I think my current favorite use for this recipe is for garlic bread--that's what I made it for initially when we had Michael's friend over for dinner. You can make it the day of or like a day ahead of time and it helps you make seriously delicious an brag-worthy garlic bread (seriously...look at people's faces when you tell them you made the whole thing from scratch, even the bread. They will be impressed!) Slightly crusty on the outside, nice and chewy on the inside. Gotta love a delicious and easy recipe for homemade bread, am I right??!
Quick & Easy Homemade French Bread
From Simply Scratch
Makes 1 loaf of bread.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup very warm (but not hot!) water
- 2 and 1/4 tsp. (or 1 packet) rapid rise yeast
- 3/4 tsp. kosher salt
- 2 and 1/2 cups all purpose flour + more, if needed
- olive oil
Preparation:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or just a large bowl, if you don't have one) dissolve the yeast in very warm, but not hot, water. Let the yeast bloom for about 5 minutes.
- Grease a different large bowl with olive oil.
- In a medium bowl whisk together the flour and salt.
- Stir the flour into the yeast mixture until just combined. Using a dough hook (or kneading by hand if you don't have a stand mixer) mix the dough until smooth and tacky. (You may need to add a little bit of extra flour if it gets too sticky--I had to do this a couple times, just about a tablespoon at a time. You'll want it to be tacky, not sticky.)
- Form the dough into the ball and place in the greased bowl, rolling to coat in the oil. Place a towel over the bowl and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour (I like to let it sit in an oven that is turned off.)
- Punch down the risen dough and form it into a long log. Place on a large baking sheet (either greased or lined with a silpat or silpain baking mat) and put it into a turned off, cool, oven. Then turn the oven to 375F degrees and bake for about 30 minutes, until golden and crisp on the outside. (Placing the dough into a cold oven and letting it preheat to 375F degrees while it's in there will help it to slowly rise!)
- Let cool completely and then cut and serve! Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
Sorry I didn't take any pictures of the bread when it's cut! I wasn't able to due to the whole people coming over thing. Next time I will and then I'll add some on here-do not fret!