Today I am going to share a shortcut that I am really proud of. I feel like I've really pulled one over on the unsuspecting.
I've always struggled to make baguettes — with yeast dough and then with sourdough. And I've always been somewhere on the failed-to-mediocre spectrum.
Maybe you can do it — if so, post about how! I find that it's almost impossible to work with a dough that's wet enough to result in the nice holes and open structure that a baguette should have (and not just be a long dense bun). Such a dough is just too hard to shape as a baguette should be shaped, and keep its shape through the rise, let alone be slashable.
I just can't do it! I've watched all the folding tutorials and all the videos and I'm convinced there is some magic I'm just not worthy enough to access.
But one day I realized that a big fat risen dough can be cut with a bench scraper — for instance, you could cut rough rolls from a batch of risen dough and they'd bake up just fine.
So why not cut one long risen loaf lengthwise and have two — ta-da! — baguettes? Or maybe they are more like bâtards; I am on the lookout for an even longer proofing basket (called a banneton, although almost any basket works). (I do see that there are specific bannetons for baguettes. Maybe I need those.)
Here are close-ups of my normal sourdough loaves, turned out of their respective bannetons and baked as usual. (My bannetons are all of slightly different sizes because I got one as a gift and then added as I was further into sourdough baking, and it sort of makes my OCD twitchy but there it is.)
This is my longest proofing basket. I dust it and the others with rice flour. I also have a regular basket with big holes that I use — that one I line with a clean cloth napkin dusted with rice flour. The dough doesn't stick, either way, as long as I don't skimp on this step:
Using the bench scraper (I like this one, affiliate link), just quickly and confidently divide the dough in half, lengthwise:
Gently transfer the dough to parchment paper on a cookie sheet. Place the dough with the cut side down and using your hand or a pastry brush, even out the flour that's dusted on top, adding some if necessary.
Slash the tops, using a sharp razor blade (I use this one, affiliate link)
You've already pre-heated your oven to 450° and placed two pans of boiling water, one on the one rack right up at the top and and the other on the floor of the oven. The dough pan goes on the rack in the middle.
Bake for 12 minutes with the pans of water, and then 10 minutes without. But don't go by me because my oven is wonky (hence the different levels of browning on all those breads above). Get a good instant-read thermometer (I have this one — it really needs to be fully immersible — affiliate link) — seriously, it's one of my most-used tools, what with bread, yogurt, roasts, and what have you.
I'm still working on this, but I thought I'd share my progress this far! It's my best hope of making these thinner and trickier French breads!
bits & pieces
- Mark Helprin on Pride and Prejudice at Harvard. He was a few years ahead of my husband, so I'm already familiar with stories of the Bust and so on. Helprin's essay describes how the PC culture came to ascendence there. It's worth reading for the incandescent prose as well as a glimpse into every elite university in our country, for they march in ideological lockstep.
- Your guide to not getting murdered in a quaint English village (I suppose it goes for Oxford too, which is more of a city, but apparently quite dangerous).
- Most scientists can't replicate their peers' studies, apparently. (I mean, it's a study; don't know if it's replicable.)
- I share this article for the implications about the presence of others' DNA in one's body: When a DNA Test Says You’re a Younger Man, Who Lives 5,000 Miles Away “Within four months of the procedure, Mr. Long’s blood had been replaced by his donor’s blood. Swabs collected from his lip, cheek and tongue showed that these also contained his donor’s DNA, with the percentages rising and falling over the years. Of the samples collected, only his chest and head hair were unaffected. The most unexpected part was that four years after the procedure, the DNA in his semen had been entirely replaced by his donor’s.”
liturgical year
Today is the feast of St. Paul.
from the archives
- I got a sweet message from a reader who found the blog from Twitter — she has a newborn and has been reading the nursing posts “for motivation when nursing seems really hard or when I doubt it's all supposed to be like this.” So wonderful to hear! You can find (most of) the nursing posts here (in reverse order, sorry).
- Don't know how to clean your house (but it really needs it because now there are no decorations to distract you)? Here you go: The Reasonably Clean House
- Easy and good pot roast. No really. VERY easy and VERY good. With the secret to solving your “my pot roast never comes out right” issue.
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Aurora says
I was watching Paul Hollywood make ciabatta bread on The Great British Baking Show Master Class, and the way he cuts & shapes the bread is very similar to how you made the baguettes. So maybe look into videos on ciabatta?
Josie says
I’m so happy to see this bread post! I just got back into bread baking and made the oddest looking Italian bread earlier this week and thought I probably need to get one of those shaped pans or baskets. Also, I’ve been meaning to write to tell you how wonderful it is to have your archived posts to return to. I find as my kids get older and I’m looking for wisdom, suddenly I remember that Auntie Leila has written something about what is rolling around in my head and I am able to go back time and again to your blog to find the guidance I am looking for. Thank you, as always!
Leila M. Lawler says
You’re welcome! God bless!
Dixie says
Wow, I’m really enjoying the Helprin article. It makes me think of my alma mater, Middlebury. I graduated not so very long ago, in 2005. But the place is not almost unrecognizable to me, only 15 years later. I have no idea if the heart of the place — like the positives Helprin had at Harvard — is still there at all.
Dixie says
*now
Jamie C. says
Thank you for linking the fascinating article regarding the man’s DNA change. That is why vaccines made with aborted fetal cells is a problem, even beyond the moral issue of abortion. We are injecting an entire male and female DNA sequence along with an immune stimulating adjuvant and this DNA never leaves the body. There is no way to “detox” it. Autoimmune disease is by definition the immune system attacking human DNA. Also, how does this affect the brain regarding gender confusion with males being injected with female DNA and vice versa? It is well-documented that the aluminum adjuvant travels in the lymph system and then to the brain. The readers can find information on aluminum adjuvants by following Dr Chris Exley on instagram @professorchris. He is the world’s leading expert on aluminum. Through much study and prayer, I have come to the conclusion that vaccines are unclean and not what God wants injected into his creations. I already did vaccinate somewhat, but I have since stopped.
Josie says
Without any interest in diving into a conversation too much:), I will say that my six year old was in the children’s hospital for two days this past November on oxygen and with an IV full of strong antibiotics and fluids due to a very bad case of bacterial pneumonia secondary to a viral infection. Seeing him so sick and facing certain frightening possibilities, I feel as if the discussion of the benefit of vaccines changed for me after that. I respect and understand the opinions on both sides of the argument. I have many friends whom I greatly admire who do not vaccinate and I don’t think they are acting sinfully. We do vaccinate our children, all but one vaccine, and I don’t believe we are acting sinfully either. It’s a great big topic! I have read some DNA/gender confusion articles in the past, but I tend to believe that is more societal and less vaccine-induced. I haven’t read this one yet, obviously it’s not societal in this case. Only God knows! It’s good to discuss these things. Just thought it would be helpful to have a different voice included. Interestingly, Mary O. Daly of Hedgeschool.com mentions a story about a heart transplant wherein the gentleman who received the heart had a word in his heart and mind post-transplant that was never there before, which happened to be a very frequently used word by the man who had the heart originally (that is all so awkwardly explained, sorry). I actually found the story moving rather than frightening. I have yet to fully read this linked article though. I just fear I will find it frightening:)!
Leila M. Lawler says
Josie, the article is not about vaccines. I think you’ll find it interesting (that’s why I linked to it LOL). Just informative but also revealing how much we really do not know.
Victoria says
I have been reflecting on vaccines a lot recently. I have four kids, my two older ones were nearly entirely vaccinated by age 4. My oldest has a chronic autoimmune disease, my second is currently being evaluated for autism spectrum disorder. My other two are not vaccinated–and so far so good.
To repeat what Leila said, there is just a lot we don’t know and that I think researchers are pretending to know so they can cash in on our fear (fear that I struggle with too). What if vaccines are one of many factors in Western illnesses? Different people respond differently to different foods–why couldn’t people have different physiological responses to the same vaccine? And doctors already know that some people have allergic reactions to vaccines (including reactions as bad as Guillain-Barre syndrome).
Vaccines are a noble idea, but there is just a lot we still don’t know.
Last night I was reading A.W. Tozer’s retelling of Abraham being asked to sacrifice his son and I’m feeling convicted that sometimes our desire to prevent physical death in our children is a form of idolatry. What God asks of us is the protection and cultivation of their eternal souls which will never die.
Carol Kennedy says
We have often commented on the apparent large number of murders in places like Oxford and smaller British villages…at least according to BBC crime dramas! Dangerous place! 😉
Lisa says
I had a hard time making baguettes, even when my other sourdough loaves turned out great. I finally stumbled across this recipe
https://cnz.to/recipes/bread-brioche/sourdough-starter-baguettes-recipe/
and it’s been a game changer. I actually use this recipe (just with different shaping and bake times) for my standard “everyday” sourdough. It’s certainly my family’s favorite. One thing I’ve found is that I have a tendency to cheat with shaping, rise times, rest times, etc, and still have good sourdough. But if I do that with baguettes, they turn out flat. So, I follow the instructions exactly and it turns out much better.
Nicole says
Just so you know, I’ve been using your pot roast recipe a couple times a month for the past couple months! It’s been so delicious and then with the leftovers last week, I made a “minced meat pie” since my girls have been very Hobbit-obsessed recently! (It was really just two pie crusts filled with the leftover beef/gravy and some boiled carrots and potatoes thrown in, but the name made it seem more exciting and glamorous, lol.) Thanks for sharing that!
I miss making homemade bread; I just haven’t seemed to be able to swing it since my 4th (v. high maintenance) baby was born last year. But the smell and texture of freshly baked bread…mmm! One day!
Victoria says
I’m kind of a sloppy baguette maker–usually in too big a hurry to really try to make it nice. I don’t have any bannetons, but I enjoyed your solution a lot. I also hadn’t thought to roll the dough out flat and then slice and roll like a jelly roll. Might try it some time when I’m not in a hurry.
I just roll mine between my hands like a little kids using playdough to make a log, and then I go down the length of it and pull and turn it under to form a gluten cloak on the top and set it seam-side down. It’s not a very gentle or precise process and some days it turns out less lovely than others with odd bulges….like today…but we all get fed, which is the main goal here.
Alesha Schuurman says
Do you have another post posted anywhere with your sourdough recipe? Do you make your own starter? I really want to start but where and how?
Thanks,
Alesha
Leila says
I don’t have a recipe, really… I just have a process that I tweak according to what I am aiming at. Here is the post: http://likemotherlikedaughter.org/2019/09/sourdough-bread-thoughts-and-tips/
I had made my own starter but nothing I did made it as strong as it needed to be. So in the end I got some from Suki! And it’s going strong. Information about how to start is fairly available and I don’t have anything of value to add to it!
You can do it! xoxo