Nifty Fifty

It wasn’t that hard to think of which recipe I wanted to post as the first recipe on NiftyFifty; it would obviously be the one that I made three times. Yup, that’s right. I made this French bread three times. It was worth the effort, and each time the loaves came out of the oven even better.

I’ve always liked French bread, but I really disliked the fact my supermarket put them “on sale” for $2. After spending hours on Pinch My Salt after finding The BBA Challenge, I knew I was going to Peter Reinhart’s The Bread Baker’s Apprentice. I’ve only made three recipes from it, and the two I’ve tasted (the third is cooling as I type this) are delicious. The favorite is amazing, the crust is crunchy and mouth orgasmic, and the best part: they’re very easy to make.

My house normally doesn’t have bread in it so it makes eating salad unfun. I always want to have some sort of bread next to me so I can soak up all the extra dressing that settings in the bottom. It’s like my little second salad after eating the leafy part. It’s one of the reasons why I love salads.

I told you that this bread was super simple to make, and I’m not lying. The recipe can be memorized by the second batch, even all the “confusing” rising and proofing times! As Reinhart says, the pâte fermentée and the actual dough recipe are the same recipe with a couple changes here and there (like 1/4 cup instead of 1/8).

The pâte fermentée is a pre-ferment, which is basically a dough that you make a day in advance to give the final bread more much more flavor. How I described it to my grandmother was something along the lines of: “It’s kinda like the dough they have to make for sough dough. You make it before so that the yeast gets a certain flavor, and the bread tastes really good”. That’s the only thing that makes this bread a two day project, but I’m telling you, it’s well worth the effort (if you even call it that).

The recipe for the pâte fermentée is the perfect amount to make one batch of French bread. You can store it in the fridge for up to three days, or in the freezer for up to three months. When making it, I tend to err on the sticky side, using about 7/8 cup of water in both it and the final dough. It’s much better to have a stick dough because then the shaping process it much easier.

Pâte Fermentée from Peter Reinhart’s The Bread Baker’s Apprentice

1 1/8 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/8 cups unbleached bread flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
3/4 cup to 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons water, at room temperature

1. Stir together the flours, salt, and yeast in the bowl of an electric mixer set on “stir”. Add 3/4 cup of water and continue mixing until the dough forms into a rough ball, adding more water and flour as needed. Make sure that the little flour bits on the bottom have picked up. This should take about 1-2 minutes.

2. Change to a dough hook and knead the bread for 6 minutes or until the dough is soft and pliable, tacky but not sticky. The bread should pass the windowpane test and register 77° to 81°F. If the dough hasn’t fully developed, it can be kneaded more. It is almost impossible to over knead bread; the machine will overheat before the dough over mixes. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap.

3. Let the dough ferment at room temperature for 1 hour, or until it swells to about 1 1/2 times its original size.

4. Remove the dough from the bowl, knead it lightly to degas, and return it to the bowl, covering the bowl with plastic wrap. Place the bowl in the refrigerator overnight. You can keep this in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze it in an airtight plastic bag for up to 3 months.

French Bread from Peter Reinhart’s The Bread Baker’s Apprentice

3 cups pâte fermentée
1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/4 cups unbleached bread flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
3/4 cup to 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons water, luekwarm (90° to 100°F)
Cornmeal for dusting

1. Remove the pâte fermentée from the fridge 1 hour before making the dough to take the chill off.

2. Stir together the flours, salt, yeast, and pâte fermentée pieces in the bowl of an electric mixer set on “stir”. Add 3/4 cup of water and continue mixing until the dough forms into a rough ball, adding more water and flour as needed. Make sure that the little flour bits on the bottom have picked up. This should take about 1-2 minutes.

3. Change to a dough hook and knead the bread for 6 minutes or until the dough is soft and pliable, tacky but not sticky. The bread should pass the windowpane test and register 77° to 81°F. If the dough hasn’t fully developed, it can be kneaded more. It is almost impossible to over knead bread; the machine will overheat before the dough over mixes. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap.

4. Let the dough ferment at room temperature for 2 hours. If the dough has risen before 2 hours (mine never does), knead it lightly to degas and let it rise again until it’s once again double the original size.

5. Gently remove the dough from the bowl and transfer it to a lightly floured counter (this is why the dough can be a little sticky). For baguettes, cut the dough into 3 equal pieces and form baguettes as by these two videos. Place the loaves on a pan dusted with cornmeal.

6. Proof at room temperature for 45 to 75 minutes, or until the loaves have grown to about 1 1/2 times their original size. They should be slightly springy when poked with a finger.

7. Preheat the oven to 500° with a pan in the top most rack and another rack in the lower third. Score the baguettes with a sharp knife or razor.

8. Place the pan in the oven and pour 1 cup of hot water into the pan, then quickly close the oven. Wait 30 seconds and then spray the insides of the oven with water. Repeat this two more times with 30 seconds intervals in between. After the final spray, lower the oven temperature to 450° (you can take the other pan out if you fear it to warp) and cook the baguettes for 10 minutes. Rotate the loaves 180°, and cook until the insides register 205° in their center. About 10-20 additional minutes (mine normally take 22-24 minutes total, so 12-14 minutes after the rotation). If the outsides become too dark and the loaves aren’t done yet, lower the oven setting to 350° and continue baking for an additional 5 to 10 minutes.

9. Remove the loaves from the oven and cool on a rack for at least 40 minutes before slicing or serving devouring in 5 minutes.