Yeah, it has been forever. A few weeks ago I finally finished my six weeks of intensity.

Who knew that taking night classes four nights a week, doing long term substituting, and lesson planning would take so much out of you? Hubris. Oh yeah, I was sick the last week of subbing as well.

I came out of it pretty well, and I’ve been catching up on things. Cooking hasn’t been exactly high on the priority list sad to say, but I’m slowly getting back into the swing of things.

Actually I’ve been cooking, just nothing really new, and thus, not really worth blogging. I’ve been sticking to old reliables, like pizza.  Well, not entirely true, I’ve made some orange syrup since my dad purchased a sodastream, and I’ve roasted some tofu.. ok, I’ve just been too busy to blog.

So, to get back to old reliables, I’ve made some bread again, just sticking to some of things I’ve picked up from Michael Ruhlman’s Ratio, and replacing some of the flour with whole wheat. And it actually worked!

At least 2/5ths of the flour used was white whole wheat flour. So that’s why I’m calling this “At Least Two Fifths Whole Wheat French Bread.” If someone has a better name I’m listening.  Some people would actually just call this whole wheat French bread since there’s whole wheat in it, but I’m all about honesty here. Honestly and really long names.

Actually it may almost be one half whole wheat French bread, as you’ll see.

 

Very simple. Bread usually is. Yeast, two kinds of flour, salt. Water.

Combine flours. Add a teaspoon of kosher salt for every 10 ounces you use. Maybe a few pinches more if it is a humid day, and you plan to add significantly more flour.

Here I have 12 oz. of bread flour, and 8 oz. of white whole wheat flour. FYI, White Whole Wheat flour is basically whole wheat, milled from hard white spring wheat, rather than red wheat.

For every 10 ounces of flour, use 6 oz. of water. 12 oz. here, or 1.5 cups.

Pour it on top, and add your yeast. 2 tsp. in this case.

Swirl to dissolve and let sit for ten minutes until good and bubbly.

Michael Ruhlman suggests using the paddle to bring the dough together, then switching to a dough hook.

That’s a bit too much cleanup for me, so I just grab the hook attachment and use it like a wooden spoon and stir it all up by hand to get it incorporated.

Then I let the machine do its work, about 10-15 minutes overall.

If it looks like thick oatmeal, stop the machine and gradually add a bit of whole wheat flour at a time until it comes together. This is why you should add a teensy bit more salt, especially on hot days. Or if you like saltier breads.

I think I added almost a cup of extra whole wheat flour throughout the stand mixer mixing part.

Once it comes together, pull it out onto a floured surface and knead with your hands a bit more, adding flour as necessary to keep it from sticking overmuch.

Place the mass into a greased bowl. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk.

Took an hour to get this high on a hot California winter (spring?) day.

Take it out again.

Knead a few more minutes.

Split, cover, let rest for 15 minutes.

Roll one into a rectangle… sorta.

Then roll it up. Pinch the sides up.

Place onto a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal, and repeat with the other piece.

Cover. Let rise for an hour. Good time to preheat oven to 450 degrees, or you could wait 15-20 minutes before preheating, depending on how fast your oven gets to work. You just need it hot and good to go in an hour really.

It’s been an hour, and I’m eager.

Score the bread with a sharp knife. Slide into the hot oven and bake for 10 minutes, then lower temperature to 375, and continue baking for a half hour.

And there you have it. At least 2/5ths whole wheat French bread.

Mmm..

Pretty decent crumb I think.

I feel like a restaurant a bit.

Can’t complain. It’s been worth the wait.

At Least Two Fifths Whole Wheat French Bread Recipe for Stand Mixer

• 12 ounces bread flour  (or a generous 2.5 cups )+ more for dusting and kneading
• 8 ounces white whole wheat flour (a scant 2 cups)+ up to a cup more for adjusting, see step 6.
• 2.25 tsp. kosher salt (you may prefer a bit more)
• 12 ounces lukewarm water (1.5 cups)
• 2 tsp. yeast

1. Measure and combine the flours and salt.
2. Pour the water on top gently.
3. Add yeast and swirl into the water to dissolve.
4. Let sit for at least ten minutes for the yeast to get bubbly.
5. With the dough hook or other implement, stir up the dough until it comes together into a shaggy mass.
6. Knead on low (setting 2 on Kitchenaid Mixer) for about ten to fifteen minutes until combined, adding more whole wheat flour as necessary to give it structure.
7. Pull out dough onto a well floured surface (whole wheat or bread flour is fine) and knead for two to three minutes.
8. Place into a greased bowl, cover, and set in a warm location. Let rise until at least doubled in bulk, maybe an hour on a warm day.
9. Pull out onto floured surface (again). Knead for 2-3 minutes. Cut into two pieces and roll into balls. Cover for 15 minutes.
10. Set one dough ball side, roll the other into a rectangle, then roll it up into a long cylinders. Place on a baking sheet with corn meal sprinkled on it. Repeat with other dough ball.
11. Cover and let rise for an hour. Meanwhile preheat oven to 450 degrees F (you could wait 15 minutes before doing this.
12. Score the baguettes and slide into oven. Bake at 450 degrees for ten minutes, then lower temperature to 375 degrees F. Continue baking for thirty minutes.
13. Remove and let rest for at least ten minutes, then enjoy.