Fougasse with Whole Wheat
When Indalita went back to work a few years ago, I started cooking more regularly. Often when she had something in the late afternoon I would come home early to meet the children. I probably should have done more work, but usually I started working on supper for the evening. If I had enough time, I would try to make fresh bread.
Bread making is one of my favorite activities. I can release an enormous amount of stress while kneading (or beating as it often becomes) the dough. When the bread comes out of the oven golden and hot, I really feel that perhaps I have done something useful.
This recipe is adapted from a book of low-calorie French country cooking that I worked through during those days when Indalita was working for other folks. Many of these recipes are outstanding, but this is the one I used the most. I almost always mixed the dough by hand, but it also works to use a machine to knead the dough for those of you who prefer.
This is also a very forgiving recipe. I can have lots of “help” from small folks and still create a great product.
Yield: one large loaf
Ingredients:
2.5 tsp active dry yeast (one envelope)
1.5 cup lukewarm water (remember how to decide a baby bottle is the right temperature?)
2 tbs honey, molasses or table sugar (optional, see below)
1 tbs olive oil
2 tsp salt (not an optional ingredient!)
2 cup whole wheat flour (about ½ lb)
2-3 cup bread flour (all purpose flour will work, it will take a little more, and the dough will be a little sticky)
Instructions:
Prepare a bowl for the dough to rise in. Take about 1 tbs of olive oil and wipe the inside of a heat stable bowl (we use a metal bowl for the KitchenAide mixer) with a thin film of oil. Set bowl aside.
Dissolve the yeast in the warm water in a large (4-6 qt) mixing bowl. If you are a bit short on time, or want a more “fluffy” bread, add the honey at this stage. Allow the yeast and water to sit at room temperature for about 5-10 minutes. Add the oil and the salt. Mix well to dissolve the salt.
Add the whole wheat flour and about half of the bread flour. Mix together with a sturdy spoon. As soon as the dough will hold together in a ball, begin to mix by hand (I always turn the dough out onto Buddy’s maplewood chop block, but since we have the only one in existence, you will just have to make do.) Knead and add the rest of the flour in small portions over the next 10 minutes. The final product should be soft, just slightly sticky (like the back of a PostIt note.) Shape the dough into a ball.
Put the dough into the oiled bowl and turn over a few times until the entire surface is coated with a thin film of oil. Cover the bowl loosely with a piece of Saran wrap and set in a warm place to rise. (I always heat the oven to the lowest temperature I can set (170 F), put the dough in and turn it off. Maybe someday Santa will bring me a gas stove?)
Allow the dough to rise for about 1 hour (more is not a problem, I have even let this rise 24 hours in the refrigerator for a very soft, yeasty bread - great with honey butter!). Punch the dough down - I usually knead it again for about 1 minute. Put back in the warm place and let rise again for about 1 hour.
I usually use a bread stone to cook bread, so at this rising I put the stone in the oven, and form the loaf shape on a wooden paddle so I can put it in the hot oven. If you do not have a stone, place the dough on cookie sheet lightly covered with cornmeal (or even better Durham wheat flour - the stuff you bought to make pasta last month) and let rise.
When you are ready to bake the bread (about 45 minutes to 1 hour before you plan to serve the meal) preheat the oven to 450 F. It is really great if you have a spray bottle of water available now - squirt the oven with three or four squirts every 5-10 minutes while it is preheating, and every 5 minutes after you put the bread in.
Bake for 35-45 minutes. In traditional bread making, you cook bread until “it sounds hollow when thumped.” I more often use crust color as a judge.
You can brush the crust with egg in the last 10 minutes if you want a dark, glossy loaf. Try gently pressing sesame seeds into the surface just before you put it in the oven. If you are really adventurous you can add a cup of chopped black olives or walnuts or a half a cup of finely chopped fresh garlic after the first rising. I sometimes add three tablespoons of dried dill weed, or a half a cup of finely chopped fresh tarragon to the dough at the first mixing if we are having fish.