Confessions of a French Baker (4 page)

G
OOD BREAD
is one of the oldest pleasures on earth, so if you stick carefully to the recipes that follow you will be in the happy position of making pleasure—pleasure for yourself, for your family, and for your friends.

The products used in these recipes are all natural ingredients that have been linked for centuries to mankind's food and culture. Many of them were first used in baking generations ago, when peasants who made their own bread took baking a step beyond flour and water by adding other ingredients, among them olives, cheese, thyme, walnuts, bacon, and milk. These were grown or raised on their farms and found their way into the bread, thus adding variety and interest to what was usually a very simple daily diet.

In Gerard's recipes, he has chosen ingredients that add to the taste without overpowering the basic flavor of the bread. To approximate the white flour he uses, we had to use two flours: King Arthur Bread Flour and King Arthur All-Purpose Flour, mixed half and half. The substitution works. Not even a Frenchman could taste the difference.

As for the look of the loaf, here are two tips:

• When cutting your loaf with a razor to decorate it, never cut deeply; keep the blade flat, so that you just cut the surface of the loaf.
  

• By all means use a water spray on your bread when it is in the oven, to encourage a handsome crust. But make sure you keep the oven door closed for several minutes afterward so that the steam can't escape.
  

And here is a simple test to check that your bread is ready:

• Tap the bottom of the loaf with your knuckles. If the bread is fully baked, you should hear a hollow sound.
  

You are now ready for what Gerard, when he's feeling lyrical, refers to as “the magic of creation.” Enjoy it.

A
S REWARDING
as it is to make your own
baguettes
and
boules
, there will probably come a time when you will want to expand your repertoire, venture beyond the everyday loaf, and try your hand at some of the more popular highly seasoned breads—the
pain aux olives
, the
pain aux oignons
, the
pain a Vail.
For these, you will need the ingredients listed below.

It goes without saying that these should be the best you can find. Unlike wine, they do not improve with age, and nothing is as disappointing as bread made with oil that has long since lost its virginal youth, elderly and wizened olives, or last year's garlic. So be firm, and insist that everything you use is fresh.

For many people, the olive is merely an accessory to the aperitif, to be enjoyed with a glass of something chilled and delicious. But a baker sees olives as jewels set in bread—green and juicy, or dark, fat, and rich, with just the right hint of bitterness, they look wonderfully picturesque and appetizing dotted into a plump loaf. You will find that Gerard Auzet and other distinguished bakers are generous both with the quantity of olives used and the size of the pieces. Mean little slivers are forbidden. Chunks or thick slices are recommended. And if you want to stick to the Auzet recipe, the olives should be from Provence.

As for the oil, it must be young, cold-pressed, and extra-virgin (while an impossible condition in humans, the latter phrase is used to identify oil with an acidity of less than one percent).

This is very much a question of personal taste, or
chacun a son oignon.
Some people like the chopped onions in
their bread to be crunchy and almost raw, with a discernible bite. Others prefer their onions simmered in oil and butter, sweet, melting, and subtle. A few sessions of enjoyable experimentation—preferably in the company of your greediest friends—will tell you which suits you best.

The Egyptian laborers building the Pyramids once went on strike because their garlic ration was late in being delivered. Athenian wrestlers and Roman gladiators ate raw garlic as an aid to strength and courage. And even the most modern medical techniques have failed to discover a more effective vampire deterrent than a clove of garlic. In the hands of a skilled baker, this most potent member of the onion family can add a delicious and distinctive tang to bread. In unskilled hands, it can taste sour, overpowering, and dreadful—to be used with caution. Note: If there is a
germe
, or tiny green sprout, in the middle of the clove, it should be removed.

Included here for real enthusiasts, saffron comes from the stigmas of the crocus flower. These have to be picked by hand, and it takes seventy thousand flowers to make approximately five hundred grams or a little more than half a pound, so it is, not surprisingly, the most expensive of spices. Fortunately, a little goes a very long way. Saffron-flavored bread is ideal with bouillabaisse (which is why Gerard calls it
pain bouillabaisse)
, but if you like the taste of saffron it's also good with the most humble of fish soups, or indeed with any pilaf, paella, or risotto that requires saffron in its recipe.

ONCE YOU HAVE
mastered these variations on the basic loaf, your baking ambitions may well extend to even more exotic flavors: anchovies, walnuts, Roquefort, bacon, thyme, almonds—bread is a wonderful background for all of these different tastes and textures. As with olives, onions, and garlic, use the very best ingredients you can find. Recipes are provided here, but you may want to take the time to experiment with
quantities until you find a balance that exactly matches your own taste. And then, not forgetting to kiss the tips of your fingers, you can say as you offer it to your friends, “This is
my
bread.”

Makes about 2 pounds of dough, enough to
make 4 15-inch
baguettes

3 1/2 cups (16 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons (1/4 ounce) salt

4 1/2 teaspoons (1/2 ounce) instant yeast

1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) water (90-100°F)

1. Sift the flour and salt together into the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook. Sprinkle the yeast over the mixture and mix on medium to low speed, gradually adding the
   water, until the dough comes away from the bowl, in 5—10 minutes.
   

2. Remove the dough from the mixing bowl, and set it on the counter to rest for 10 minutes. Return it to the mixing bowl and set on the mixer so that the dough hook plunges into the middle of the dough. Mix on medium speed until the dough is soft and pliable, about 15—20 minutes, or until the dough passes the “windowpane” windowpane. (See page 45.)
   

3. Remove the dough from the mixing bowl onto the counter and gather it up in your hands in a rough ball. The dough should feel soft.
   

   

   Bring the full length of your thumbs into the center of the ball so that they meet, and stretch the dough from the center out, as if opening a book, into an oblong shape.
   

   

   Turn the dough a quarter turn and stretch it again the same way, creating a smooth ball. Transfer the dough to a large mixing bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel, and
   set aside in a draft-free place at room temperature until the dough doubles in size, about 45 minutes.
   

   

4. Gently remove the dough from the bowl and place it on a clean surface. Cut the dough into 4 pieces and shape into 4 smooth
   batards
   (you will shape them into
   baguettes
   later) by stretching out the dough from the center only once, to maintain an oblong shape. Find a surface in your kitchen free from drafts and lay a kitchen towel dusted with flour on it. Place the
   batards
   on the kitchen towel and cover with plastic wrap or with another kitchen towel, this one a little bit damp, to prevent a crust from form-
   ing on the surface. Leave the loaves to proof at room temperature until they double in size, 20—25 minutes.
   

5. Shape the loaves by lifting them off the towel and stretching them out from the ends. Use the side of your hand to create a crease down the middle of the dough. Fold the dough onto itself at the crease, pressing it firmly against the work surface to seal it. Using the palms of your hands and working from the center of the dough out, gently roll it back and forth until it stretches to 15 inches long.
   

6. Place the loaves, seam-side down, on the kitchen towel dusted with flour and cover with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel. Let the loaves rise at room temperature for the final time, until they have doubled in size, about 35—45 minutes.
   

7. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 475°F. Carefully place the loaves on a baking sheet. Brush them with water using a pastry brush. With a sharp razor blade and swift motions, make 4 or 5 diagonal slashes along the length of each
   baguette.
   To do this successfully, do not drag the
   entire edge of the blade through the dough—use just the tip.
   

8. Just before you are ready to slide the baking sheet into the oven, spray the inside of the oven with water using a spray bottle or plant mister and close the door immediately. This will create steam, which promotes a good crust. Put the bread in the oven and spray the walls of the oven two more times within the first minute of baking. Bake for 15—20 minutes or until the bread makes a hollow sound when you knock on the bottom of it with your knuckles. Transfer the bread to a rack and allow it to cool before slicing (or tearing apiece off).