Pain Façon Beaucaire – Making french bread with only 4 basic ingredients

Posted: August 3rd, 2011 | Author: | Filed under: Recipe - Baking | Tags: , , , , | 43 Comments »

richard bertinet handmade loaf white bread flour instant dry dried yeast compressed fresh homemade french soft large holes

Carrying on from my previous post, my fascination with homemade bread continues. I am currently in my second week of of nurturing a sourdough starter and it is bubbling away beautifully. I am too impatient to wait to the third week to make bread again so I pulled out this recipe from Richard Bertinet’s book, Dough. This is a fabulous book for novice bread makers like myself. The book concentrates on technique and timing. There are some great informative step-by-step pictures and includes an in-depth 30 minute DVD. The book uses fresh yeast, I was unlucky on my last visit to the local deli, they had run out of fresh yeast and were not getting a delivery until the following week. With some advice from a friend on twitter I substituted it with instant dried yeast.

richard bertinet handmade loaf white bread flour instant dry dried yeast compressed fresh homemade french soft large holes

The result was glorious. This gorgeous bread was made with only 4 ingredients. It created a wonderfully chewy, soft, light as air crumb and the crust is thin and delicate, reminiscent of ciabatta. The whole process didn’t take more than 2 hours. All of the hard work was in the first 30 minutes and the rest of the time the dough was rising in my microwave.

The unusual thing about this bread is its shape. The slit in the middle is deliberate and makes for a very sexy roll of bread.

richard bertinet handmade loaf white bread flour instant dry dried yeast compressed fresh homemade french soft large holes

Pain Façon BeaucaireRecipe adapted from Dough

Ingredient
500g unbleached bread flour
350ml (350g) water at room temperature
2 teaspoons (5g) instant dried yeast
2 teaspoons (10g) fine sea salt

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and the yeast. Add the salt and water. With a wooden spoon combine ingredients until it just comes together. Scrape the mixture onto a lightly floured board and knead the dough until the gluten is fully developed (approx 20 minutes – try not to add more flour). Place the dough into a lightly oiled mixing bowl and allow to rise for an hour in a warm, draft-free place.

Preheat the oven to 230°C (450°F).

When the dough has risen to double its size gently push it out to a 6″x12″ rectangle. Brush the top of the dough with some water and dust with some flour. Fold the dough over to make 6″x5″ rectangle leaving 2 inches. Brush the 2 inches with water and fold it back over the dough and seal. Layout a clean tea towl and dust it generously with flour. Lay the dough – seam side down – on the tea towel. Loosely wrap the dough with the tea towel and leave to rise for 30 mintues.

Unwrap the dough and with a sharp knife divide the dough into approx 6 pieces. Lay the pieces back onto the tea towel, wrap it back up and allow to rise again for another 30 minutes.

Bake the bread for 12-15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

richard bertinet handmade loaf white bread flour instant dry dried yeast compressed fresh homemade french soft large holes

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43 Comments on “Pain Façon Beaucaire – Making french bread with only 4 basic ingredients”

  1. 1 Peachie said at 8:09 pm on August 3rd, 2011:

    gosh! that’s one beautiful loaf of bread and looks quite easy to bake! Lovely photos too!! :)

  2. 2 Richard Elliot said at 8:16 pm on August 3rd, 2011:

    They look like wonderful rustic loaves. Check out the open texture in the bread!

    I’m glad that the dried yeast worked out and I didn’t get my quantities wrong!

  3. 3 Sylvie @ Gourmande in the Kitchen said at 8:24 pm on August 3rd, 2011:

    Beautiful loaves and such a nice airy crumb!

  4. 4 fanny said at 8:42 pm on August 3rd, 2011:

    I love to make bread too. it’s such a magical thing to me.

    this one looks particularly great. reminds me of the michette of my childhood in France. xx

  5. 5 Dwiana said at 10:45 pm on August 3rd, 2011:

    I must say your bread look great, I like the color on your click.

  6. 6 Heidi @ Food Doodles said at 3:42 am on August 4th, 2011:

    Oh my goodness, that is an incredibly beautiful bread! I love the flour over it and how wrinkly it looks. It has so much character :D And the crumb looks fantastic. I’m so impressed. I can’t wait to see more bread from you!!

  7. 7 Sneh | Cook Republic said at 7:15 am on August 4th, 2011:

    Beautiful bubbles! Love the texture, very very nice!

  8. 8 Kari @ bite-sized thoughs said at 10:27 am on August 4th, 2011:

    That first picture is amazing. And you almost make the process sound easy! Great results :)

  9. 9 betty said at 12:05 pm on August 4th, 2011:

    beautiful looking bread Amy i like your bread posts, they are inspiring!

  10. 10 rebecca said at 1:47 pm on August 4th, 2011:

    wow what an amazing loaf of bread your making me hungry

  11. 11 Nami | Just One Cookbook said at 2:08 pm on August 4th, 2011:

    Amy, you are amazing!!! You “just” started making bread, right? I told you… you are so talented! I wish I live near you so you can teach me step-by-step. I really really really want to learn how to make bread considering how much I LOVE good bread. The holes (how do you call it?) in the bread is perfect amount. GREAT JOB!!

  12. 12 TasteHongKong said at 2:42 pm on August 4th, 2011:

    Yes, they look sexy! Are you sure you are a novice bread maker : )!

  13. 13 Kulsum at JourneyKitchen said at 11:41 pm on August 4th, 2011:

    OH MY GOD. That loaf looks absolutely perfect. So airy. I’m bookmarking this and will be making it pretty soon. Thanks for sharing.

  14. 14 Heaevnly Housewife said at 12:05 am on August 5th, 2011:

    I went to Bertinet’s bread class in Bath and it was so inspiring. He is fantastic, and his breads are amazing. You’ve done a beautiful job with this, I think he’d be proud!
    *kisses* HH

  15. 15 Trisha said at 6:09 am on August 5th, 2011:

    You are so great with breads. These look utterly rustic and fantastic!!!

  16. 16 Lisa H. said at 11:35 am on August 5th, 2011:

    these babes looks amazing… indeed..very sexy too ;P

  17. 17 yummychunklet said at 11:52 am on August 5th, 2011:

    This looks fantastic! I’m definitely trying this recipe this weekend.

  18. 18 Nancy said at 12:47 pm on August 5th, 2011:

    Homemade bread, still warm out of the oven, is one of the best things in the world! Thank you for sharing this great book and recipe. The bread looks so good.

  19. 19 Kelsey said at 12:48 pm on August 5th, 2011:

    This bread looks great! I love the fact that it only takes about 2 hours to make!!

  20. 20 Tamara said at 12:49 pm on August 5th, 2011:

    nothing like a good home made bread. Great recipe! The bread looks perfect

  21. 21 cityhippyfarmgirl said at 2:08 pm on August 5th, 2011:

    Look at those gorgeous loaves. Well done!
    Tiny Tea Room Bakery?

  22. 22 Sanjeeta kk said at 3:30 pm on August 5th, 2011:

    Wow..this is what I always love to look out for…a bake which is easy and have few ingredients yet looks delightful. And this loaf has all of them. Lovely!

  23. 23 grace said at 5:54 pm on August 5th, 2011:

    french bread is wonderful and SO adaptable. i love the crusty outside and fluffy innards–it’s hard to beat!

  24. 24 apronless said at 1:32 am on August 6th, 2011:

    hooBOY that looks gorgeous. I’m going to have to try this.

  25. 25 mycookinghut said at 4:32 am on August 6th, 2011:

    Lovely looking bread!

  26. 26 peachkins said at 10:32 am on August 6th, 2011:

    Oh gosh , I hope I get the courage to try baking bread…

  27. 27 Joanne said at 2:22 am on August 8th, 2011:

    That looks super ciabatta-esque to me! Love those big holes.

  28. 28 Vivian - vxdollface said at 5:14 pm on August 9th, 2011:

    I have a fascination with baking my own bread too :) but I have never thought of leaving it to rise in the microwave!

  29. 29 Juliana said at 9:52 am on August 11th, 2011:

    Wow, your bread looks fabulous, love the texture of it…and rising in the microwave? I have to try this one :-)
    Hope you are having a great week!

  30. 30 Karen said at 11:17 pm on August 11th, 2011:

    Beautiful loaves! Just like they make them in France.

  31. 31 Kankana said at 9:54 am on August 12th, 2011:

    that is the best homemade bread I have ever seen. Those pockets are so perfectly created. just beautiful and well done!

  32. 32 Von said at 10:09 pm on August 12th, 2011:

    I love the shape of the bread- I’ll have to agree- it’s quite sexy! ;) The texture of the bread itself looks really good! It’s been quite a while since I made bread like this…..
    Btw, those beakers are so cool! I wish I had some for my kitchen!

  33. 33 apronless said at 3:28 am on August 14th, 2011:

    Well, i made this bread and it’s wonderful. I kneaded it in my KitchenAid for 5 minutes on medium (4) instead of by hand and it turned out perfectly. I’m making again RIGHT THIS MOMENT. Thanks for sharing the recipe!

  34. 34 Julie said at 9:10 am on August 16th, 2011:

    that bread looks amazing! Wish i could have a taste :)

  35. 35 Stefanie said at 4:04 am on August 17th, 2011:

    Your pain Facon Beaucaire looks great! The Bertinet Book is a great book, not only for beginners. Easy recipes, great pictures, I like it very much.
    Letting the dough rise in the microwave is a favorite trick of mine, too. Especially when I need a warm place for the sourdough to rise overnight, then I turn the light on and let the dough open a jar. Then the lightbulb in the microwave heats it to perfect 28°C.

  36. 36 Jenny said at 11:53 am on August 20th, 2011:

    You make bread-baking seem so easy and effortlessly! :D

  37. 37 veggie mama said at 9:57 pm on August 22nd, 2011:

    I drool every time I read this post! I should really get my act together and make them. So easy, so delicious!

  38. 38 chopinandmysaucepan said at 11:02 pm on August 28th, 2011:

    To me, making your own bread is hard enough, let alone doing it with 4 ingredients and it turns out so beautiful!

  39. 39 Stevie said at 9:21 am on September 1st, 2011:

    I am really impressed with your bread. Gorgeous! It looks very tasty and once you pointed it out, the shape was sexy.

  40. 40 Cherine said at 4:12 am on September 19th, 2011:

    The bread looks AMAZING!!!

  41. 41 mycookinghut said at 7:05 am on October 1st, 2011:

    The french bread looks really good!

  42. 42 Dolly said at 7:11 pm on October 3rd, 2011:

    gosh that looks even better than the shops!!

    kudos to u!

  43. 43 grace said at 4:14 am on January 12th, 2012:

    what perfect, crusty loaves you’ve made! this bread is precisely what i like to use to sop up meat juices and soup broth. :)

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