1. Outside France you might know the
baguette as a 'french stick'.
This gourmet food recipe is up to
a meter long but only about four -
five centimeters in diameter), This
is a staple food, and the baguette is
a veritable symbol of France.
Baguettes are perfect for
sandwiches - cut a baguette in half,
then slice each half along the
middle, and are also eaten for
breakfast (usually with jam or
chocolate spread). If you dunk your
chocolate-spread covered slice of baguette in your bowl of hot chocolate, you will
be close to the French experience!
A loaf the same length as a baguette but thicker (about 8-10 centimetres
diameter) is known as a 'pain' and a thin version of the baguette is known as a
'ficelle'. It is 'pain' that is more usually served in restaurants, or one of the larger
types of loaf available. Even within France there is a very big difference between a
traditional baguette and a 'supermarket' baguette.
Try if at all possible to track down a local baker that makes the former. It is hard
to describe the difference visually, but the traditional loaf will smell much more
strongly of bread, the crust will tend to be darker, the interior is cream colour
rather than white and the interior texture is much less consistent. The former is
infinitely more pleasurable than the latter!

2. I have been successfully baking different types of breads on and off, but I will
describe here how I make French baguettes which are a favorite of mine and
millions of others around the world!
For best results you should first equip yourself with a powerful stand mixer for
mixing and kneading the dough, a balance to weigh the exact quantities called by
the recipe, a wooden board to work on unless you already have a wooden
counter, a piece of cloth (about 15 X 15 inches) to help the dough rise, and a
baking sheet (about 15 X 15 inches).
Ingredients
The following ingredients are enough to make about 2 pounds of dough which
can produce four baguettes, half a pound each.
 1 1/4 lbs (20 ounces) of flour (see Note).
 3/4 lb (12 ounces) of water (water quantity should be about 60% of the
flour weight).
 1 table spoon of yeast.
 half a table spoon of salt.
Note: The best French baguettes are made using Type 55 flour which is hard to
get in the US. The regular bread flour you get at the supermarket is too strong for
French baguettes. If you cannot find Type 55 flour, try mixing some all-purpose
flour into bread flour (1 part of all-purpose flour for 3 parts of bread flour). Use
always unbleached bread flour, it has the gluten to make a firm crispy crust for
baguette.

3. Method of Preparation
Step 1. Mixing and kneading
Add the flour and the water into the bowl of the stand mixer and turn on the
machine to start the hook mixing and kneading the dough. As the dough starts
taking the shape of a ball, add the salt and let it run for another 5 minutes until a
nice supple ball is obtained.
Two important points to observe in this step: First, do not use cold water. Warm
water or water at room temperature is best. Second, add just the right amount of
water necessary to the flour, no more, no less. In general, the amount of water
required is 60% of the weight of the flour, but this may vary a little depending on
the quality of the flour and the ability of the flour to absorb water. So be careful
not to add too much water. It is better to start with a bit less water than what the
recipe specifies, and add a few drops more later if the dough is not supple enough
(note that if the dough gets too soft because of too much water, you cannot
correct it by adding more flour later as it then becomes difficult to work with).
Step 2. Letting the dough rise a first time
Cover the bowl with the piece of cloth, and place it away from drafts. Let the
dough rise until the volume is doubled.
Step 3. Dividing the dough into balls
Place the dough on the floured board and start kneading by hand to get rid of any
air that might be trapped in. Cut the dough into four smaller balls. Try to make
perfectly round balls and cover them with a light layer of flour. For even cooking
of all the baguettes, it is good to weigh the balls so that they are of equal weight.
The recipe should make 4 balls, about half a pound (or 250 gram) each. This will
make four baguettes.
Let the bread balls stand for about 15 minutes on the floured board, covered with
the cloth.

4. Step 4. Shaping the balls into baguettes
Take each ball and press it using your fist and wrist to stretch, and then fold the
elongated dough three times. Do this several times and finish by rolling the
resulting dough into the shape of a stick or baguette.
Step 5. Letting the dough rise a second time
Spread out the piece of cloth on the counter, cover it with a light layer of flour,
and shape it into four parallel tube like trenches. Place each stick of dough into
one of these trenches. Keep them there until the baguettes double up in volume.
Step 6. Baking
Preheat the oven to 450 °F (230 °C). Place the baking sheet in the middle of the
oven (halfway from the top or bottom). Make four diagonal (oblique) incisions on
each baguette with a sharp knife, sprinkle them with flour, and place them on the
baking sheet. Place inside the oven a noncombustible bowl containing half a cup
of water (on the bottom). This will help the baguettes get crusty and airy giving
them a texture found in bakery baguettes. Bake the baguettes for about 25
minutes or until they are golden brown. Take them out of the oven and let them
cool before serving.
Bon appétit!
The author lives in Montreal. He worked for many years as a professional
engineer for a major telecommunication company. He has written and published
on various platforms many articles on technology and gadgets, healthy living and
gourmet cooking.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7526186