Description
These Easy French Baguettes are crusty on the outside and soft on the inside, perfect for sandwiches, dipping in soup, or enjoying with butter. This simple recipe uses basic ingredients and requires minimal hands-on time.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups warm water (110° to 115°F)
- 2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast (1 packet)
- 2 tsp sugar
- 3 ¼ cups bread flour
- 2 tsp salt
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or large mixing bowl, stir together warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let sit for 5-10 minutes until foamy.
- Add in bread flour and salt. Using a dough hook or spoon, mix until a soft dough forms. Knead for about 5-6 minutes with a mixer or 8-10 minutes by hand, until the dough is smooth and elastic.
- Place dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Punch down dough and divide in half. Roll each half into a 15-inch log. Place loaves on a parchment-lined or lightly greased baking sheet.
- Cover and let rise for another 30 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Using a sharp knife, make 3-4 diagonal slashes across the tops of the loaves.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown and the loaves sound hollow when tapped.
- Remove from oven and cool on wire racks before slicing.
Notes
- For extra crispiness, place a shallow pan of water in the oven while baking to create steam.
- Bread is best enjoyed the day it is made but can be frozen for later use.
- You can use all-purpose flour if bread flour is unavailable, though texture may vary slightly.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: French
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/12 of recipe)
- Calories: 120
- Sugar: 1g
- Sodium: 290mg
- Fat: 0.5g
- Saturated Fat: 0g
- Unsaturated Fat: 0.5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 25g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 4g
- Cholesterol: 0mg
