The symbol of French bread culture par excellence!
Ingredients
3 ¾ c/500 g flour
¼ c/45 g whole wheat flour
3 heaped t/15 g salt
2 T/ 7g dry yeast
¾ c warm water
Extra flour and a smear of butter/ baking paper
*Optional: sesame seeds or oat bran
Equipment
Small ceramic bowl for blooming yeast
Mixing bowl
Oven proof (inox) bowl which will fit over baguettes/mini flutes
Baguette mould or baking tray
Instructions
- Add yeast and warm water (just warmer than body temperature—think baby bottle temperature) to a ceramic bowl and allow to bloom while you do steps 2-3. Make a mental note of the time that yeast starts blooming. Your yeast should bloom for about 8 minutes.
- Add both flours and salt to a large mixing bowl and mix by hand.
- Prepare your baking environment for the baguette. You can use a baguette mould (in which case, you should rub butter along its bottom, and then sprinkle this with flour, so that the baguettes won’t stick. Alternatively, you can butter and then coat with sesame seeds or oat bran (which is what I prefer, as this gives a nice crunchy base).
- By this point, your yeast has bloomed 8 minutes and should look like a pale tan froth. Add this to your flour mix.
- Knead your dough for a few minutes until it comes together into a single mass. If your dough is dry (i.e. if it has crumbs) add a small splash of water (a little less than a tablespoon) until it can form up en masse.
- Lightly flour your work surface and knead the dough until it forms a smooth, elastic ball. At this point, your dough will likely feel tough and difficult to knead. Upend the proofing bowl and cover your dough on the counter. Allow it to rest 10-15 minutes.
- When you uncover the dough, you will notice that it has already started to proof. If making a single baguette, form your loaf (or your two singles, if you are making minis baguettes/flutes. My oven trays will not accommodate a 2ft/ 65cm baguette, so I generally shape into minis. Working quickly, use a very sharp knife to score your baguettes diagonally across the loaf.
- Preheat your oven to 400°F/ 220°C or equivalent ‘hot’ temperature for bread baking, taking care to put a cast iron skillet/oven-proof pan in the bottom part of the oven. For my oven, this generally takes 20-30 minutes, which is the perfect amount of time for the baguettes to proof. While they are proofing, I allow them to sit on the cooktop above my oven, so the gentle warmth will help them to rise.
- Working quickly but carefully, place your baguette/minis in the oven with the bowl inverted over them. Pull the pre-heated skillet/oven-proof pan out slightly from the oven and fill this with 3-4 c of water. The steam thereby produced will collect under the bowl and will help form the characteristic baguette crust. Steam can burn, so you will want to use a pour spout (e.g. from a large beaker) to reach the pan, so that you do not burn yourself. Remember that you will have to remove the skillet/oven-proof pan during the cooking process, so you do not want it to be over full!
- Bake with the inverted bowl collecting steam for 15 minutes, then remove the bowl and the skillet/oven-proof pan with the hot water. Bake another 15 minutes until the baguette/minis are golden and beautiful.
- Remember that baguettes are made to be eaten immediately, and enjoy the taste the past on your table!