April 21, 2020July 23, 2020

Today’s delicious baguette is a whole grain recipe. Canada’s Food Guide recommends that about a 1/4 of our plate should be whole grains. Grains are made up of three parts, the Germ, the Bran & the Endosperm. Each part contains different and valuable nutrients to keep us healthy. White breads have the germ and bran removed. Does it make sense to take away two parts of the nutrition before eating it? We recommend eating whole grain breads to fuel your body with all three parts of nutrition from the grain. Try baking this French style of bread.

Yield: 1 baguette
Preparation time: About 2 hours
Baking time: About 45 minutes

Digging Around

How can you tell if something is made from whole grains? Where might you look to find this information?
What are some simple ways to include more whole grains in your diet?

INGREDIENT LIST

1 tsp (5mL) active dry yeast
¾ cup (175mL) lukewarm water
1 cup (250mL) all purpose flour
1 cup (250mL) whole wheat flour
1 tsp (5mL) salt
a few drops vegetable oil
extra flour for kneading and handling the dough
cornmeal for the baking tray (or parchment paper)

EQUIPMENT LIST

large bowl
measuring spoons
liquid measuring cup
measuring cups
plastic wrap
bread knife
large baking sheet

METHOD

Measure lukewarm water. Dissolve the yeast in the water.
Measure flours and put in large bowl. Mix them together with a fork or a clean hand. Make a well in the flour.
Sprinkle the salt around the edge of the flour.
Pour the water and yeast in the well. Mix the liquid with the flour until a dough starts to form.
Put dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead about 10 minutes, until the dough is soft and smooth. Add a little flour if necessary.
Wipe out the large bowl then put a few drops of oil in it.
Put the ball of dough into the bowl. Swish it around, turn it over and put it back in the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap (or a clean tea towel) and put it in a warm place to rise for an hour. It should double in size.
Turn on the oven to 220C (425 F) (a hot oven). Be sure your oven is clean or it will smoke!
When the dough has risen, remove it from the bowl and place it on a lightly floured work surface.
Use your hands to flatten the dough into a rectangle, about 20 cm long. To shape the baguette, fold the top down and the bottom up so the edges meet in the middle, then fold the rectangle in half again so you have a long, thin shape. Pinch the edge together with the heel of your hand. Pinch the edge again to make sure it is tightly closed.
Using the palms of your hands, roll the dough on the work surface, from the inside out. Shape the dough into a long snake shape, the length of your baking sheet.
Place the baguette on the baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal (or a piece of parchment paper). Make sure that the dough is seam-side down.
Sprinkle the top of the baguette with flour then cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let sit for 30 minutes for it to rise again.
Remove the plastic wrap and ‘slash’ your dough with a bread knife. Make 3 angled cuts about 1 cm deep spread out the length of the baguette.
Bake for about 45 minutes, until it is brown on the top and bottom and when you tap it on the bottom, it sounds hollow. Be careful opening the oven door as steam may come out.

SKILLS

STEP-BY-STEP – WHOLE WHEAT BAGUETTE!

STEP 1
Gather the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Add the yeast into warm water and stir well. Let sit for about 5 minutes.

STEP 2
Pour the yeast water into the middle of the bowl.

STEP 3
Use just one finger to stir. Make circles starting the middle.

STEP 4
Once a shaggy mass is formed, scrape the contents onto a clean work surface. Use a pastry scraper to ensure every last bit is taken out.

STEP 5
Knead for about 10 minutes until soft and smooth. Shape into a ball, called a boule in breadmaking.

STEP 6
Drip a squirt of oil into the bowl and swish the boule of dough around in it. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until double in size in a warm place.