You’ll like this bread machine French bread recipe. It’s very easy to make and tastes great. I use it for garlic bread, sandwiches as well as French bread pizza.
Use the dough setting of a two-pound bread machine
When the dough is done put it on a lightly floured board and divide into two equal sections. Gently form each section of dough into a ball. Then use a rolling pin to make an oval.
Fold the oval in half and pinch the edges closed. The pinching is important for well-shaped loaves of French bread.
Flatten the dough a little and then fold in half again. Pinch the edges closed. Again, don’t forget to pinch that dough!
Then turn the dough so that the seam is at the bottom. Then do a little smoothing and shaping until the loaf looks the way you want it.
Put shaped loaves onto a baking sheet that has been lightly greased or covered in parchment paper.
Score bread.
Cover the loaves with a clean, lightweight kitchen towel and let the dough rise for half an hour.
Bake for 11 to 15 minutes in a 425 degree oven. The bread should be a golden brown.
Notes
Note that this recipe is for the dough cycle of a two-pound bread machine. If you’d like to use the quick cycle for this, substitute 1 ½ teaspoon fast rising (rapid rise) yeast for the active dry yeast.If the loaves are too poofy, try making the loaves longer next time. This can make a real difference.Don't forget to pinch the dough after you've folded it in half. This happens twice. If you forget this step, you'll get lopsided loaves of bread.This recipe was developed and tested using US customary measurements. Metric measurements are calculated automatically.