Tag Archives: french bread

Couronne Bordelaise

Posted on January 25, 2010 | Leave a comment

This bread takes it name from the capital of the famed Aquitaine of France, Bordeaux. Most noted for its deep red wines, Bordeaux is also one of the industrial capitals of France. Much overlooked is this magnificent loaf, “The Crown of Bordeaux.” Couronne means crown and Bordelaise is the name given to the citizens of Bordeaux. Baguettes and boules are beautiful in their simplicity, while the epi and braided loaves are rhythmic. The couronne bordelaise is the queen of French bread. Its sting on pearls around the top and its harmonious round shape are a feast for the eyes.

There is some debate on the type of bread used to make the couronne. Some insist on using pain de campagne, others claim plain white dough (a la baguette) should be used. No doubt pain de campagne will give you a thicker crust and a longer shelf life. In this recipe I used the baguette recipe. Proofing is done in a special banneton which is about 12″ wide with a 5″ center. I have not as of yet been able to source these banneton in the US. They run about $80 plus the cost of shipping from France. Too rich for my blood!! So I rigged a banneton from a 12″ flat wicker basket, covered it with a cloth serviette dusted with rice flour, then place a serviette covered bowl in the center. Worked like a charm! I didn’t cook this one as dark as I normally would but to a medium golden brown. The results were still outstanding.

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Tagged Aquitaine, artisan bread, baguette, banneton, Bordeaux, bread baking, couronne, epi, french bread, french country bread, hearth baking, home hearth baking, pain de campagne, rice flour, The Baker's Apprentice

French Bread

Posted on January 16, 2010 | Leave a comment

Considering France’s long and illustrious culinary history, I find it somewhat amusing that bread pops to mind immediately when we think of French cuisine. Those who have been to France (or most any place in Europe) will surely recall the first encounter with its bread. Crispy dark crust and an airy, almost nutty, inside.

I was excited to make this recipe for a couple reasons. I had recently purchased an 8″ round banneton from Frieling and a 24″ x 20″ linen couche. I liberally seasoned it with flour, shook it out, the floured in again. Since I doubled the baguette recipe, the first batch used 1/2 (about 1 lb) of dough for the baguette and the other half for the banneton. The second batch went into the banneton and made a very large loaf. The banneton I bought because of its rustic look and ease in use; the couche because I felt I need a bit of a hand with shaping my baguettes. I am happy to say that both work as hoped! However (and there’s always a “but”), I wouldn’t waste the money on buying a couche from a cooking store. Save the money and go to the fabric store and get some heavy linen. If you’re good with the sewing machine, make a hem; if not, don’t worry. To season the couche, rub the flour into the fabric. You’ll be surprised at how much flour the cloth will soak up. And also, don’t use non-stick spray on it; and finally, don’t wash it! I found that the couche gave an added element to the shape of the baguette. When I do this recipe again, I plan on giving the dough a slightly shorter ferment, then scale and shape, then a longer proofing period. I didn’t get the larger holes in the bread that I wanted. It was still quite tasty. Thanks to my friend Michael, instead of slashing the top of the baguette, scissors were used to make the pattern on top.

: Baguette

: Boule proofed in a banneton

: Large boule shaped in a banneton

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Tagged artisan bread, baguette, banneton, boule, bread baking, couche, dough starter, European bread, french bread, frieling, hearth baking, parisian bread, pate fermente, The Baker's Apprentice

French Country Bread – Pain de Campagne

Posted on January 11, 2010 | Leave a comment

I found this recipe attractive for two reasons: first, because it used a portion of whole grain flour and second, because it could be shaped easily. As a child, my grandfather used to bring back epi loaves from a bakery in Miami. I remember being fascinated by the pointy rolls all stuck together. 30 years later, I’m still fascinated by all those pointed rolls stuck together! It is a very visually pleasing shape and one not readily found.

As far as the dough goes, I was glad to see that it was more manageable than the pain a l’ancienne. It has umpf! This made it much easier to shape than any of the other recipes I’ve tried so far. Admittedly, the smaller loaves did not turn out as expected. The braided loaf seemed to melt all together and the round couronne, well, wasn’t a crowning achievement. So I cheated! Since I didn’t press down hard enough with the dowel or use enough flour, the creases never stayed separated. So, just before baking, I made cuts with a serrated knife. Not the look that was intended, but it worked out in the end.

: Mixing the pre-ferment with the dugh.

: The window pane test.

: The dough is reading for its ferment

: The dough after the ferment

: Small braided loaf

: Couronne

: Couronne close up

: Baguette

: Couronne and braided loaf

: Couronne close up

: Epi

: Epi close up

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Tagged artisan bread, baguette, braided bread, bread, bread baking, couronne, epi, french bread, french country bread, hearth baking, pain de campagne, pate fermente, pre-ferment, rustic french bread, The Baker's Apprentice

You say focaccia, I say fougasse

Posted on January 9, 2010 | Leave a comment

This is probably one of the world’s best known and oldest breads with its hallmark dimples and flat oval shape. The name comes from the Latin words panis focacius meaning bread from the center (hearth). It is understandable why this bread is so named since the hearth was the center of the Roman home; and for that matter homes throughout most of human history. It actually predates the Romans having been well documented in Greed and Etruscan society as far back as 700 BC. Most gastronomic historians agree that this is the forerunner of modern-day pizza. Even today focaccia is often made with cheese and various toppings such as cured meats, olives and cheeses. A sweeter versions is made with dried or candied fruits and sprinkled with sugar.

This is also a great example of how food travels. The Ligurian province of Italy (in Tuscany it is made without salt and called schiacciata) lies in the upper west of the country bordering France. In Provence and the Languedoc, this bread is known as fogassa. The farther away from Italy it travels, the more French becomes the name. In Burgundy it is known as foisee or fouaisse while in greater France you can find it by the name fougasse. And down the Iberian peninsula in Spain, they know it as hogaza.

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Tagged artisan bread, baking, bread, bread baking, bread history, flat bread, focaccia, fogassa, foisse, fouaisse, fougasse, french bread, fugassa, hearth baking, hogaza, Italian bread, Liguria, Provence, schiacciata, The Baker's Apprentice

Pain a l’Ancienne

Posted on January 2, 2010 | Leave a comment

This rustic French bread is a delight for the taste buds. If you’ve ever doubted the reason to manipulate time in a bread recipe, this will change your mind. For this recipe, I baked it “European style” with the dark golden brown crust (versus the American style which is much lighter). Also, preparing your oven for hearth baking with the addition of steam is critical to the success of this recipe. I will post more on hearth baking in the near future.

Pain a l'anceinne

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Tagged artisan bread, baguette, bread, bread baking, European bread, fermenting, french bread, hearth baking, pain a l'ancienne, proofing bread, rustic bread, The Baker's Apprentice