Julia Child's Baguette
By Claudia on Feb 29, 2008 | In Brot & Brötchen, In English, Hefeteig
Task completed! I finished the february challenge of the Daring Bakers just in time! I have to admit that I wasn't too happy with the recipe: Julia Child's recipe for french baguette is a straight dough. That means there is no preferment such as biga, poolish or "pâte fermentée". There wasn't even barley malt to feed the yeast. The next thing: The hydration was a bit too high - I had to add flour because the dough was too sticky.
The taste of my baguette was not bad, but I've baked so many different french bread recipes and this special recipe is among the blandest. The crust was ok but neither as crackling as e.g. Peter Reinhard's french bread nor as crisp as Dan Leaders Parisian Daily Bread. I think bread baking has evolved since Julia Child came up with her book "Mastering the art of french cooking Vol. 2". It might have been a great recipe back in the early seventies when the book was published. But it was far too much time spent with this recipe compared to the result. Knowing what I know about baguette baking, I wouldn't bake it again.
This month's recipe was chosen by Breadchick - check it out! You'll find recipe and instructions over there.
11 comments
I have to try other french bread recipies to compare. I guess Julia came up with this in response to what a cook could do in their home kitchen at the time. Now thanks to the likes of her and others,we have become more educated about other techniques.
Na, da sind wir ja einer Meinung.... Daf?r, dass kein Vorteig gemacht wurde, war der Geschmack ok, mehr aber auch nicht!
Your baguette looks wonderful! Great job!
Cheers,
Rosa
Your bread really looks fabulous. Congratulations on your making the challenge just in time!
I haven't tried other French bread recipes, but it would be kind of fun to bake and compare. Thanks for your insight, your bread looks great!
This was actually my first attempt at a baguette, and I was quite pleased with the results. I liked that it was so simple and straightforward in terms of ingredients. Your bread still looks great, despite your reservations about it :)
Interesting. I never thought about the recipe during her time vs today. Thanks for food for thought. Your bread looks lovely. Great job!
-Clara
Sorry you didn't like the classic recipe but thanks for baking with Sara and I
I'm with you about the bland factor. We added whole wheat, because the idea of doing it with white flour was just horrifying ... but we usually add so much to our bread that it was just plain boring. We did send a loaf back to California with our friend, though, so we'll see what the Californians say. :)
Your bread looks beautiful even if you didn't enjoy the process quite as much. I really liked the taste of mine, but it looked horrible. You did a great job!
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