Mademoiselle Baguette

I haven't been able to make bread in quite some time because it has been so hot!  No one wants to turn up the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit for an hour when it is over ninety degrees outside.  (False: I do because I'll stop at nothing to get my baking-fix...but for the comfort of the others in the house and to spare myself the protests, I resist.)  Finally, it cooled down, and I went right to work.  First I'd need a new  To the library!  I had previously made bagels following a recipe by Peter Reinhart, and after some research, it was clear to me that he was definitely an impressive authority on bread.  The books I found of his at the library were amazing - so many pictures and lots of detailed instructions.   I decided to attempt making baguettes following the recipe for Pain de Campagne (similar to the classic French bread recipe but with a little whole wheat flour for more flavor and rustic-ness).

So the recipe is too long to type here, but I'm putting up lots of pictures of the whole process...and hey, a picture is worth a thousand words, right?

Day 1.  The pre-ferment.

Plop.

After 8 minutes of kneading.  Bam - the day's workout done.  Into the fridge for the night.

Day 2.  The pre-ferment out of the fridge.

Additional ingredients for the dough.

Everybody in.

Note: I had to add the bowl shield...if only I had thought of this before I got covered in a poooof of flour and yeast.

Shagg-ay.

More kneading.  

Phew!  Cute little roundy.

Time to RISE for 2 hours.

It rose to double its size many three whole times...each time I had to de-gas it lest the yeast be over-gassed!

All ready for shaping.

First, divided into four.

Second, batard shape.

Finally, full baguette shape.

Things got so hectic around baking time (yes, it's very stressful) that I forgot to take a pre-bake picture.  The top two I cut into epi form.  The bottom two I just slashed as regular baguettes.  The baking process includes a steam pan and misting the inside of the oven three times in the first two minute of baking.

Golden brown and super crusty!

Epi!

Cool spikes. 

Baguette!  (C - doesn't this look like the 20 year old mini baguette that's in the doll house?)

Super crusty crust and soft, light inside!

My overnight bread keeper contraption.

Photo shoot in the sun the next day.

Don't these slices look like hearts?  I was so delighted to see this!

Mmm still so crusty and delicious the next day!

With jam, almond butter, avocado, banana (not all at once), this bread is fabulous.  The overnight pre-ferment really helps it to develop a rich taste and the steaming in the oven creates the most fabulous crust.

I need to work on my bread shaping a bit...I guess I'll just have to get back to work and make another batch!  Too bad we're in another heat wave...