Artisan Baguette
This dough comes from the New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day cookbook. You can make one big batch of dough, then pinch off a piece to bake as needed for up to 14 days!
Servings baguettes (about 16 inches long and 2 1/2 inches wide each)
Equipment
- pizza stone
- Pizza Peel
Ingredients
- 3 cups warm about 100-105 degrees F water
- 1 tablespoon granulated yeast
- 1 ½ tablespoons kosher salt
- 6 ½ cups all-purpose flour (2 pounds) spoon into measuring cup and level with a knife
- 1 cup hot water
Instructions
Dough
- Place the water in a 6-quart lidded bowl or container. Add the yeast and salt and stir to combine. Add the flour all at once and stir to combine. You’ll probably need to mix it with your hands at some point. Mix until the dough is uniformly moist. This step should take about 5 minutes from start to finish.
- Cover with the lid, but don’t seal it completely, just leave it cracked. Let it rise for about 2 hours at room temperature or until it begins to collapse. You can either use the dough now or refrigerate it for up to 2 weeks.
Baking the Bread
- When you’re ready to bake your bread, sprinkle a pizza peel lightly with flour (this will be where the dough rests) and sprinkle the dough lightly with a little all-purpose flour. You can also line the pizza peel with parchment paper (instead of flouring it) if you prefer.
- Gently pull up a large handful of dough (½ pound), about the size of a large orange. Gently pull it down to form a ball, coating the ball with the flour that you sprinkled on top before you cut it. Don’t knead the flour into the dough–most of it will fall away.
- Shape the dough into a cylinder that’s about 1 ½″ in diameter. You can roll it gently if you want, just be careful not to push so hard that all the bubbles come out of the dough. Work with the dough–if it’s fighting you, let it rest for 5-10 minutes and then try again. Taper the ends so they’re kind of pointy on both sides. Place it on the floured pizza peel (or the parchment paper) and allow it to rest for 20 minutes.
- Get some water heating on the stove. You'll need one cup of hot water, added to a metal pan in the oven during baking, to create steam.
- Place a pizza stone on the center rack of your oven and place a small metal pan next to the pizza stone for your water, but don't add the water yet. Heat the oven to 450℉.
- When the loaf has rested for 20 minutes, use a pastry brush to brush it with water, then make a few diagonal slashes across the top of the loaf with a sharp knife. Use the pizza peel to carry the loaf to the oven, then jiggle the pizza peel to slide the loaf onto the pizza stone. Pour 1 cup of hot water into the empty metal pan and quickly close the door. Bake for 25 minutes or until deeply golden brown. Remove from oven and serve.
- This recipe will make several baguettes (or other free-form loaves–the instructions are available in the book).
Notes
- Dough can be stored, loosely covered, in the refrigerator for up to 14 days, baking off portions as needed. Simply follow the instructions as listed to shape the dough and allow 20 minutes for it to rest.
- Store completely cooled baked loaves, wrapped in a paper bag, bread bag, or foil, at room temperature and enjoy within 2 days for best results.
- Wrap cooled loaves tightly in plastic, followed by foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature, then warm in a 350°F oven for 5-10 minutes to refresh the crust.
Nutrition
Serving: 1baguette, Calories: 371kcal, Carbohydrates: 78g, Protein: 11g, Fat: 1g, Saturated Fat: 0.2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 0.1g, Sodium: 1315mg, Potassium: 114mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 0.3g, Vitamin C: 0.001mg, Calcium: 19mg, Iron: 5mg
Calories: 371kcal
Cost: $3
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