much brings us to the present day and the invention of computers and the internet, permitting everyone to access thousands of recipes like the ones you can find on sites such as this. |
We hope you enjoy this San Francisco Style French Bread recipe.
