Fabulous French Bread

This is one of my new favorite recipes. It's a little time consuming, but simple enough and the results are impressive.

 In a large bowl combine the following:

3 cups (of 6) flour

2 1/2 cups water

3 T sugar

1 T salt

5 T oil

Stir in:

2 T yeast and 3 C flour

Dough should be barely sticky, add more flour if necessary.  Mix well. Let dough rest for 20 min and stir again.  Stir 5 times within 50 min. Turn out dough onto oiled counter, knead once or twice.  Divide into 2. Roll each half into a 9x12 rectangle then roll loosely into loafs. Seal edges and cut 3 times diagonally with a sharp knife. You can brush on a beaten egg white and sprinkle sesame seeds if desired.  Let rise 30 min and then bake at 400 for 25-30 min.  Makes 2 loafs. 

I have also used this recipe to make bread bowls, I halved the recipe and it made 3 bowls.