suemunzlinger's Recipe

French Bread

Category: Breads and quick breads

Ingredients:

1 cup warm water (110 degrees F.)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 cups bread flour
3 teaspoons Instant Active Dry Yeast
Cornmeal


Preparation:


Bread Machine Recipe:

Add all the ingredients except cornmeal in the bread pan of bread machine. Process according to manufacturer's instructions for a dough setting.
Check the dough and it should be slightly tacky to the touch
. When the bread machine has completed the dough cycle, remove the dough from the pan to a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough several times and form the dough into an oval; cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 10 to 15 minutes.



Kneading Dough Hints and Tips - After resting, knead dough (see kneading tips below) on a lightly-floured board by pulling the dough towards you and then pushing down and forward with the palms of your hands (kneading gives the bread the elasticity and lets it rise).


Lightly dust your work surface with all-purpose flour or bread flour. Place a small mound or a measuring cup of flour near the work surface as you will use this flour to sprinkle over the dough as you knead to prevent sticking. Also lightly dust your hands with flour to keep the dough from sticking to you.

Gather the dough into a rough ball and place on your floured work surface.

When you knead, you will use only the heels of your hands. Push down on dough with your hand heels.

Fold the dough in half. Turn the dough about 45 degrees and knead with your hand heels again. Continue to knead, fold and turn the dough for the required length of time or to the consistency suggested. I usually knead the dough around 5 minutes. Well-kneaded dough should feel smooth and elastic. Press your fingertip into the dough; it should spring back.


Dough Rising - Place the dough in a lightly-oiled large bowl. Place a damp towel over the bowl and then cover with plastic wrap (the humidity in the bowl helps in the rising process). Let rise until it doubles in volume (when you can put your finger in the dough and it leaves and indentation and doesn't spring back out) approximately 4 to 8 hours (depending on the temperature and the starter used, the rising time can vary as much as 2 hours).

Preparing the dough for baking - After dough has risen, remove from bowl, and place on a lightly-floured board. Knead in flour to feed it one more time before baking. Shape dough into a loaf shape and place on a cookie sheet that is dusted with cornmeal Cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, approximately 1 to 3 hours.


Baking the bread - Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
After rising, slash the bread with a bread razor (lame) or a very sharp knife making three 1/2-inch deep diagonal slashes. Brush or spray the top of the bread with cold water and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until nicely browned. A good check is to use an instant digital thermometer to test your bread. The temperature should be between 200 and 210 degrees.



Source What's Cooking America