Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Pain de Paris

yes, I had to get all fancy and make a bread with a fancy Frenchified name. And, of course, that meant I had to use the fancy Frenchified name for a title. Sorry about that!

I found the recipe in Beth Hensperger's Bread Machine Bible. Of course, I never finish my bread in the machine, and I often just use my mixer to process it, especially if I'm making a large batch. But, as I've said before, the bread machine is a very fine mixer!

PAIN DE PARIS


Pate Fermente Starter

1/2 cup warm water (about 95F - the temperature of my fingers)
1-1/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tsp yeast.


Mix the ingredients in the bread machine or a mixing bowl, and let sit at room temperature for 3 to 12 hours. Punch down every 4 hours if it's sitting long. (Or, you can mix it and put it in the fridge overnight, taking it out to come to room temp an hour before you plan to use it.) Makes enough for 2 batches of bread.

Bread Dough

1-1/3 cup warm water
3-1/4 cups flour
1-1/2 tsp sea salt
3 tsp gluten
2 tsp or 4 tsp (for fast rising) yeast
3/4 cup starter (half the batch)


Dissolve the yeast in the water, and stir in the rest of the ingredients. To measure the starter, rinse a dry measuring cup with cold water, shake it off, and scoop out the starter. It will be a low 3/4 cup, otherwise, your second batch won't get the proper amount. Mix according to my bread making directions (link over there---->), let it rise for 15 minutes, form into loaves, and bake for 17 to 20 minutes at 375F. Note that this bread doesn't brown up much.
I made this on two separate nights. The crust was very crunchy, and Thor espe
cially loved it. It was good, but nothing very special. The verdict? I probably won't make this often, because the starter is a pain. I had been hoping for a weak sourdough flavor, especially in the second batch, but it didn't happen. My boys did enjoy it as a grinder, but no more so than my usual French bread. Ah, well, we must keep life interesting around here, right?

12 comments:

The Blonde Duck said...

Can you hear that? That's the sounds of wuffling and drooling in envy in the Pond!

gMarie said...

Stop it! I want fresh bread - I don't even care if it wasn't all that good. I'm going to start making bread - as soon as I buy JB a kitchenaid for the holidays? g

Tobi said...

I want fresh bread too - however, I'm going to have to go with a bread machine. I just can't stand touching gooey, stringy stuff. When I make my homemade pasta I get so annoyed with it. Your bread looks great!

pam said...

I don't think I've tried this one. My favorite from that book is one that uses a poolish that you leave in the machine over night and then make your dough.

Pam said...

It's a bummer that the starter is a pain because it looks really good. I am sure it made terrific grinders!

Anonymous said...

I've always found starters a pain to use. Have you ever heard of Dutch Crunch bread??

monica said...

I think it looks great! Could use a slice this very moment - with some butter and honey ... Crunchy crust sounds delicious !

SissySees said...

Yum. It LOOKS good...

tavolini said...

That bread does look good!! I've been contemplating getting a starter going again for sourdough--just haven't taken the steps to do so.

(I've made a faux sourdough with vinegar with decent results and no starter fuss)

Barbara B. Solbrig said...

Did it not have enough of the sourdough flavor? Have you ever heard of the book Artisan Bread In Five Minutes a Day? I checked it out of the library several times before I finally broke down and bought a copy. It is pretty no fuss, gives a great flavor after the dough has been in the fridge for a couple of days (each batch of dough makes about four loaves, and keeps for about two weeks). Right now I have a batch of Rosemary olive oil dough in the fridge, but I also keep making my regular multi-grain a couple of times a week as well.
http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/

grace said...

i can tell how crunchy that crust is--i like it. although without a sourdough twang, i'm with you--not worth the labor!

chow and chatter said...

oh wow great bread looks just like Paris I agree