This bread is fantastic and a must try! This will definitely be a bread recipe that you make make
over and over for your family. Recipe makes two baguettes or rounds, but also makes great pizza dough.
Check out Linda's Bread Making Hints:
Secrets to using the bread machine,
About yeast in bread making,
Sourdough Starter, and
Quick Breads.
More great
Bread Recipes,
Sourdough Bread Recipes and
Quick Bread Recipe for all your bread making.
Semolina and Ale Bread
Recipe Type:
Yeast Bread,
Ale/Beer
Yields: 2 baguettes or rounds
Cook time: 30 minutes
Ingredients:
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F.)
3/4 cup ale or beer, room temperature
1 tablespoon
olive oil
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup prepared pesto*
1 cup semolina flour**
3 1/4 cups bread flour or unbleached all-purpose
flour
3 teaspoons instant yeast (I use
SAF Instant Active Dry Yeast)
2 teaspoons coarse sea or kosher
salt
Freshly-ground black pepper
Cornmeal (optional for dusting pan)
* Learn how to make homemade
Basil Pesto.
** Semolina flour is a yellow granular flour made from durum wheat. It is used primarily for making pastry and only occasionally for bread.
Preparation:
Place all ingredients except cornmeal, coarse salt, and pepper in bread pan of your bread machine. Select dough setting and press start.
NOTE: Depending on how much oil is in the pesto, you might need to add additional flour. Check the dough (don't be afraid to open the lid).
It should form a nice elastic ball. If you think the dough is too moist, add additional flour (a tablespoon at a time). The same is true if the dough is looking dry
and gnarly. Add warm water (a tablespoon at a time).
When dough cycle has finished, remove dough from pan and turn out onto a lightly oiled surface. (I use a nonstick cooking spray).
Form dough into an oval, cover with a cotton towel and let rest for 10 minutes.
After resting, turn dough bottom side up and press to flatten. For baguettes (long, slender) or boules (round), divide the dough into 2 pieces and shape. For baguettes,
fold dough into an envelope by folding the top 1/3 of the way to the bottom. Then fold the bottom a 1/3 of the way over the top.
Then press dough with the palm of your hand to make an indentation down the center of the dough and fold the top completely to the bottom, sealing the seam with the palm of your hand.
Place on a baking pan dusted with cornmeal or covered with a silpad. Lightly spray the top of the dough with vegetable spray. Cover and place in a warm spot to
rise until the dough is doubled in bulk, approximately 30 to 50 minutes (depending on how warm your room is).
Oven Rising: Sometimes I use my oven for the rising. Turn the oven
on for a minute or so, then turn it off again. This will warm the oven and
make it a great environment for rising bread. If you can't comfortably press
your hand against the inside of the oven door, the oven is too hot. Let it
stand open to cool a bit.
Cool or Refrigerator Rise: If I don't have the time
to wait for the rise to finish or I know that I will be interrupted before the
completed rise, I do a cool rise. A cool rise is when the dough is place in the
refrigerator and left to rise slowly over night approximately 8 to 12 hours. I
usually do this after the first rise and the dough has been shaped into a loaf.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. After rising, slash or score the loaves with a very sharp knife making three 1/2-inch deep diagonal slashes.
Brush olive oil over the top of the loaves; sprinkle with the coarse salt and black pepper. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until nicely browned. (A good check is to use
an instant
digital thermometer to test your bread. The temperature should be between 200 and 210 degrees.) Remove from oven and place the loaves on a wire rack
until cooled.
This
is the type of cooking and meat thermometer that I prefer and use in my cooking. I get many readers
asking what cooking/meat thermometer that I prefer and use in my cooking and baking. I, personally, use the
Thermapen Thermometer shown in the photo on the right. Originally designed for professional users, the
Super-Fast Thermapen Thermometer is used by chefs all over the world. To learn more about this excellent
thermometer and to also purchase one (if you desire), just click on the underlined:
Thermapen Thermometer.
Let baked loaves cool for 30 minutes before cutting (this is because the bread is still cooking while it is cooling).
Makes 2 baguettes or rounds.
