Spinach & Sage Dressing

This little side dish here is one of my favorites. The flavors go so well together. I love the savory flavor of the sage with the onions, mushrooms, and spinach. Dressing does not need to be a holiday exclusive dish! I like to prepare this dish year round. And, as you know, dressing from a box just isn't the same.

This recipe started as the filling for my stuffed mushrooms. Then, over the years, it's morphed into its own dish which I serve either alone as a side dish or use as a stuffing. You can roll it up in a pork tenderloin or stuff it in the center of a chicken breast. I'm telling you, this is some good stuff!

Spinach and Sage Dressing
Yield: 4 side servings or enough to stuff one pork tenderloin

3 TBS butter
1 cup diced onion
1 1/2 cup diced mushroom
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 oz fresh spinach, chopped
1 TBS ground sage
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup ground Parmesan
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

Melt the butter in a saute pan. Saute the onions and mushrooms over medium-high heat until tender and lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook one minute. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the spinach, stirring to wilt. Add the sage, salt, and Parmesan, stirring to mix. Lastly, add the bread crumbs, stirring to moisten. Serve immediately as a side dish or let cool before stuffing into pork loin or chicken breasts.

Hamburger Buns

We are moved in! Well, everything is in here anyways. We still have a lot of stuff to put away... and a lot of stuff that still needs to find a home. This townhouse living is challenging! We're definitely going to have to get a storage unit. Yup, those three dish pack boxes full of mason jars will not be able to live with me this go around. So sad. Fortunately, despite still having a ways to go on being truly "moved in," my kitchen is unpacked, put away, and usable. I've been having a great time getting back into the kitchen making stuff I haven't really been able to make for the last two-plus months.

Today and tomorrow my husband gets off from work due to the storm, so we are trying to find a balance between getting things done and enjoying a little down time. I thought a little baking was in order. My husband's been hankering for cheeseburgers, but since I neglected to get buns when I was at the grocery last, I decided to making them for the first time. Wow! They were delicious and, really, quite simple to make. The dough is so easy to work with and they puff up beautifully in the oven. I highly recommend this recipe. Kudo's to the folks at King Arthur's Flour for making such a great recipe available to all!

The first step is to simply mix all the ingredients for the dough together and mix/knead until the dough comes together and is smooth and supple, about five minutes. The dough is then placed in an oiled bowl and covered to allow it to rise until it is double in volume, one to two hours. You know it's ready when you give it a gentle poke and the hole remains.

Dump the dough out and divide it into eight even pieces. This was easiest to accomplish with a kitchen scale. I weighed the total amount of dough and then divided that weight by eight. I then cut each piece until it was the appropriate size, in this case 111 grams.

Take each piece and smoosh it flat on the counter to degas it.

Then bring up the sides and pinch them together. Continue doing this, pulling the dough taunt to form a nice, smooth ball. You are pinching the dough together on the bottom of the future bun. This dough is so nice to work with; the dough pinches together easily and cleanly.

When finished, each piece should look smooth and make a nice round ball.

Place each ball on a parchment lined baking sheet. Eight will fit in a somewhat staggered fashion on an 11x17 inch baking sheet. Press each ball flat using a measuring cup or similar device. To keep the cup from sticking to the dough, lubricate it with a little bit of oil first. Press the dough flat until it is about three to four inches across.

Cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap to keep the buns from drying out. Let rise for an hour or so, until nicely puffed.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and once it is ready, remove the plastic wrap and brush the tops of the buns with egg white wash. You could brush them with butter, but I found the egg white wash produced superior results. If you want, you can toss sesame seeds on at this point. The egg wash will help them to stick to the bun as it bakes.

Bake at 375 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes or until gorgeously golden. Remove and let cool before slicing and using or freezing.

Just a moment ago, I mentioned that I found the egg white wash superior to simply brushing the bun with butter. In this picture, the butter bun is on the right while the egg wash bun is on the left. The egg wash produces a bun that is beautifully golden and shiny. Once the buns come out of the oven, I do brush them all with butter because it helps to keep the top of the bun soft and glossy. As you might imagine, these homemade buns are more dense than the store bought kind, but they have such a wonderful flavor, you'll never regret the change!

Hamburger Buns
Yield: 8 4-inch buns
Adapted from King Arthur Flour

1 cup warm water
2 TBS melted butter
1 large egg
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 TBS instant yeast
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour

Mix all ingredients together and knead until the dough comes together and is soft and smooth, about five minutes. Place in an oiled bowl and cover; let rise for about an hour, until the dough has doubled in volume.

Turn the dough out onto the counter and divide into eight even pieces. A scale is the most accurate way to accomplish this task. Taking each portion of dough in turn, press it flat against the counter to degas the dough. Then pull up the edges and pinch together in the middle to form a nice, smooth ball of dough. Place seam side down on a parchment lined 11x17 inch baking sheet. To fit all eight, the buns will need to be staggered slightly. Oil the bottom of a flat measuring cup or similar to press each dough ball flat into a 3-4 inch diameter circle. Cover the buns with plastic wrap and let rise for about an hour, until they are nicely puffed.

Once the buns are about finished rising, preheat the oven. Remove the plastic wrap and brush the top of each bun with a wash of egg white. Add sesame seeds, if desired. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until the buns are beautifully golden. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before slicing and using or freezing.

Greek Style Chicken Pitas

You know what happens in five days? We finally start moving into our new place. I can't tell you how excited I am. Two and a half months in temporary housing is more than enough! I am really starting to miss my stuff. While I miss our king sized bed (two adults and a forty pound dog is a little cramped for a queen sized), fall appropriate clothing (it's getting a bit cool to be wearing summer wear in mid-October), and comfortable furniture (there is not a single chair in this place that doesn't make my butt go numb), what I really miss the most is my kitchen.

Now, I'm not saying I can't cook without all my kitchen gear, but I am quite limited in what types of things I can make. Additionally, it will be nice not to run out of dishes after one meal. Ooooo, and to have enough pots and pans to make all of the dishes in my meal at the same time! What a concept! I've really been sticking with simple stuff here lately. I especially miss having the wherewithal to successfully experiment in the kitchen. Prepare to feast your eyes!!

But, alas... I still have a week of dinners to prepare in this little no nothing kitchen. Fortunately, simple doesn't have to mean boring. This dish, although it's really great with homemade pita bread, can be easily made with store bought in mere minutes. This dish is flavorful and filling. I love the contrast between the tang of the tzatziki, the sweetness of the onions, and the savory flavor of the browned meat.

I like to use diced chicken tenderloin for this dish, but you could use regular chicken breasts as well. Cut the chicken into bite sized pieces and then add some minced garlic, a sliced onion, oregano, lemon juice, and a tiny bit of olive oil. You'll also want to salt and pepper to taste, but I often do that as I finish the cooking. That way I can be sure I don't overdo it.

Stir all the ingredients together and then let them sit at room temperature for about thirty minutes. This will give the meat a little time to absorb all the flavors. This is a great time to put together the tzatziki. After thirty minutes, heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Drizzle a little olive oil in the pan and saute the mixture until the chicken is nicely browned and cooked through. Spoon chicken mixture into a pita pocket with tomato slices and the tzatziki. Serve immediately and enjoy!

Greek Style Chicken Pitas
Yield: 4 pita pocket "sandwiches"

1/2 pound diced chicken breast
1 medium onion, sliced
1 TBS fresh lemon juice
1 TBS extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp dried oregano, crushed
salt and pepper to taste
tomato slices
2 pita pockets, sliced in half
1 TBS oil, for sauteing

For the tzatziki:
1 cup plain Greek style yogurt
1/2 cup peeled, seeded, and minced cucumber
1 TBS lemon juice
1 tsp minced garlic
salt and pepper to taste

Mix the chicken, onion, lemon juice, oil, garlic, and oregano together. Stir to mix and let sit at room temperature for thirty minutes. Meanwhile, mix together the tzatziki ingredients. Stir until well incorporated and set aside. Slice tomatoes and pita bread. After the thirty minutes is up, heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the cooking oil and let it heat up before adding the chicken mixture. Saute until the chicken is nicely browned and cooked through. Add salt and pepper to taste. Spoon cooked mixture into pita pockets and add tomato slices and tzatziki. Serve immediately.

Angel Food Cake

 Angel food cake is one of those classic desserts that seems often to be forgotten these days. I do sometimes see it in the grocery store bakery, but I can't remember the last time anyone served it to me at a get together. I find this kind of odd considering just how delicious angel food cake is! Besides that fluffy texture and tasty flavor (in this case, just plain vanilla, but you can flavor it any way you like), this cake is great because it is almost fat free! No added oil or butter means that this cake is a bit more figure friendly than your average cake. I think some people shy away from it because it involves whipping so many egg whites and maybe that makes them nervous, but with a stand or hand mixer, it couldn't be quicker or easier.

The first step is to sift the flour and powdered sugar together and set it aside. That way it's all ready to go when you're done whipping the egg whites.

The next step is to whip the whites. This recipe takes between 10 and 12 egg whites, depending on the size of your eggs. The big question, of course, is what to do with all of those yolks...there are a few options. You can make a nice French vanilla ice cream, or a batch of pastry cream to fill some yummy cream puffs or eclairs, or - more simply - you could make some delicious pasta carbonara for dinner.

Mix together the egg whites (preferably at or close to room temperature), cream of tartar, and vanilla. Mix on medium speed until you get to the soft peak stage; this the point at which the whites are starting to be able to hold their shape, but the tip on a mound of whites will flop over.

Increase the speed now to medium-high or high. Gradually add the granulated sugar while the mixer is running.

Continue to beat the whites until they form stiff peaks. At this point, the mixture will hold its shape well, and a pointed peak of the whites will stay completely upright.

Gently fold in the flour and powdered sugar mixture to the egg whites and, once completely mixed, place in an ungreased 10 inch tube pan. This part is very important because if you put it in a greased (or even greasy) pan, the whites will not be able to hold themselves to the side of the pan and you could very well end up with a very flat cake! Smooth the top out as best you can and place into a preheated 350 degree F oven.

Bake 40-45 minutes or until the top of the cake is golden and beautiful. Remove the cake from the oven and place the hot pan upside down on a cooling rack to cool. Again, this is an important step as it helps to ensure that the cake retains its full height and fluffiness. Let the cake cool completely in the pan. Once completely cool, flip the pan right side up and use a knife to loosen the edges of the cake away from the sides of the pan. Gently remove the cake.

Slicing an angel food cake is best done with a serrated blade. The great thing about this cake is that it is delicious right out of the pan or a day or two later. If not serving immediately, store tightly wrapped in an air tight container. Serve alone or with any topping you please. Some of my favorites are a chocolate sauce (as shown above) or a fruit sauce such as strawberry or blueberry.

Lastly, the other great thing about this cake is how easy it is to freeze and serve at a later date. When I had laying hens that got ahead of me, I would often make this cake to use some of the eggs and then freeze the cake for later use. I cut the cake and individually wrap each slice in plastic wrap before placing them in a bag to keep them together in the freezer. Provided they are tightly wrapped, they should last 4-6 months in the freezer without any adverse affects.

Angel Food Cake
Yield: 8-10 servings
Adapted from the New Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook

1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup flour
1 1/2 cups egg whites, at or near room temperature (about 10-12 whites)
1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup granulated sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Sift together the powdered sugar and flour and set aside. Using a stand or hand mixer, whip together the egg whites, cream of tartar, and vanilla on medium speed until the whites reach the soft peak stage. Slowly add the granulated sugar with the mixer running, then increase the speed to medium-high/high. Continue whipping until the whites reach the stiff peak stage. Fold in the flour and powdered sugar mixer. Pour batter into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan. Smooth out the top and place in the preheated oven. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the top is nicely golden. Remove the cake from the oven and place upside down on a cooling rack to cool completely. Once cool, use a knife to cut around the edges of the pan to loosen it before removing. Use a serrated knife to slice cake into slices. Serve immediately or store in an air tight container up to 2 days before serving. This cake can also be frozen for up to 4-6 months if tightly wrapped.

Sun Dried Tomato and Feta Chicken

I am in countdown mode. In 23 days, we get our household goods delivered and start moving into our new place. I can't believe how much I miss my stand mixer... and my food processor... and all those little kitchen gadgets you don't know you depend on until you can't. It's interesting how this minimalist kitchen has impacted my cooking. In some ways, it's actually been a good thing. It forces me to be more creative, and it brings me back to basics. The other day, I finally broke down and made a loaf of bread. It has been so long since I kneaded a batch of dough from start to finish. I had forgotten how therapeutic bread kneading can be.

Last night, I was staring at a package of boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trying to figure out what to do with them. The trick, of course, is to use what you have to your best advantage. Chicken breasts can be a bit blah if you're not careful, so I wanted to be sure they had enough bold flavor. I started out with some sliced onions. About halfway through the cooking, I looked back in the refrigerator for more inspiration and saw a jar of sun dried tomatoes in oil. Then, when the breasts were cooked through, one last perusal of the fridge led me to a container of crumbled feta. The combination of flavors was very satisfying and robust. This "make it up as you go" dinner passed the test with flying colors, and I'll definitely be making it again!

Sun Dried Tomato and Feta Chicken
Yield: 4 servings

2 TBS olive oil
1 tsp butter
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup thinly sliced onions
1/2 tsp Mrs. Dash or other seasoning blend
1/4 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper
3 TBS sun dried tomatoes in olive oil
1/4 cup crumbled feta

Heat the oil and butter in a large saute pan over medium high heat until bubbly. Add the onions. Stir to coat with the oil and then cook for 2-3 minutes. Push the onions out of the way and add the chicken breasts. Spread the onions around them and let cook without disturbing until the breasts are nicely browned, about 5 minutes. Season the chicken breasts and then flip. Stir the onions. Let breasts brown again for another 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken is just cooked through. When the chicken is almost done, add the sun dried tomatoes. Using a thermometer is your best bet to not overcook the chicken.  At the last minute, add the feta and stir to mix. Serve breasts with onion, tomato, and cheese mixture over the top.

Cabbage Salad

For the longest time, I never thought I cared for eating raw cabbage. My only real experience with it had been traditional coleslaw, which I am don't care for. I have a problem with most mayonnaise based salads. So imagine my surprise when I went to a function a couple of years ago and found a German style coleslaw on the sideboard. German style coleslaw is basically sliced cabbage in a vinaigrette... there is no mayonnaise involved! Just my thing. What I found was that the cabbage is so nice and crispy and often actually quite sweet. I was sold!

This salad makes a lovely side dish and cabbage is very healthy for you! A cup of shredded, raw cabbage has only 22 calories and is chock full of dietary fiber, vitamins C and K, and a wide variety of other vitamins and minerals. While you can dress is ahead of time, I like it best freshly dressed... I like it when the cabbage is at its crispiest. 

The salad shown above was very quick to make. I shredded the cabbage myself, but you could always use the pre-cut stuff. I added some shredded carrot and some Craisins. I then dressed it with my poppy seed vinaigrette. So easy and delicious... and, oh, so beautiful! 

Not All Soy Flour is Alike

If you make many breads, especially breads from my site, you've probably seen a recipe that calls for soy flour. I use it in my raisin bread, potato wheat bread, and wheat sandwich loaf. Soy flour is used in bread recipes for a couple of main reasons: it improves the texture by helping the bread to hold moisture and it lengthens storage life. It also strengthens the dough, which can be important in breads with whole wheat in it so that you get a bit more volume. Additionally, it can contribute to crust browning.

The first time I bought soy flour, it happened to be Hodgson Mill's brand, and for years that was the brand that was always available and convenient. When I moved to Florida a couple of years ago, however, that brand was not as readily available, so I purchased a bag of Arrowhead Mill's soy flour. I was so confused when I opened the package and the flour looked so different! In the photo above, the Hodgson Mill's flour is on the left while the Arrowhead Mill's is on the right. Look at that difference in color. Not only did it look different, it smelled different! Worst of all, it tasted different. In delicately flavored breads, I could taste it, and I was not a fan! I couldn't understand why it was so different.

Then one day I finally found some Hodgson Mill's soy flour in a store again and brought it home. I got the other bag out and did a side by side comparison. The first thing I noticed was that there was a HUGE difference in calories and fat. Notice that even though the volumetric serving size is the same, the Hodgson Mill's flour (bag on right) has half the calories and zero fat compared to the Arrowhead Mill's soy flour? Hmmmm. I had to look farther.

Aha! There's the difference. The Hodgson Mill's is a defatted soy flour. Once I did a little research, I came to realize that I had just gotten lucky with my initial purchase. When I started doing a little reading on using soy flour in baked goods, I found the articles usually referred to defatted soy flour.

The moral of this whole story is that you should be aware that not all soy flour is alike and one is better for baking than the other. I was not a fan of my wheat sandwich loaf using the fat-full soy flour because I could taste it in there, which was not my intent and altered the flavor in a negative way. In most bread recipes, soy flour is used more like a dough conditioner than a flavoring, so the defatted version is definitely preferred. Now you know!

Sour Cherry Chocolate Torte

This is another recipe that's surprised me in how long it took me to share it with you. I make this recipe all the time. It's one of my main recipes for easy company desserts or take-it-with-you desserts. In fact, I make it often enough that I have occasionally worried that maybe people might be sick of seeing it. Naaaaah, you can't be sorry to see this dessert again after trying it once.

This recipe originally started as a 9" torte. I still often make it that way, but I've become entranced with how cute it turns out when baked in a mini-cheesecake pan. I have a thing for cute, individual portion desserts. I'm in therapy for it...

This dessert is fudgy like a good brownie, but with a little sophisticated twist. I love the subtle flavor boost of the almonds and I adore the moist, tart addition of the sour cherries! The chocolate in this dessert is wonderful and present, but it is not the only star of the show. I don't think I've ever had someone refuse seconds!

Sour Cherry Chocolate Torte

Yield: 1 9" torte OR 12 mini-tortes

1 lb. can red sour pitted cherries packed in water

6 oz semisweet chocolate

1/2 cup almond flour or ground almonds

1 1/2 sticks butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp almond extract

2/3 cup granulated sugar

3 eggs

2/3 cup sifted AP flour

Pre-heat the oven to 350°. Butter a 9” spring-form pan or mini-cheesecake pan and dust with fine bread crumbs. Drain cherries and spread on paper towel and let stand. Melt the chocolate in a double boiler; set aside to cool slightly.

Grind almonds to fine powder, if necessary, and set aside. Cream butter in a bowl, then add vanilla and almond extracts. Add sugar and beat well. Add eggs one at a time. On low speed, add chocolate and almonds. Add flour, stirring only to mix.

Place half of the batter in the pan. Place a single layer of cherries and then put rest of batter on top.

Bake for 50 minutes at 350°. Cake will be dry and crusty on top and toothpick will come out clean when done. Mini-cheesecake version needs to be checked sooner for doneness. Cool in pan on a rack for 15 minutes. If using springform pan, remove side and let cake stand on bottom of pan until cool. If using mini-cheesecake pan, let cool completely in pan. Serve torte right side up. Sprinkle with powdered sugar once completely cooled and serve with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, if desired.

What's this? A Cookbook!?!

This is something I first started a couple of years ago. And then I got sidetracked. The nice thing about being stuck in temporary housing for so darn long is that you finally get around to things you've been putting off forever.

Why did I ever start in the first place? I mean, really, all of my recipes are online and available to all as it is. Well, I always thought that I would be okay with taking the digital revolution into the kitchen. But you know what? I've found I'm not. I hate having to read a recipe off my computer or husband's iPad while I'm trying to cook or bake. I have to clean my hands to scroll, or the screen goes to sleep while I'm doing step 2 and have to wake the darn thing back up to go on to step 3, and, worst of all, I have to be careful not to destroy the thing with all the messiness of the kitchen.

The good news is that I like my recipes! I don't post things just for the sake of posting them. If I don't think it's really good, I don't post it. As a result, I make and refer to my recipes all the time. Unfortunately, once I realized I wasn't a fan of referring to them online while I was in the kitchen, I started printing them all out. I had quite a stack of papers going. I realized that what I really needed was to have a volume that was beautiful (I love looking at the pictures) but also had all of my favorite, go to recipes in it, ready to be pulled out on a whim.

So, I decided to make it happen. I made it using Blurb. Sadly, print on demand isn't cheap. I won't be offended if you decide it's too expensive for what it is and decide you don't need it. However, if you are like me and you want it? It's out there waiting for you. I've put a fairly extensive preview online, almost half the book (all the recipes are already online, after all). In addition to the concise version of the recipes (for quick reference, if you need a reminder of all the little tips and details, the full post for each recipe is still available online). I've included my 116 favorite recipes in a variety of categories. Every recipe includes at least one full color photograph. I know I've had the link to the preview on here for a week or so, but I thought a little explanation would not be taken amiss.

French Baguette

Here's a recipe I can't make very easily right now. This little kitchen is starting to get on my nerves. The good news/bad news is that it appears we have a place to live lined up, unfortunately, we can't move in for another two months. Well, finally knowing how long I will be in this little kitchen, I decided today to purchase a few ingredient items I had been putting off. I was hesitant to buy too many herbs and spices, for instance, since I have sooooooo many in our household shipment, but two more months with only salt, pepper, cinnamon, garlic powder, and Mrs. Dash was a little more than I could handle.

I may have to wait a few months to make this recipe, but I can clearly remember just how good it was the last time I made it. I've made many, many batches of french baguettes over the last few years. I've tried to keep notes about what I was doing each time and how it impacted the final result. I knew what I was shooting for as an end result, and each batch got me a little closer. This recipe and set of techniques gets me to that happy place. It results in a flavorful bread with a wonderfully crispy crust and a soft, slightly chewy inside.

Begin by mixing all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer; hold back about a third of the flour at this point, however. Keeping some of the flour out of the mix now allows you to start out beating the dough with a paddle attachment to help hydrate the flour and activate the gluten. Beat the dough for 2-3 minutes on medium.

Speaking of ingredients, let's talk about them in a little more detail. In France, the ingredients for a baguette are stipulated by law: flour, salt, water, and yeast. You'll notice that I have one additional ingredient. This ingredient, diastatic malt, is completely optional, but I really like using it for a couple of reasons. There are two types of malt and diastatic is the one you want for bread making (I get mine from Barry Farms). Diastatic malt contains enzymes that helps the yeast to convert the maltose in the flour into the glucose they want to eat, so it helps with gas production. Additionally, it helps the bread to develop good color in the crust as it bakes. Lastly, I think it gives an extra kick in the flavor department that is very subtle, but super tasty. Use it or not at your discretion.

Switch to the dough hook and add the rest of the flour slowly. Because the humidity can significantly alter just how much flour is required, you may need slightly more or less than the recipe calls for. What you are looking for is the dough to clean off the sides of the bowl, but to never quite clean the bottom of the bowl. The dough should be kneaded for 5-8 minutes, until the gluten is well developed. You can tell the dough is ready because, while it will never quite lose its stickiness, it will form a nice, smooth dough that is elastic and can form a decent "windowpane."

What's a windowpane, you ask? Take a small piece of dough and stretch it out with your fingers, attempting to form a thin film of dough. If it will stretch and become translucent, you're good to go; if it tears and won't form a thin sheet, give it another minute of two in the mixer. I appear to have neglected to take a picture of this technique, so here's a good site showing what it should look like.

Once the dough is well kneaded, drop it into an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature for one hour. After the hour has passed, knock the dough down, recover, and place in the refrigerator for 8-16 hours. Technically, you can skip this step but I don't advise it; it is during this step that all those complex flavors are developed.

When ready to finish making the bread, pull the bowl of dough out of the refrigerator. Lightly flour the counter and dump the dough out. Be somewhat gentle here, you don't want to completely degas the dough. Because the dough is cold, it should be fairly manageable. Gently press and stretch the dough out until it is as long/wide as you want your loaves to be. My pan makes 16-inch baguettes, so that's what I worked toward. Cut the dough into three equal parts parallel to that long side. Roll each baguette up and pinch the seams together. Place seam side down on a lightly oiled baguette pan. I really like the perforated pan King Arthur Flour puts out.

Lightly cover the baguettes with plastic wrap and let them rise until they are at least doubled. Depending on room temperature and how happy your yeast is, that can be anywhere from 1-3 hours.

At this point, you want to get your oven ready. It's the high heat and steam features of bakery ovens that produce that perfect baguette texture that is so elusive at home. I have found that a 475° F oven works pretty well. You'll just want to be sure you have a clean oven before you start! Before you preheat it though, we need to talk about the steam. I've tried so many different techniques and my favorite by far involves the use of a 6-inch terra cotta saucer.

Place the saucer on a bottom rack to preheat with the oven. When the baguettes are placed in the oven, we'll pour 2 TBS of hot water into the saucer. This hot water added to a hot saucer provides the steam we want. Steam helps to maximize how much of a last rise you get in the oven and also helps with crust development. But you only want steam to be available for the first part of the baking, so only using 2 TBS of water allows the steam to run out at about the point where we want to start using a dry heat to finish the baking.

The last step before sticking the loaves in the oven is to score them. Scoring is often a decorative touch, but it also is very functional; it helps to maximize and evenly distribute that last spring you get from the yeast when the loaves are placed in the oven. Traditionally, bakers use a lame (pronounced /lam/). This is a special, double edged razor. While I think they come in a flat bladed version, all I could find was this curved one, which caused me no end of grief. I finally gave up trying and found that a surgical scalpel works great. I got mine from Jeffer's Livestock. They are cheap, sterile when purchased, and you can change the blades out as they lose their edge.

There are a few tricks to properly scoring baguettes. The first is to make sure to dip your blade in ice water before every single cut. If you don't, your blade will drag horribly. The other key is the angle at which you cut. The idea is to form a fairly thin flap, not a deep valley, in the loaf. Hold the knife so it is sideways, not straight up and down, and basically slice sideways into the loaf about a half to three-quarters of an inch. This cut allows the loaf to expand easily and evenly for maximum spring. The last important tip is to cut fewer, long slices parallel to the loaf than more, shorter slices across the loaf. As soon as the loaf is scored and the oven is preheated to 475° F, the loaves are ready to be baked. Pour 2 TBS of hot water into the saucer and place the loaves in the oven to bake for 25-30 minutes or until they are golden and sound hollow when tapped.

Lastly, everyone knows that French bread is best the day it is baked, but this recipe makes three loaves. What do you do with the other two? While you can freeze them fully baked and simply let them come to room temperature before using, if you want to have that fresh from the oven flavor and texture on demand, then simply parbake the loaves, cool, and freeze. Parbaking means that you have baked the loaves long enough for the bread to be fully baked inside, but removing it from the oven before the crust has fully developed, about 20 minutes. Cool the loaves completely and then wrap tightly in plastic wrap. When you are ready for a fresh baked loaf, remove it from the freezer and unwrap. Place in a cold oven and set the thermostat at 375° F. Let the bread and oven heat up together and bake until the bread has developed that gorgeous golden crust.

Here comes the formula, but I need to let you know what I've got going on here. I have provided the formula in three different forms. The first is traditional imperial measurements. The second is given in grams. I have recently come to conclusion that I like mass measurements for simple bread recipes like this one. I simply place the bowl on the scale and add each ingredient, taring between each addition. The last formula given is the baker's math version. I talk about that in this post. The baker's math version allows you to easily scale the recipe to whatever amount you want.

French Baguette

Yield: 3 16" loaves, a shy 1 lb each

5 1/4 cup / 765 g / 100 bread flour
2 1/4 tsp / 7.7 g / 1 diastatic malt (optional)
1 3/4 c + 2 TBS / 444 g / 58 lukewarm water
shy 2 tsp / 15.3 g / 2 table salt
1 1/2 tsp / 6 g / 0.8 instant yeast

Mix all ingredients, less 2 cups of flour into the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat with a paddle attachment 2-3 minutes on medium speed. Switch to a dough hook and add the remaining flour. Knead on low for another 5-8 minutes, until the dough pulls away from the sides (but not completely from the bottom) and will form a nice windowpane. Dump the dough into an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for one hour. Knock the dough down, recover, and place in the refrigerator for 8-16 hours.

Lightly flour the counter and dump the cold dough onto it. Gently roll, press, or pull the dough into a rectangle as long as you want your loaves to be. Cut the dough into three even rectangles. Roll each rectangle into a loaf and pinch the seams shut. Place on a lightly oiled baguette pan, seam side down. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and let rise until at least double, 1-3 hours.

Place a 6-inch terra cotta saucer on the bottom shelf of your oven and preheat to 475° F. Carefully remove the plastic wrap and score the loaves. When the oven is ready, pour 2 TBS of hot water into the saucer and place the loaves in the oven to bake for 25-30 minutes, or until they are golden and sound hollow when tapped. (See above for instructions on parbaking and reheating loaves). Cool completely. For a loaf that will be used in less than 24 hours, store wrapped in a flour sack towel, otherwise, store in an airtight container.

TIP: To reduce the chance of breakage, be sure to let the terra cotta saucer cool completely in the oven before removing it to store for the next time you make baguettes.