90 Minute French Bread Recipes

HOMEMADE FRENCH BREAD

Steps:

• Combine sugar and 1 cup warm water in a bowl. Stir in yeast and let stand 5 minutes.
• Stir in salt and 2 cups of flour. Continue adding flour a bit at a time to form a stiff dough. Knead until about 5 minutes (or use a dough hook on a stand mixer per notes below).
• Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let rise 1 hour or until doubled. Punch dough down and let rise 30 minutes more.
• Roll dough into a 14"x10" square and roll up jelly roll style to create a 14"x2.5" loaf. Place on a parchment lined pan seam side down. Using a sharp knife, cut 3-4 diagonal slits into the loaf (about ¼" deep).
• Cover with a damp towel and let rise 30-40 minutes or until doubled. Brush bread with egg white. Preheat oven to 425°F.
• Place in the oven and bake 20-25 minutes or until browned. Cool on a baking rack.

HOMEMADE FRENCH BREAD RECIPE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let sit 5 minutes, or until it begins to foam.
• In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or in a large mixing bowl, stir together 2 cups flour and salt. Stir in the yeast mixture on medium-low speed or by hand. Knead in 1/2 cup of the remaining flour in increments until the dough is smooth but not sticky. Add more flour as needed.
• Rub the olive oil around the dough ball, cover the bowl with a towel and let rest 15 to 30 minutes. If you have more time, let rise up to 1 hour.
• Turn the dough onto a well-floured surface and divide it in half. Set one half aside. Roll the other half into a rectangle (about 15 inches). Starting from the long side, roll the dough into a cylinder.
• Turn both ends in and pinch the seams closed. Round the edges and place onto a baking sheet. Repeat with the second dough ball. Make three diagonal cuts across the top of each loaf. Cover loaves lightly with a towel. Let rise 30 to 60 minutes (the longer the better, if you have the time).
• Preheat the oven to 400°F. Bake 17 to 23 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. When you knock on it, it should sound hollow. If it's browning too fast, lightly cover with foil and lower the temperature to 375°F.
• Brush the top with melted butter, if desired. Slice and serve while warm.

EASY FRENCH BREAD RECIPE

Steps:

• 1. Mix: Using your electric mixer with a dough hook, mix the water, sugar, yeast and 2 cups of flour into the bowl. Allow to sit until yeast activates and begins to bubble. Add oil and salt.
• 2. Add: Slowly mix in remaining flour. You want the dough to just barely pull off the sides of your bowl once the flour is fully incorporated. It should still be a soft dough.
• 3. Knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
• 4. Rise: Remove dough hook and form dough into a ball inside the bowl. Cover and allow to rise until double, about one hour.
• 5. Place dough gently onto a lightly floured surface. 6. Divide into four equal pieces. Flatten each piece into a general triangular shape. 7. Roll: Starting on the small point, roll and seal your way across the triangle until you have a small log. Roll the log on the counter to stretch your baguette to the proper length, keeping the thickness uniform across the loaf. Place dough into greased french bread pan, slit the top with a sharp knife and brush with an egg wash if desired. Allow to rise about 15-20 minutes.
• 8. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. The bread is completely baked at this point and can be cooled on racks. When it is time to serve, I prefer to place the loaves on the oven racks and bake them for an additional 5-7 minutes. This heats the bread and creates that great crust while keeping the interior soft and chewy. In my opinion, this last step makes all the difference.

90 MINUTE BREAD

Steps:

• Mix water and yeast until yeast is dissolved. Add other ingredients.
• Stir in 11-12 cups flour - any combination of wheat or wheat/white you desire. Knead for 10 minutes. Extra flour may be needed so the dough isn't sticky.
• Divide dough into 4 sections. Cover and let rest for 15 minutes.
• Knead and shape into 4 loaves. Put in greased pans.
• Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Less time for rolls.

90 MINUTE FRENCH BREAD

Steps:

• Place the 1 C hot water in the microwave for 3 minutes to get it boiling.
• Dissolve the yeast into the warm water. Stir it around until it is all mixed.
• Combine the salt, shortening, and sugar in the bottom of your mixer with a fork. The dough hook doesn't work very well.
• Pour the boiling water over the shortening mixture.
• Pour the cold water over the mixture.
• Pour the warm water and yeast into the mixer.
• Begin to add the flour, one cup at a time, until the dough pulls away from the side of your mixer.
• Let the dough mix on high for 8 minutes.
• Let the dough rise in the mixer for about 20 minutes.
• Separate the dough into three parts and place on a large jelly roll pan sprayed with cooking spray. Let the dough sit for about 5 minutes. Letting it sit will make it MUCH easier to shape.
• Form or roll the dough out to about 1/2 inch thick.
• Starting at one edge, roll it into a tube.
• Bring the ends up & over, overlapping slightly, flip to seam side down and set to the side while you repeat with the other 2 pieces.
• Oil a sharp knife & make 3 diagonal slashes on each loaf (approximately 1/2 inch thick).
• Prepare an egg wash (1 beaten egg, 2 T water, mixed well) and gently brush all over the loaves.
• Place the loaves in a 170 degree oven for 20 minutes, to rise.
• Leaving the loaves in the oven, turn oven up to 400 degrees F and bake for 15 minutes (375 degrees for 10 minutes, for a convection oven).
• Turn the oven down to 350 degrees F & bake 10 minutes longer (325 for 7 minutes, for convection).