Rustic Country-Style French Bread

One of my favorite bread recipes of all time is my family's “Rustic Country-Style French Bread” recipe. This one was passed down by my Grandma Florence, who was one of the best “Bakers” in NE Ohio in her time. 

She taught classes on baking and cake decorating while winning numerous awards for her wedding cakes and breads before the time of “celebrity pastry chefs”. I would suspect many a brides over her 50 year career were tickled pink when she agreed to bake and decorate their wedding cakes. My Mom followed in her steps for awhile and turned out beautiful creations as well, but Grandma Florence was the pro! This expertise in pastry shines on with the following recipe. When you master this one, I'm certain you'll feel like a champion bread baker as well. 

This, like many old school recipes, takes effort. It is based on the time tested “Sponge and Dough” technique, which alters the bread making process through taste, texture and chemistry. The taste aspect is dependent on the ingredients used and the fermenting yeast. 

I prefer to use “Fresh” yeast over “Active Dry” or “Instant” yeasts. Unfortunately, “Fresh or Cake” yeast can be hard to find. So I will include “Active Dry” in my ingredient list below. But if you can find “Fresh or Cake” yeast, by all means use it. There's a trick though. Multiply the “Active Dry” yeast amounts by 3 when using “Fresh” yeast OR divide by 3 when using recipes calling for “Fresh” yeast and all you can find is “Active Dry”.

On to ferment times. You can make the sponge and let it ferment for as little as 2 hours, but the taste of your bread in this recipe will improve greatly the longer you wait. I almost always build my sponge the day before I bake my “Rustic French Bread” and let it ferment overnight. 

The longer the ferment the greater the taste and the bigger those awesome “holes” appear in your final product. Which is the texture aspect through chemistry. Gases released by the yeast create voids which I simply love in this recipe.

The final “trick” I will share to get that super crunchy crust in “Rustic French Bread” is to have a spray water bottle handy when you first put you bread in the oven. I spray a fine mist in the oven after it reaches temperature every 3 minutes for the first 15 minutes of baking. This gives the crust that crispy crunch everybody loves. 

I'm positive this will become one of your “go-to” bread recipes .. Ready to get started?

Sponge Starter (Build it 2 to 12 hours or more ahead)

Here's what you need ..
1-cup Lukewarm Water
½-tsp Active Dry Yeast
1 ¼-cup Unbleached Bread Flour
¼-cup Whole Wheat Flour

Here's what you do ..

In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water until it becomes cloudy and no grains of yeast are visible. Stir in the remainder of the ingredients forming a thick paste. Cover the bowl with oiled plastic wrap and leave it in a warm area anywhere from 2 hours to overnight. I'd pick the overnight option, but that's just me.

The Dough 

Here's what you need ..
All of the “Sponge Starter” from above
1-cup Lukewarm Water
¾-tsp Active Dry Yeast
1-tbs Sugar
1-tbs Salt
3 ¾ to 4-cups Bread Flour

Here's what you do ..

Stir the yeast into a bowl with the lukewarm water until it becomes cloudy and no grains of yeast are visible. Deflate the “sponge” gently and stir in the yeast water mixture along with the sugar, salt and about ¾ of the flour. Knead the dough, adding more flour as necessary to make a soft pliable dough. Usually about 10 to 12 minutes.

Place the dough in a “lightly greased” bowl and cover it with “lightly greased” plastic wrap. Place a tea towel over top the bowl and let it rise until it has doubled in size. This could be anywhere from 1 to 2 hours. 

Once the dough has risen, punch it down softly. Don't knock all the air out of it. That is where those big holes develop in our “French Bread”. Here's where a choice comes in .. you could form the dough into a round ball OR Cut the dough in half and form it into two loaves. Your choice.

Regardless of which way you go, place the loaf/loaves on a parchment paper covered baking sheet that has been dusted with corn meal. Cover it lightly with a tea towel and let it rise again in a warm place. The second rise can take between an hour or two depending a lot on weather.

Once the second rise is complete, preheat your oven to 475 degrees. Next, slash the top of the loaf/loaves in any design that says “Hey I made this bread” and give it a quick dusting of flour. 

Once the oven reaches temperature, spritz water into it and place the bread in the oven. Reduce the temperature to 425 degrees all the while spritzing water for the first 15 minutes of baking time. 

After the spritz, Bake the bread for about 25 to 30 minutes or until it tests done. Thumping the loaf with the back of a spoon is a great way of testing bread. When done, you should hear a hollow thump as you bump it. My Grandma Florence taught me that trick and the water spritzing for crunchy crusts .. they both work perfect!

I sincerely hope you try this recipe. It's a favorite for me and my family and I'm certain it will become your favorite as well!

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