How To Bake a Perfect Artisan Round Bread and French Baguettes Easily

 

I consider myself a good baker but I never thought I could make bread the way I did last weekend.  I had help from Emile Henry.  I was sent the Emile Henry Bread Cloche  and Baguette Baker in beautiful, warm red.

 

 

As I looked at the recipe book, I marveled at how quickly you could make bread, artisan style bread that looked delicious. I still doubted mine would turn out as perfectly.  I started making the quick-bake recipe of the round bread and it was so easy.

3 cups of bread flour

1 cup of warm water (95 degrees F)

2 tsp of salt

2 tsp of granulated sugar

2 tsp of dried baker’s yeast

2 tbsp. of milk

In a large bowl mix the bread flour, salt, sugar and dried yeast.

 

Pour in the warm water and knead for about 2-3 minutes.

 Form the dough into a ball and cover with a dish towel.

 

Put the covered bowl in a warm place away from drafts to rise for 20 minutes.  Uncover the dough and knead to remove the carbon dioxide, form the dough into a ball.  Sprinkle some flour on the platter of the bread cloche and place the ball of dough on the platter.

Cover with the cloche and let rise for another 45 minutes at room temperature.

Brush a little milk over the top at the end of the rise time and sprinkle with flour.

Make several incisions on the top and cover again with the cloche. Bake in a preheated oven of 460 degrees F for 35 minutes and then allow the bread to cool on the platter with the cloche removed.

The whole process was fast and easy and I cannot tell you how impressed I was when I removed the Cloche after baking and saw that beautiful round artisan style bread on the platter.  It tasted as good as it looked and the whole family enjoy it right from the oven.

The baguette baker was the next thing I tried and even though the first time baguettes could use a little artisan tweaking the taste of them was better than anything we have ever tasted.  The way the baker cooks the crust but leaves the middle soft and chewy is unbelievable.  My kids ate those faster than you could say Bon Jour.  The are definitely one of our new favorites and I only wish my parents were still alive to taste these breads because they would have loved them!  I never knew that you could bake this kind of bread at home and now that we know, we are baking bread almost daily.

For the Baguettes we used the “Real French Baguette” recipe below:

2 cups of bread flour

1 cup of warm water (110 degrees F)

1 tsp of fine salt

1 tsp of dried yeast

I added about 2 tsp to 3 tsp of granulated sugar ( I added by eye)

Mix flour, salt and yeast in a mixing bowl and add the warm water and knead the dough about 5 minutes until you can form a smooth ball.  Cover the bowl with a dish cloth and let rise in a warm location, away from drafts for about 40 minutes.

After 40 minutes, knead the dough again to remove the carbon dioxide and then divide into three equal portions. Sprinkle each piece with flour and shape into a rectangle about the size of your hand then roll the dough a little longer in length than the depression in the baguette pan and about 10 cm wide.  Fold one side about 2/3 of the way over and then the other side 1/4 of the way over to form a cylinder shape.

 

Sprinkle the baguette pan with flour and turn the formed dough with the folded side on the bottom and place in the pan.  Repeat with the other 2 pieces.  Cover with the lid and let rise for 2o minutes while you preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.

 

After 20 minutes open the cover and brush with water, sprinkle with flour and make several diagonal cuts in each baguette.

Replace cover and bake for 25 minutes and then remove the cover and continue baking for 2 minutes until they are nice and brown.

 

As soon as these came out we ate them hot with fresh butter and they were gone in minutes!

If you like to bake bread or if you have never made bread, you have to try these Emile Henry accessories.  You will not believe the bread you will be making and neither will your family.

Quality Bakeware For Breads:

Emile Henry enters the artisan bread baking category with the Bread Cloche. The ceramic Bread Cloche with its bell-shaped cover allows you to proof your bread directly in the bread cloche. The lid also traps steam from the baking bread to create an environment similar to a steam-injected oven. The steam gives the bread a crunchy, chewy crust. The Emile Henry Bread Cloche is sized for a round loaf made with 3-cups of flour. Recipe and Instruction booklet included. Like all Emile Henry products, the Bread Cloche is made of all natural materials and is backed by a ten-year warranty, which is not offered by any other ceramic manufacturers. Emile Henry is located in the Burgundy town of Marcigny, France.

The new ceramic Baguette Baker from Emile Henry bakes three, 13½inch long by 2¼ inch wide, artisanal French baguettes. The Baguette Baker traps steam from the baking bread to create an environment similar to a steam-injected oven. The steam gives the bread a crunchy, golden crust and a chewy interior. The Baguette Baker simplifies the process so home bakers have more consistent, delicious results every time they make bread. A recipe book is included with the product so even a novice baker will be confident in baking bread at home. The Baker, made in France from Burgundy clay.

 

Emile Henry’s Oven Ceramic bakeware and tableware is made in Marcigny France since 1850 from high fired Burgundy clay. The natural clay is unsurpassed for conducting and retaining heat. Emile Henry’s Oven Ceramic is made with an exclusive process to produce strong and durable ceramic bakeware and tableware for everyday use.

• Resistance Against Mechanical Shocks: During everyday use, there are many opportunities to bang a dish or a set of plates. Particularly resistant to shocks, our ceramic is even used in restaurants!
• Resistance Against Temperature Changes: A dish or stewpot should be able to withstand wide variations in temperature. Our ceramics allow our products to be taken directly from the freezer to the hot oven (+250°C/500°F).
• Resistance Against Fading Colors: Heat, the dishwasher or sharp instruments will all have an ageing effect on a product. Our glazes are particularly resistant to the dishwasher and the most aggressive of detergents.

The quality of these pieces is extraordinary and the ease of use and clean up is absolutely divine.

Emile Henry is sponsoring a giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!  One lucky blog reader will receive their own Bread Cloche and Baguette Baker- A $260 value!!!  Thank you to Emile Henry for the review pieces and for sponsoring this awesome giveaway on Mommy Ramblings!!!  Open to US residents.

Emile Henry Bread Cloche and Baguette Baker Giveaway on Mommy Ramblings Rules:

Enter to win using the Rafflecopter widget below.  Good Luck!!!