French Bread

I used to think having the best pasta dinner meant a run to the store for crusty French bread - but my daughter Bethany changed that when she discovered how easy it is to make your own. There is very little prep time but long rising time, so you need to pick a day when you are working at home and make enough to freeze for future use. If you can't find long bags just tear it in half and freeze two halves in a regular freezer bag. You can reheat it in a toaster oven or regular oven (375 or 400 degrees) for about 8 minutes after thawing and it will be crusty and delicious. This recipe is based on one from Betty Crocker and makes 4 good-sized loaves.

2 Tbsp yeast
2 1/2 cups hot tap water
2 Tb sugar
2 tsp salt
6-7 cups all-purpose flour (if you want to use whole wheat, more than 1/3 will make it lose its airy, light character)
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Dissolve yeast in water in large mixing bowl. With mixer on slow, add in sugar, salt, 4 cups of flour and oil. If its too dry to mix add more water. Beat until smooth.
Stir in enough flour to make it easy to handle then knead on lightly floured surface about 5 minutes.

(OR for super fast food processor method, cut recipe in half and after dissolving yeast by processing yeast and water on and off for a few seconds, add all the rest and process  for about 30 seconds til a ball forms.  That's it!  except it won't come out as light or as big, in my experience.)

Place dough in a greased bowl, cover and let rise 2 hours  (can cut to 1 1/2 if you must).

Divide dough in fourths (halves if food processor version) and shape into balls. Grease (spray) two large cookie sheets and sprinkle with cornmeal. Roll each ball of dough into a rectangle no longer than your pan and roll up tightly and seal, turning ends under a little if needed or rolling them a bit to taper. Place two on each sheet (seam down). Slash with sharp knife about every 2" and brush with water. Let rise another full hour (- in cold weather or a hurry, put in a slightly warmed oven to speed up)

Bake at 375, one pan at a time, for 25-30 minutes. You can brush with egg white and sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds before baking if you want to be classy. This freezes beautifully and is a great accompaniment for all sorts of soups or pasta dishes.