• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Tasty Ever After
  • Search for Recipes
  • Most Popular Recipes
  • Subscribe
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes
  • Most Popular Recipes
  • Subscribe
  • About
×

Home » Homemade Bread and Rolls

French Baguette Recipe

10/23/2014 Updated: 09/30/2021 By Karrie Leave a Comment

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Yummly
  • Reddit
Skip to Recipe

Use this French Baguette Recipe to make crusty bread right in your own kitchen! It's a quick and easy dough recipe that can be refrigerated overnight, so fresh homemade bread is always available.

Fresh bread in a pan made from a French Baguette Recipe

There's nothing quite like a hot, crusty loaf of homemade french bread. Fresh baked bread is so comforting and satisfying, especially when it has butter on it. The crisp crust and chewy soft inside, with melted butter all over it, is one of the best things in the world!

I love making bread.  There is something very therapeutic about kneading dough and I love the act of getting all touchy-feely with it.  My technique of making dough is a little different and I hardly ever use a stand-up mixer.  Personally, I like using my hands as much as possible so I can get a feel for the dough.

And I always make two loaves too.  I mean, why not?  You're already committed to it, might as well go all the way.  That way you have options:  do I eat two loaves in one sitting or do I freeze one loaf for later use?  It's nice to have options.

IMG_3703

This is happy yeast, bubbling away.

IMG_3710

Whisk in flour to make a thick batter.

IMG_3713

Continuing mixing in flour with wooden spoon until you have a soft dough.

Mixing flour into doughin a bowl with hands.

Mix in the rest of the flour with  your hands.

Ball of bread dough in a glass bowl.

The dough after it been thoroughly mixed and ready to rise in a greased glass bowl.

Fench bread dough after it's been rising in the refrigerator overnight.

The dough ball after it's been in the refrigerator overnight.

French bread baguette pan on a wooden table. 

Here's my baguette pan.  Can you tell it's been used a few times?

Forming the bread baguette on a floured counter.

Forming the bread baguette.

Raw bread baguettes in the pan and ready to rise.

In the pan and ready to rise.

Cooked french bread baguettes fresh and hot right out of the oven.

Skip going to the bakery and make your own French Baguette Recipe at home.  Pin it for later and enjoy crusty french bread anytime you want it!

Loaves of french bread in a dual bread pan

French Baguette Recipe

Use this French Baguette Recipe to make crusty bread right in your own kitchen! It's a quick and easy dough recipe that can be refrigerated overnight, so fresh homemade bread is always available.
Print Pin Rate
Course: Bread
Cuisine: French
Prep Time: 3 hours 45 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours
Servings: 2 loaves
Calories: 859kcal
Author: Karrie | Tasty Ever After

Ingredients

  • 1 ¼ cups cool water, about 80 degrees
  • 1 package active dry yeast, about 2 ¼ teaspoons
  • 3 to 3 ½ cups bread flour or unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil, for greasing bowl
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • In a large mixing bowl whisk together water and yeast. Let stand 5 minutes or until mixture looks creamy and is bubbling.
  • Slowly whisk in flour, a half cup at a time until it’s a loose and thick batter (like pancake batter).  Sprinkle salt over the batter and stir in.
  • Take a wooden flat spoon and mix in as much flour as you can, then use hands and knead in remaining flour until dough is smooth and elastic. Shape dough into a ball.
  • Put 1 tablespoon olive oil in large bowl (I use a large glass bowl that I run under hot water first to warm the bowl. Make sure bowl is dried well before adding the olive oil and dough).
  • Put dough ball in bowl and turn once to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and a towel and let rise until double (1 ½ to 2 hours) or place in refrigerator overnight.
  • Gently push dough down in bowl and let rise again for 1 hour or 2 hours if dough has been refrigerated. Gently push dough down again and turn out into lightly floured surface. Divide dough into 2 equal pieces, cover, and let rise 10 minutes.
  • To shape, take one piece of dough and flatten with the heel of your hand into a rectangle. Bring the long edges up and pinch together to close the seam, gently stretching the loaf lengthwise as you work. Pat the dough flat again, repeating the pinching and stretching to form a long loaf. Repeat process with second dough piece.
  • Place each loaf seam side down in lightly greased baguette pan or on baking sheet. Cover with towel and let rise in warm place until double (about 1 hour).
  • Preheat oven to 450F/232C degrees. Drag a sharp serrated knife across the top of each loaf to form 3-4 diagonal slashes, about ¼ inch deep.
  • At this point you can combine 1 egg white and 2 tablesooon water, brush on top of loaves, and sprinkle with toppings, if desired.
  • Place bread in oven on middle rack. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until loaves are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped.
  • Transfer loaves to wire racks to cool completely.
  • To make a crisper crust: put water into a spray bottle and after bread is placed in oven, spray water into the oven under the bread pan to create steam. Quickly shut the oven door to trap the steam. Can repeat this process after 10 minutes.

Recipe Notes & Tips:

  • To make a crisper crust: put water into a spray bottle and after bread is placed in oven, spray water into the oven under the bread pan to create steam. Quickly shut the oven door to trap the steam. Can repeat this process after 10 minutes
  • French baguettes are best eaten fresh, but leftovers can be wrapped in foil and stored at room temperature for up to 1 day or freeze for up to 3 months
Nutrition Facts
French Baguette Recipe
Amount Per Serving
Calories 859 Calories from Fat 81
% Daily Value*
Fat 9g14%
Saturated Fat 1g5%
Sodium 1167mg49%
Potassium 234mg7%
Carbohydrates 167g56%
Fiber 6g24%
Protein 22g44%
Calcium 33mg3%
Iron 10.2mg57%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Tried this recipe? Tag me today!Mention @tastyeverafter or tag #tastyeverafter

More Homemade Bread and Rolls

  • Easy Pumpkin Bread
  • Blueberry Granola Soda Bread Recipe
  • Leek Focaccia with Feta and Toasted Pine Nuts
  • Carrot Cake Donuts {with brandy candied walnuts}

 ©  Tasty Ever After  All images and content are copyright protected, so please do not copy or claim my work as your own.  Please do not use any images or republish this recipe without prior permission.  If you want to reference this recipe, link directly back to this post.  Thank you.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Picture of food blogger Tasty Ever After

Thank you for visiting Tasty Ever After and I'm Karrie! I hope you enjoy spending some time here finding easy scratch made recipes for the home cook.

More about me →

Popular

  • Banana Cream Pie Recipe {from scratch}
  • The BEST Graham Cracker Crust
  • How to Make Homemade Whipped Cream
  • Homemade Vanilla Pudding Recipe

Let's Connect!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Footer

^ back to top

About

  • Privacy Policy & Terms of Use

Newsletter

  • Sign Up for emails and updates

Contact

  • Contact me here!

Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases from Amazon.com

Copyright © 2023 Tasty Ever After