Quick Baguettes

Preheat the oven to 425, whisk together the warm water, yeast and sugar in a large bowl (or the bowl of your electric mixer), then set the bowl in a warm place for 10 minutes until the mix is well bubbled.  Add the salt and about 2 cups of flour, give it a good stir, and then continue adding a half cup of flour at a time until the dough is soft, but not sticky.  I do this all in my mixer with the dough hook, but this is also very easy to accomplish by hand.  Knead the dough for a few minutes until it’s nice and elastic (I kneaded it in the bowl until the flour was worked in and then turned it out onto my counter top – when I use my mixer I just let it knead until it comes together is a very slightly sticky ball).

Cut the dough into 4 even-ish pieces, then roll each piece into a long, skinny rope.  You can do this on your counter top, but I find it faster to hold each up and rub it between my palms like I’m trying to start a fire – gravity also assists with this method.  Twist together 2 of the ropes to form 1 loaf, then repeat with the other 2 ropes.  Transfer both ‘loaves’ onto a parchment lined baking sheet.  Here’s where you can either allow the loaves to rest/rise for 15-30 minutes, or you can bake them straight away.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until the loaves are golden brown and crusty and the internal temperature is about 200.  The originator of this recipe recommends putting ice in your oven at the same time you place the loaves in to bake (though she actually said throw the ice on the bottom of your oven, I put some in a pan on the bottom rack) – I tried this, the baguettes worked out brilliantly…and I’ve done it every time since!