5.0 from 579 votes
French Bread
Nothing beats a loaf of crusty, chewy French bread at the dinner table. This recipe creates a beautifully browned and crisp crust, with a soft and chewy center that will leave you coming back for slice after slice.
Prep Time
1 hr 10 mins
Cook Time
10 mins
Servings: 18
Calories: 95 kcal
Course:
Appetizer , Bread , Dinner
Cuisine:
French-American Fusion
Ingredients
- 4 cups all purpose flour
- 2 packages (1/4 oz each) active dry yeast fresh
- 1 tsp table salt
- 1 TB white sugar
- 1 ¾ cups water at 110F
- 1 TB cornmeal
- 1 egg white beaten with 1 TB water
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Hand-whisk until well combined. Gradually stir in the warm water (test the temperature with thermometer to ensure it's right around 110F) and stir until a dough forms. The consistency should be roughly like play-dough, not too sticky but easily forms into a smooth/elastic dough ball. Add 1 TB water at a time as needed to gain that consistency.
- On a lightly floured surface, knead dough 10 minutes.
- Shape into a ball, place into a well-oiled bowl, and turn dough to lightly coat in oil. Cover bowl tightly with cling wrap and place bowl in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in volume, 30-60 minutes, or place in a pre-warmed oven for more rapid rising.
- Gently punch dough down and divide in half. Place on lightly floured surface, cover, and let sit 10 minutes. Roll each half into approx. 14x9 inch rectangle. Roll rectangle up lengthwise, moisten edges with water, and pinch tightly to seal. Taper and seal ends.
- Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Sprinkle evenly with cornmeal. Place loaves seam side down on sheet. Cut diagonal slits into loves on top, about 1/4 inch deep. Brush loaves with egg/water mixture.
- Gently lay cling wrap over loaves and place in a draft-free warm place until nearly doubled in size, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375F with rack on lower middle position. Place a large pan of water on lowest rack.
- Bake 15 minutes. Brush again with egg/water mixture. Bake another 10 minutes or until bread looks done. Let loaves rest at room temp at least 15 minutes before slicing.
Cup of Yum
Notes
- Top this warm, delicious French Bread with butter or your favorite jam and pair it with a heavenly soup like this Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup.
- If you prefer smaller French Bread loaves, you can split and shape this recipe into four smaller loaves instead of two, but you'll need to watch them while they bake as baking time may vary depending on loaf size.
- If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and give it a rating ❤️
Nutrition Information
Serving
1g
Calories
95kcal
(5%)
Carbohydrates
20g
(7%)
Protein
3g
(6%)
Fat
1g
(2%)
Saturated Fat
0.01g
(0%)
Polyunsaturated Fat
0.2g
Monounsaturated Fat
0.2g
Sodium
132mg
(6%)
Potassium
6mg
(0%)
Fiber
3g
(12%)
Sugar
2g
(4%)
Vitamin C
0.001mg
(0%)
Calcium
18mg
(2%)
Iron
1mg
(6%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 18Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 95
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 1g | |
| Calories | 95kcal | 5% |
| Carbohydrates | 20g | 7% |
| Protein | 3g | 6% |
| Fat | 1g | 2% |
| Saturated Fat | 0.01g | 0% |
| Polyunsaturated Fat | 0.2g | 1% |
| Monounsaturated Fat | 0.2g | 1% |
| Sodium | 132mg | 6% |
| Potassium | 6mg | 0% |
| Fiber | 3g | 12% |
| Sugar | 2g | 4% |
| Vitamin C | 0.001mg | 0% |
| Calcium | 18mg | 2% |
| Iron | 1mg | 6% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.