Sourdough Baguettes
Sourdough Baguettes
(44)
|
rate this recipe » |
| dairy free | |
| Hands-on time: | |
|---|---|
| Baking time: | |
| Total time: | |
| Yield: | 6 baguettes or 3 Italian loaves |
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water
- 2 cups sourdough starter, about the consistency of thick pancake batter; fed, or unfed*
- 4 1/2 to 5 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon instant yeast
- 4 teaspoons vital wheat gluten
- 1 egg yolk lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for glaze; optional
- Pizza seasoning, sesame seeds, artisan bread topping, or anything else you think might be good; all optional
- *If you feed your sourdough before using, the loaves will rise better; but if you're in a hurry, unfed sourdough will simply lend its flavor, while the yeast in the recipe takes care of the rise.
Directions
1) In a large bowl, combine the water, starter, and 3 cups of the flour, mixing until smooth.
2) Stir in the salt, sugar, yeast and gluten, then an additional 1 1/2 to 2 cups of flour. Stir until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, adding only enough additional flour as necessary; a slack (sticky) dough makes a light loaf.
3) Knead the dough for about 7 minutes in a stand mixer; or 8 to 10 minutes by hand, on a lightly greased work surface. You may also knead this dough using the dough cycle on your bread machine; once it's finished kneading, transfer it to a bowl to rise, as directed below.
4) Turn the dough into an oiled bowl, cover the bowl, and let the dough rise until doubled in bulk, about 90 minutes.
5) Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into six pieces (for thin baguettes) or three pieces (for thicker Italian loaves).
6) Shape each piece into a 16" long loaf, and place the loaves, at least 4" apart, on parchment-lined baking sheets, or in lightly greased baguette pans (French loaf pans). If you're using baguette pans, make the loaves 15" long.
7) Cover the loaves with lightly greased plastic wrap, and let them rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until they're nice and puffy. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat your oven to 450°F.
8) If desired, gently brush the loaves with egg yolk glaze, and sprinkle them generously with Pizza Seasoning, artisan bread topping, or the toppings of your choice. If you're not brushing the loaves with egg yolk, spray them with olive oil spray; this will help them brown.
9) For a classic look, make three diagonal slashes in each loaf, cutting about 1/4" deep. For taller, rounder baguettes, don't slash.
10) Bake the baguettes for about 25 minutes, or until they're a rich golden brown. Remove the loaves from the oven. Turn off the oven, crack it open a few inches, and return the loaves to the cooling oven, without their pans. Letting the loaves cool right in the turned-off oven helps preserve their crunchy crust.
Yield: 6 baguettes or 3 Italian-style loaves.
Reviews
- 04/29/2012
- I love this recipe. I make two fat Italian loaves almost every week. The crust is perfect, and the flavor gets better and better as the sourdough starter ages.
- 04/17/2012
- I got hung up on making sure that the dough was "slack" for ideal fluffiness. Mine was so slack, however, that it spread sideways and not upwards - flat bread style. That said, it is truly delicious ! I'll definitely try again but I'll make sure I have more body in the dough. And I formed the dough free-hand. Baguette pans could have helped me greatly.
- 04/14/2012
- I used the sourdough starter from KAF..Lalvain, and made to directions. Made this recipe, halved, and used the perforated baguette pan to bake. They were beyond perfect. Mixed my dough in bread maching to first rise. Removed dough, shaped into baguettes and let rise in electric oven with light on, for warmth. Preheated oven after rising and put bread in with a cake pan of water on bottom rack. This makes the bread really crusty. Ifound after a month, my sourdough starter was better (fed it three times after using) and the bread was that great San Fran spongy inside and crusty outside.
- 03/31/2012
- Thanks to your youtube videos, I have finally made the perfect sourdough baguettes! My first batch were not at all satisfying, even though my family was very encouraging. So, I tried it again after I watched your youtube video and how to roll the baguettes out. What a difference. They had a wonderful crusty texture on the outside, but retained a soft, fluffy texture on the inside. And, these keep for a couple of days. On the last day, I sliced the loaf into 1/2 inch chunks, sprayed them with pan spray, and sprinkled garlic salt and mozzarella cheese over them. I then broiled them for a couple of minutes. They were a perfect compliment to dinner that night.
03/21/2012- Well, I probably can't blame the recipe, but I'd like some advice. I have an old sourdough culture given to me by a friend. I keep it going pretty regularly. I used it for this recipe today, and followed the recipe exactly except that I did halve the yeast because I didn't see the baker's tip in advance. The dough rose beautifully each time, and the loaves turned out beyond tasty, but shaped more like pancakes than bread, even after using a baguette pan. Where did I go wrong?
- 03/11/2012
- I'm fairly new to sourdough, but far this recipe is my favorite in that category. I have made the slender baguettes and also the fatter Italian loaves. I've made them with and without artisan bread topping. In all cases they were delicious. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the bread keeps. This may become a standby recipe.
- 02/12/2012
- my new favorite bread recipe. easy to make, doesn't take a long time, soooo good. enjoying trying different toppings, so far coarse ground garlic and salt is winning for me. don't hesitate to try this recipe! thanks KAF for sharing it!
- 01/07/2012
- Are there any adjustments you should make for altitude... I live in Denver at 5280 ft and I'd love to make this bread but I want to make sure it will work for me up here.
Here is the link to our high altitude baking page: http://bit.ly/bZS9fg. If you need further assistance, we are always happy to help on the baker's hotline. ~Amy
- 12/30/2011
- I made four of the traditional long/thin baguettes and took 1/3 of the dough then to make a large pizza crust. I remember eating the most delicious potato pizza that a friend of my dad's made in his outdoor brick oven, when I was a kid, so I decided to try my own. I thinly sliced one potato, dried the slices, spread them out in a thin layer on the risen crust and lightly sprayed with my Olive Oil Misto. I then baked the pizza for about 15 min. so the potatoes would brown lightly. Then I lightly sprayed the crust again and sprinkled it with garlic salt and Parmesan cheese, and lightly topped the whole pizza with mozzarella cheese and returned to the oven for about 8 minutes. It was beautifully crispy and delicious. Next time I would add basil before the potato slices, serve it as a fancy cheesy bread and buttermilk ranch dipping sauce. Now maybe it is because I'm pregnant...but this was out of this world! The baguettes seem to be fine - haven't tried them yet, but I know the bread is delicious already. They never look as good as they are supposed to...lol and my non-slashed ones weren't any taller than the slashed ones, but I know the taste will still be great!
- 12/30/2011
- I made half a recipe. I made my starter a week ago and used it today, the bread is good but does not have a sour dough taste. I uderstand that it should get better so I'm willing to wait and see. I also ordered KAF starter and waiting for it to arrive. It has been fun trying new . Thanks for all of the recipes!
