Rustic Loaf (Bread Adventure #1)

Rustic Bread

3 1/4 cups flour

1 tsp salt

2 tsp dry yeast

1 1/2 cups warm water 

1. Mix dry ingredients together

2. Add warm water and mix until combined

3. Cover and let rest until doubled in size (2 hours) - it will be super sticky!

4. Turn out on floured surface and tuck edges under to make a round loaf & score the top

5. Preheat oven to 450* F [242* C] (I let it preheat for about 30 minutes) and put a heat safe bowl of water (about 2 inches) in the bottom of the oven

6. Dust the baking sheet with semolina flour or place dough on baking paper

7. Bake for 30 minutes (or until crust is golden brown)

8. Allow to cool on wire rack before cutting

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Baguettelust- foray into bread making

Bread is a vital part of the Tunisian diet. In the evenings you will often find people walking home with clear shopping bags full of long, crispy baguettes. Many meals can be eaten without utensils, diners favoring bread to scoop up meat, vegetables and flavorful sauce.  Bread is such an important staple that the government subsidizes the production to keep costs down.  One baguette costs 300 millim (roughly 11¢USD). 

When we travel to the United States we have two problems: 

First, we can’t find bread that is comparable in texture. The French loaf available at most grocery stores is just spongy and closer to white bread than baguette and the crust is more like a rubbery skin than a crispy crust.

Second, it’s expensive! The “hot French bread” from the bakery section goes for $1 USD. That might not seem like a lot, but when you figure that you can get 10 Tunisian baguettes for the same price it feels expensive.

SO, I have decided to take a foray into baguette land and try my hand at making bread at home.  I have made bread before but it’s closer to the fluffy bread my mom used to make in the bread maker (not a bad thing, just not what we’re going for).  I have scoured the internet for recipes and have found a few with varying ingredients and techniques and figured I’d give them a try, tweaking them as I go.

Let’s see if I can master the Tunisian baguette before we get to the United States!

*This recipe was yummy but the shape made it too dense in middle.  I might try it again but forming it in a baguette rather than round loaf.*

Check out my TikTok with the recipe.