Hello friends,
This week on the bake off it was bread week, and as such my other half told me I could definitely bake along for this one! The technical challenge was Paul Hollywood's baguettes which appear in his 'How to bake' book. I was given this for Christmas and have tried the baguettes before, and they aren't easy - they have to be proved twice, and if this isn't done properly you get quite flat dense bakes. Also very important in this bake is having steam in your oven, as this makes the crunchy crust which a good baguette needs.
The book 'How to Bake' is definitely a good investment as Paul explains the different bread making techniques, has both sweet and savoury recipes and also strays into the cakes, tarts and puddings recipes as well which makes it quite a diverse baking book.
This week on the bake off it was bread week, and as such my other half told me I could definitely bake along for this one! The technical challenge was Paul Hollywood's baguettes which appear in his 'How to bake' book. I was given this for Christmas and have tried the baguettes before, and they aren't easy - they have to be proved twice, and if this isn't done properly you get quite flat dense bakes. Also very important in this bake is having steam in your oven, as this makes the crunchy crust which a good baguette needs.
The book 'How to Bake' is definitely a good investment as Paul explains the different bread making techniques, has both sweet and savoury recipes and also strays into the cakes, tarts and puddings recipes as well which makes it quite a diverse baking book.
Ingredients:
500g bread flour
10g salt
10g instant yeast
370ml water
Oil for kneading
Method:
Oil a 2-3 litre plastic container. Paul suggests using a square tub, however I used a rectangular one and it worked fine.
In a food mixer, add the flour, salt, yeast and half of the water (making sure the yeast and salt are on opposite sides). Start mixing on a slow speed and as the dough forms add the rest of the water and mix on a higher speed for 5 - 7 minutes (you want the dough to be smooth and elastic).
Put the dough into the tub and leave in a warm area to rise to double the size.
Coat the work surface with oil, and then coax out the dough from the tub - be careful not to knock out the air as we need this for the baguette structure.
Divide the dough into 4/5 pieces and gently roll into sausage shapes. Line two baking trays and put the sausages on, and place in clean plastic bags to rise a second time. Pre-heat your oven to 220C and place a roasting tray at the bottom.
When the baguettes have doubled in size dust with flour and slash diagonally with a sharp knife. Fill the roasting tray with water to create steam and put the baguettes in the oven.
Bake for 25 minutes until golden, then allow to cool before enjoying.
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