Easy Homemade French Bread
Homemade French bread has never been easier! This simple recipe produces a light and fluffy loaf of French bread that will rival any bakery!
It’s no secret that I love bread.
My love for really good bread rivals my commitment to dark chocolate. And this easy homemade French bread is right up there with some of my favorite bread in the history of ever. It is SO simple. So, so simple and perfect for a beginning bread maker.
But it is also jaw droppingly delicious enough for you expert bread makers, too.
This French bread has easily fit into my Best Of bread category for years (many of you have made it and loved it, too!). And it’s high time it got a makeover and updated recipe post, if you ask me. Plus, I have some fun, new details to share about it!
Because I make this bread at least monthly (probably more than that, actually) and have done so for the last 9+ years, I’ve learned a couple things I’d like to share.
What is a baker’s lame
Investing (ha!) in a $15 or less baker’s lame (fancy name for bread slashing tool) has upped my bread making game. Especially with this homemade French bread. Before, I would choose the sharpest knife in my drawer (admittedly my knives aren’t always as sharp as they should be – oopsie).
And then I would hack at the bread to get artisan-looking slashes, instead deflating the whole life and ending up with flatbread. Sob.
About five years ago, I found a baker’s lame at a local kitchen store and eyed it warily, wondering if this unassuming, lightweight tool could help me. And it has, oh it has.
It’s basically a razor blade on a stick shaped in a slight curve to get those gashes and slashes just perfect. Bonus: I have this one from Amazon {aff. link} now and it’s less than 15 buckaroos.
I use it for my homemade bread bowls, soft pretzel rolls, rustic crusty bread, sweet molasses bread…and any other bread that needs a swift, but loving, gash.
If you have a super sharp razor blade or knife (needs to be extremely thin and sharp so it doesn’t deflate the bread), that should do the trick as well.
How to easily get crusty golden French bread
The other little variation I’ve added for this homemade French bread is a nifty bread baking hack that I’m pretty sure one of YOU suggested to me years ago in the comments. And it’s stuck with me – I do it all the time for almost any freeform bread I make now.
Right as you place the bread in the piping hot oven, toss 3-4 ice cubes onto the bottom of the oven and close that door as quickly as you can (but gently! don’t slam it and make the bread fall, for Pete’s sake). The instant steam as the ice cubes hit the fiery bottom of the oven will lightly crisp up the outer crust as the bread bakes.
Quick note: consult your oven’s manual for details or caution on putting ice/water on the bottom of the oven floor – I’ve never had a problem, but everyone should do their own research and use their own best judgment (also take care not to toss the ice cubes on the glass oven door as it could crack).
And don’t blame me if you shriek in absolute delight and scare the children when your bread comes out of that oven looking (and tasting!) like a legit loaf of bakery French bread.
Truly, this homemade French bread is the stuff dreams are made of.
I make it often to deliver to people that need a pick-me-up or just because I like them or if I’m also taking dinner to someone.
It makes an appearance when we have family fondue night or opt for French bread pizza.
And it is the bread recipe I turn to the most (along with these divine breadsticks) when I need (ok, let’s be serious, when I want) a no-fuss, easy bread to serve with dinner or just use for mood therapy.
Bread can do that you know.
And it makes the best French toast. Just sayin’.
P.S. if you’ve struggled with your bread flattening out while baking instead of holding the perfect shape, you might try these French bread pans {aff. link}. I have them and LOVE them. I don’t use them every time I make this bread, but I do pull them out quite often (I also use them for this rosemary bread).
I’ve noted this in the recipe below, but this homemade French bread is also a friend to whole wheat flour. I make this quite often with at least half whole wheat flour. And sometimes, I live on the edge and kick the white flour out completely, making it 100% whole wheat.
I’ve found that adding a couple tablespoons of vital wheat gluten, when going the 100% whole wheat route, helps fluff the bread up a bit and avoid the heavy denseness that can come from using whole wheat flour.
FYI: I always use white whole wheat (info on the different varieties of wheat can be found here).
Enough talking! If you haven’t made this homemade French bread, I hope you try it soon! Your life may or may not be changed for the better.
FAQs for Homemade French Bread
I would suggest halving all the ingredients –just keep an eye on the flour amount and judge the exact amount based on the texture of the dough.
Yes, it freezes great (after baking and cooling).
Sometimes moving an oven rack up or down in the oven is the trick to good browning. In my oven, it tends to be in the upper half of the oven that my bread browns the best.
You can mix the ingredients in a bowl with a spatula or spoon and knead by hand.
I always use the same amount interchangeably, however some people use 1/4 less if using instant yeast vs active dry yeast.
Yes, just adjust the baking time.
One Year Ago: Harvest Pasta Sauce {Trader Joe’s Copycat}
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Easy Homemade French Bread
Ingredients
- 2 1/4 cups warm water
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon instant or active dry yeast
- 3/4 tablespoon salt (see note)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, canola oil, vegetable oil or avocado oil
- 5 1/2 - 6 cups all-purpose flour or bread flour (see note)
Instructions
- In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the water sugar and yeast. If using active dry yeast, let the mixture bubble and foam before proceeding (this can take 3-5 minutes). If using instant yeast, proceed with the recipe (no need to let the yeast activate).
- Add the salt, oil and 3 cups of flour and mix. Add in 2 1/2 to 3 more cups of flour gradually. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl and form a soft ball that doesn't leave a lot of dough residue on your fingers. Knead for 2-3 minutes until the dough is smooth. If the dough starts to cling to the sides of the bowl (or the center column if using a Bosch or other mixer with a center), add 1/4 cup of flour at a time until a sturdy but soft ball of dough forms.
- Rising Method 1: Leave the dough in the mixer, cover with a lid or towel, and let the dough rest for 10 minutes. Stir it down by turning on the mixer for 10 seconds or so. Repeat the "rest and stir down" cycle five more times.
- Rising Method 2: Instead of letting the dough rest for 10 minute spurts and then stirring it down, transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and cover with a towel or greased plastic wrap. Let the dough rise until doubled, about an hour or so, depending on the warmth of your kitchen.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly greased surface and divide in half. Pat each section into a thick rectangle, 9X13-inches or thereabouts (doesn't have to be exact). Roll the dough up starting from the long edge, pressing out any air bubbles or seams with the heel of your hand, and pinch the edge to seal. Arrange seam side down on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper (I use separate baking sheets for each loaf). You can slash several gashes in the top of the bread now or wait until after it has risen (to avoid the risk of the bread deflating, especially if you don't have a very sharp razor or knife, slash now - see pictures above in the post for a visual).
- Cover with greased plastic wrap or a kitchen towel, and let the loaves rise until noticeably puffy and nearly doubled in size, about an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and make sure an oven rack is in the center position. If you haven't already, with a very sharp knife or baker's lame cut several gashes at an angle on the top of each loaf (see pictures above in the post for a visual).
- Optional: Place the baking sheet in the hot oven and immediately toss 3-4 ice cubes on the bottom of the oven (this gives a delicious, classic, French bread crispness to the crust). Close the oven door quickly.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes until golden and baked through. Remove from the oven and slather with melted butter (optional, but delicious). Repeat with the 2nd loaf (or if you have convection setting, the loaves can bake at the same time, just rotate the baking sheets halfway through baking).
Notes
Ice: consult your oven's manual for details or caution on putting ice/water on the bottom of the oven floor - I've never had a problem, but everyone should do their own research and use their own best judgment (also take care not to toss the ice cubes on the glass oven door as it could crack).
Flour: as with all yeast doughs, I never use the flour amount called for in the recipe as a hard fast rule (unless a weight measure is given and then I pull out my kitchen scale). Because humidity, temperature, altitude and a multitude of other factors can impact how much flour you need in your yeast doughs, I always judge when to quit adding flour by the texture and look and feel of the dough rather than how much flour I’ve added compared to the recipe. This tutorial on yeast may help identify how a perfectly floured dough should be.
Whole Wheat Flour: also, I often use half to 3/4 finely ground white whole wheat flour with good results - and sometimes I get crazy and use 100% whole wheat flour (always finely ground white wheat) but the bread is a bit more dense with 100% whole wheat flour. If using part or all whole wheat flour, add a few minutes to the kneading time to help develop the gluten (adding a couple tablespoons of gluten flour can also help the whole wheat bread bake up light and fluffy).
The Original Recipe: called for 1 tablespoon salt; over the years I've decreased that amount just slightly but you can use the full amount. If you don't have an electric mixer, this dough can be made by hand using a large bowl and a wooden spoon the good old-fashioned way!
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Recipe Source: from The Sister’s Cafe
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1,200 Comments on “Easy Homemade French Bread”
I tried this recipe and it came out great! My daughter really loved it
This recipe turned out amazing! The only thing I did differently was I w used a European-style Artesian flour and in place of the water, I used whey I had from making mozzarella cheese. The crust is very and the inside is soft. It has alot of flavor. Thanks Mel for a great recipe!
Have you ever added cinnamon and sugar after the first prove before rolling it up to make a cinnamon bread? Do you think that would work? Thanks so much for the recipe! My family LOVES it, and we were thinking of switching it up and making one sweet loaf this time. Any suggestions appreciated!
I haven’t, but I definitely think it is worth a try!
I have totally done this multiple times and the kids love it! You can also add butter and garlic and spice it up. It’s all delicious! The recipe is amazing!
I’m at sea level and I don’t know if that was the problem or my oven, but the crust did not crisp up – even with the ice cube trick. It wasn’t the flavor I was looking for either.
I just made this and its doing the second rise. I got confused when rolling it up. What is starting at the long side?
Hi Charlie, sorry for the confusion. In step #5 when the dough is patted into a thick rectangle, start rolling it up from one of the longest sides of the rectangle (vs a short side). Does that help?
I made the bread according to the recipe, using bread flour and instant yeast. I placed ice cubes in a tray underneath the bread. I baked both loaves at the same time, side by side. They came out beautifully! Thank you!
I made this recipe for my family and THEY COULD NOT GET ENOUGH!
They thought I had bought it from a bakery!
It turned out, light and fluffy inside with that crispy outside. Absolute perfection!
I used a loaf to make garlic bread and that was an enormous hit as well!
Hi I just finished making this last night, I want to use it Saturday for French toast, how do you recommend storing it?
I usually store sealed in a bag (once it has cooled completely).
Your bread looks delicious and I would like to try it. Just a little note, technically French bread does not have any kind of fat added, but Italian loafs do.
Hi! My bread came out very light in color. For some reason I’m not able to get that beautiful golden color. Do you know what the reason might be?
Hi Sabina, you can try increasing your oven temperature by 25 degrees and/or moving the oven rack to middle or upper middle position (I’ve found this helps my rolls or free-formed bread brown better).
Is the rise method an either or? Or do you do both rises?
The dough needs to rise but you can use either method #1 (rise in one big mass in a bowl) OR method #2 (rise in 10 minute increments).
This was so easy and turned out so yummy!
I’ve made this bread twice in 2 nights. We love this recipe. The bread tastes amazing, the texture is perfect and the crust is exactly how I like it. My boyfriend waited and waited to cut it but then photographed it first. Haha That was flattering. I used bread flour the first time and all purpose flour the second time. I think, I like the Ap best, but both were delicious! Thank you for a great recipe! I can’t wait to use this recipe on holidays.
Can’t wait to make this! If I plan on refrigerating the dough overnight, should I shape it into loaves first? (I am a novice baker). Also, how long would I wait to bake it after removing it from the fridge?
I would shape into loaves and then refrigerate. After you take it out of the fridge, I’d let the dough come to room temperature and continue rising until puffy.
I haven’t made bread in years and finally decided to give it a go. I used bread flour and followed the recipe perfectly and the bread came out absolutely delicious. Thank you for sharing!!
Easy and yummy!
Made this bread. Two large loafs! It was oh so good! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
bread tasted great but my loaves were flattened. they rose great both times and when i put them in the oven it flattened. any tips?
Try adding a bit more flour, if they flatten while they rise or bake it usually means the dough needs more flour for structure and/or they should rise for a little less time.
I made this bread today and almost half a loaf is gone. It is a very, very easy recipe to follow and the results had my hubby drooling.
Thank you for giving me confidence to bake bread, something I was always reluctant to do before, but it is easier than baking cookies or cakes! So little work for great results.
So good! Thanks for the recipe.
I’m not picky about fresh-baked bread (it’s all good!) but this was indeed tasty AND easy. I kneaded by hand and let it rise en masse. Thanks for the recipe!
I’m curious why your loaves have smooth, round ends, rather than looking rolled up like a cinnamon roll log?
Also, how do you keep your dough from spreading across the pan during the second rise?
This bread was pretty good the first day (a little dense but not chewy), but it was a bit chewy and not as good the next day.
This bread is definitely best fresh/same day. I tuck the ends of the loaves under so they are smooth and round. If the dough is spreading during rising, you probably need to add a bit more flour to the dough or roll/form into tighter loaves.
This recipe is excellent. Very easy to make and the results were outstanding. I did not use my Kitchen Aid mixer, I did it by hand and it came out perfect. I baked them on my pizza stone with parchment . Thank you for sharing such a great recipe
Best bread recipe I’ve ever used.
Family adore it.
Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe.
It turned out delicious! I used bread flour and good olive oil and yes I added the salt. My husband loved it!
This is my go to recipe for bread. I use it for rolls, burger buns, brat buns, and French bread loaves. My favorite
What if you use butter instead of oil to give the bread a buttery taste? Will it work?
You can definitely try – should work fine.
So excited to try this! Would you recommend the same kneading time (3-5min) if you are doing it by hand rather than in the mixer?
If making by hand, I’d suggest kneading for double the time.
WOW!! Without a doubt this is one of the very best bread recipes I’ve tried in many years!! The texture is exceptional and the taste is perfection!! I know I will be making this frequently for quite some time! Simply scrumptious!! Thank you!!
Can the dough be kept in the fridge before the final rise and baking? Some of my recipes encourage 2-3 days in the fridge.
Yes, the dough should do fine in the refrigerator.
It did end up working out very well – it works great to bake some right away and the rest a few days later. There’s just two of us now, so we get the freshest outcome that way. 😉
Easy recipe and amazing taste. First made on New Year and now making twice every week. Stopped buying bread from store. Thanks so much for sharing this wonderful recipe!
THANK YOU! I tried this recipe and it turned out great!
Hi! I made this yesterday and halved the recipe. It turned out so well, I made another one. It is so freakin’ easy! Question, though. After spreading out the dough, prior to rolling up, would it hurt anything to sprinkle cinnamon/sugar and then roll? It seems such a mild and soft dough you could flavor it. TIA!
I haven’t tried that but it’s certainly worth a try!
I don’t know how to rate this recipe but it is 6 Stars for me! I made this with whole red wheat and added the gluten like you suggested. Topped it with some honey out of oven and let the honey soak in for a day. It is soooo light! Never made a wheat bread that wasn’t heavy. I’ll let you know how the cinnamon turns out. Thank you!
Can you make the dough, let it rise first time and put it in the fridge and bake the next day?
Thanks
I haven’t tried that but usually yeast bread dough does fine refrigerated overnight.
Oh my goodness, I just made this and sprinkled everything bagel seasoning on it right before I put it in the oven and it is so very very very good. I will be using this recipe often can’t wait to take it tomorrow my family for lunch after church. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.
Absolutely delicious and easy to make! I have made this a few times and the bread has come out great each time. It’s very hard to not devour the entire loaf with butter when it come out of the oven!
Do you think that bread flour would be good for this recipe?
Yep! Works great.
I’ve made this recipe twice, first time flat, second flawless in looks but it tasted like sourdough. And it wasn’t as airy as I wanted it to be. What did I do wrong? My family loved it but I wasn’t a fan. How long should it rest after baking? I’ve got plenty of supplies for trial and error
If the bread was flat, it sounds like it needs a bit more flour to hold the structure of the bread as it rises. This bread isn’t airy and filled with holes like an artisan bread (that starts with a very wet dough). The crumb is tighter than that type of bread.
Made this and LOVE it. Very easy recipe to follow and results were perfect.
Could you let this rise in a banneton basket for shape, or does it have to be rolled?
Yes, you definitely can…I did that today with a double batch I made of this bread.
What a great way you phrase the ways to mix-after reading & successfully getting two loaves-I wish I had read it through twice&cooked them one at a time-must find how you get credit for the Amazon kit – lame& soon the weird pans you showed-
This was fantastic!!! Great recipe for beginners. I chose rise option 2 and threw 4 ice cubes in a separate cookie sheet under the bread in the oven. Wonderful rise, texture, and flavor. Will definitely use this one again and again!
I have made this recipe dozens of times and it always comes out perfect. I was wondering if you think I could turn it into rolls. I need some good crusty roll for french dips…any suggestions? Thanks!
The dough should work great as rolls! I’d roll them into balls (about 2.5-3 ounces each), let them rise and bake them for 15-17 minutes.
Made it a couple days ago and am already making it again. I halved the recipe and it came out perfectly (all purpose flour, active dry yeast since it’s what I had on-hand, the rest & stir down method, and used a lame to slash the loaf before rising). The loaf was huge! I am making the recipe again right now, this time doing the full recipe, and I plan to divide into 4 loaves, 3 of which I’ll freeze after baking. There are only 2 of us, and so I ended up eating 3/4 of the giant loaf in 2 days, whoops! Hopefully this spreads the wealth a bit. Am looking forward to making this for friends & neighbors in the future.
I used the french bread pans advertised above. They rose over the sides. Any suggestions?
You could try forming longer skinnier loaves or make three loaves out of the batch (also take care not to let the bread rise too long).
Great recipe! My only issue was my crust wasn’t as golden and crispy as it appears in your picture. Tasted great though and super easy to follow for a bread making rookie.
I’ve never made bread of any kind. This being my first attempt I had so many questions of the process and the end result after hearing how tricky it can be – well, it wasn’t at all. I followed to recipe to a “T” (1/2 batch) and it worked perfectly. Crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, not a ton of flavor but wasn’t expecting too much. Made great French toast!
This is a perfect intro to bread making. Thanks for sharing!
2020 has been the year where I learned to make bread. I made all kinds of bread. And this, which I made on the last day of 2020, is the best! My kids and husband and I filled out bellies!
Have you ever used high gluten flour before? I have been trying to use it up. In the beginning of April after everything went nutty in the world, it was all I could find and I do not want to waste it. So even though I really don’t care for it too much, I try to use it. Works fine for cookies. Well I have been waiting for it to rise for a good hour and its not rising. So any suggestions on what to do now would be greatly appreciated. I suppose I may need to just toss it if not….
Hi Connie, is it bread flour?
I did make this bread several times before. It’s a fantastic recipe! It’s not a traditional French bread recipe but it does make a fabulous tasty and beautiful bread. Wish I could post pictures with this comment because my bread came out stunning.
My bread was done but didn’t really come out as brown and crispy looking. Any tips for what might have gone wrong?
You can try increasing the oven temp by 25 degrees and also baking the bread on a higher oven rack (I find the best browning happens above the halfway mark).
This is a good loaf of bread. That being said I think it lacks the typical French bread flavor. Possibly fermentation would make it taste more like French bread. Regardless it’s good bread and I’ll make it again.
Nothing better than the perfect French baguette! Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!
I’d like to make this for Christmas so is there a way that I can pre-make the dough and either freeze it or partially cook the bread so it comes out of the oven crispy and fresh on Christmas day?
I am not the author, but this is a pretty standard recipe and nearly the same as mine. You can freeze the dough at any point after the first rise. Let it come to room temperature, work it into a loaf and allow it to rise a final time and it’s good to go!
I would like to make this in one loaf, preferably in a bakers pan. What temperature and length of time would I use? I have clay pans (Emile Henry).
I love your recipe.
I’m making bread pudding and have always used French Bread.
Thank you!
I don’t have or use clay pans so I’m not sure how they bake, but you could try 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes and see how that goes. Good luck!
I would like to make this in one loaf, preferably in a bakers pan. What temperature and length of time would I use? I have clay pans (Emile Henry).
I love your recipe.
I’m making bread pudding and have always used French Bread.
Thank you!
What would be some suggestions if I wanted to cook both loaves at the same time? Use a bigger baking sheet and rotate during cooking? Does it matter if loaves are horizontal or vertical when cooking two? Also does this freeze well after baking & what’s the best way to reheat ? Thank you so much!
It doesn’t or shouldn’t matter how the loaves are shaped. You can experiment cooking both loaves at once by rotating the pans. Yes, it freezes well after baking.
How do I half this recipe. I only want one loaf. It looks really good but I know you’re not supposed to just half everything. So how should I half this properly.
I would suggest halving all the ingredients – should work just fine (just keep an eye on the flour amount and judge the exact amount based on the texture of the dough).
I just made it and it’s so good! It was so easy and I can’t wait to make it again!
The ice cubes tip was great. Recipe turned out a perfect french bread. Made a garlic bread on 1 out of the 2.
I’ve made this recipe a couple of times now and while it is easy… this bread has NO flavor. It’s incredibly bland… maybe I’m doing something wrong but I did follow directions and added ice cubes to oven.Next time I might try to experiment with adding more salt or sugar?? Or I’ll probably just look for a different recipe.
I have seen some other recipes call for baking at 400 or 450. What is the reason for 375? Genuinely curious as to what the higher temp does for it? Would it rise more or have a thicker crust?
Every recipe has differences – I like the 375 degree temp for a slightly lighter, less dense crust.
I wanted some French bread to go with a pot of chicken soup and didn’t want to venture into a store just for a baguette. This fit the bill perfectly! I think I could have used a little more flour – at the end of the 1st rise, it was just a bit stickier than I thought it was at the beginning. They still turned out great! Most of my bread making has been rye breads in pans. I tried to minimize loaf spread by placing wine bottles under the parchment on each side of each loaf during the 2nd rise. No idea if this was actually beneficial or not but they came out looking like loaves of French bread! I’m looking forward to making future batches. Thanks!
Kevin! Hopefully you solved my issues of the bread spreading out! Using wine bottles!! Brilliant. My bread is always 4 feet wide and 1 inch high!! Hope this does the trick! Thanks!
This was my second time making bread and I loved this recipe!!! It was so easy and it turned out amazing! Very nice crunch on the outside and very fluffy on the inside!
Has anyone tossed the ice cubes in a sheet pan underneath the baking bread? I don’t want to break the oven. It’s not mine.
I did this today and it worked out! I live in an apartment and wasn’t willing to risk ruining my landlords oven
I am not a baker! This recipe caught my eye and so I said why not! OMG! I even surprised myself with how good it turned out. The whole family loved it! One of my son’s said “ wow, it looks like the one from the store”.
I have bookmarked this recipe for future needs. I will for sure bake this again!
Great recipe Mel! I usually do my french stick with sourdough but I was in a hurry and this turned out really well. I especially liked the ice cube trick! I sometimes put a dish of water in but last week I broke a dish in the oven and this trick is much easier!
Im not sure why others fail at this recipe, I make it on average twice a week. I do sometimes add a quarter cup of sourdough starter (because I have the starter but not the patience to make that bread) in place of the last quarter cup of water. This does give the bread a bit of additional flavor for those who feel it is lacking.
Excellent recipe, first time success, just need confirmation of “cup” amount in grams for U.K. going to try more of your recipes. Thanks for helping me take a step forward.
I halved this recipe and boy does my family wish I hadn’t. I went with the original amount of salt and can see why the poster cut it down a bit. It wasn’t too overwhelming, but it was a lot of salt flavor. All in all it tasted great and the texture was perfect, I’ll definitely be using this recipe again.
Has anyone ever used a pizza stone to bake these on? I was thinking it might do a great job crisping them (of course they would be on parchment paper that would first go on the pizza stone until they are crisp enough on the bottom to remove the paper).
Hello,
First let me start by saying that this was my very first time making bread from scratch. I feel like I followed the recipe but my bread came out flat and pale. Did I under or over proof it? Also, how do you get a nice golden color on the bread?
It does taste good, so I’m definitely going to eat but I want to be able to improve it.
Hey Katie, just scrollin’ the comments and noticed yours, without any reply. 🙁
Flat is a very big problem, and could be related to the following? In order of importance?
Yeast. Internet “proofing yeast”, which will give you tons of info related to your specific yeast and techniques. Get this right e.g. make sure your yeast is proofing or bread-making will just go sideways. Thermometer for your proper proofing water temp is the only tool I might suggest.
Kneading. Might as well internet that as well. After making sure yeast is truly active, an appropriate amount of kneading for your recipe is pretty important. Sometimes less is better…for a beginner I would pick a less is better recipe. Try inter-netting “no-knead bread”, and I bet you’ll get very rewarding recipe ideas.
Proofing. All about the yeast first, and then kneading. if it ain’t rising, those steps failed.
if this advice fails…I’m sorry. Maybe replace your yeast (it can go bad quick), and start again! Bread can be very easy, but has some tricky beginnings before you can bake multiple loaves a day!
I am vegan and love this recipe made it so many times. I was wondering if I can make them into like small bread loaves instead of two big ones. If so would the temperature or time change?
Yes, absolutely! The baking temperature stays the same but you might want to check them about 5-7 minutes early (depending on the size of the loaves).
My second time making this & it has been great both times. I used Option #1 for rising.
Very easy to make in the stand mixer, almost zero cleanup!
My go to recipe for French bread, we use this for pizzas, meatball subs or just as a side with dinner. I’ve made it probably 10 times and always perfect
Horrible. Dry and crumbly. Worst recipe ever
Perhaps you didn’t follow the recipe? I just made it and they came out perfect.
This a great recipe! Delicious bread! Great texture. I added “Everything bagel” seasoning after the egg wash to one of those loaves, and it was delicious.
This recipe is delicious. I’ve never made French bread before and it turned out great. !, thanks for the recipe. I will be making this bread again. I wanted French bread for beef dips but didn’t want to go out… yumm
Why is there no egg?
Hard as a rock
Full offence, you did something wrong here. I’ve made this like 3 times already and its always turned out very soft and fluffy, not “hard as a rock”
Maybe you used dead yeast and burnt it?
Also tons of breads don’t use eggs. Dairy is not a requirement for delicious.
I have seen other French bread recipes suggest leaving a cast iron skillet in the lowest rack and using that as the place to put your ice cubes or just a cup of boiling water, to create the steam. No need to worry over whether the oven can handle the ice cubes.
My wife stores our cast iron skillet in the oven when the oven is not in use., so I would use the skillet for the above technique.
Very easy and very good! I have also mixed it up with wheat flour, turns out wonderful every time ! I divide into four loaves, bake and then freeze a couple loaves! Nothing like homemade bread! I’m not sure why a few people have given negative comments because this recipe is as I said very easy and delicious! Thank you for sharing!
I make your white sandwich bread every weekend. Absolutely awesome! I totally trusted your recipe to venture out to French Bread. It’s baking now and so far has been absolutely perfect! I used method 1 for the first rise and the dough feel was great when done. I was daring and scored the bread after the second rise. Had to adapt and use a thoroughly cleaned cutter that normally serves in the garage. Super sharp and worked like a charm. Have now ordered a lame only addition was an egg wash and a valiant attempt to cook two loaves on one pan. If that doesn’t work, that’s on me, the product going in was perfect. Baking keeps me happy, so this is a great addition to my repertoire.
The finished product was amazing! Loved by my whole family and half a loaf sent home for lunch box treat for the grandkids ❤️
Made this bread for the first time tonight. We all loved it, especially the crisp crust! I have been baking bread for some time now, and really enjoy finding new recipes! I only baked one loaf, because I decided to freeze half of the dough after the first rise (I’ve done that before with other bread doughs and have had success). I would’ve liked to see a video on shaping the dough, as my loaf did expand (widen) a bit more than I would’ve liked it to, and it was a very long loaf! I felt like the texture/feel of the dough after being kneaded was good, but perhaps I will add a bit more flour next time and it won’t spread out as much. I have always done an egg wash over my breads before baking, and so did that with this too. It did have a nice shine. I used a lame to slash it, as well. Overall, delicious bread and easy to make! Thanks for sharing and I’ll be watching for that video!
This is an excellent french bread recipe that doesn’t last long in my house. Yes, it is that good.
This is now my go to recipe! Everyone thought that it was bakery grade. One suggestion for cutting slits that works well for me is using scissors. It helps avoid deflation.
First time making bread. Brand new kitchen aid mixer. Came out perfect! I did the pit in a bowl for an hour rise and shaped mine into round loaves. My hubby loved it. Excellent flavor nice crust. Thank you Mel.
Seriously, 1 Tablespoon of active dry yeast? I figure you would’ve caught the mistake before 12 years went by, but a Tablespoon?
I am kind of confused by your comment. How is this a mistake? I’ve been making this recipe with 1 tablespoon yeast for almost 15 years – turns out great!
I think what Alex means is a tablespoon of active dry yeast is a TON of yeast for homemade breads. Most NY style pizza recipes call for 1/4 teaspoon of yeast, because using more than that causes the bread to taste very yeasty and turns it grey/brown in color. This recipe is similar to most pizza recipes, except for the amount of yeast. That is a lot of yeast.
Most bread recipes call for a packet of yeast, which is 2 1/4 teaspoons. A tablespoon is three teaspoons. Having made this recipe along with many others, this recipe uses less yeast per loaf that most other bread recipes. Pizza dough doesn’t need as much yeast because it ends up being flat anyway. I’ve never had a problem with bread being too yeasty either, and this is a phenomenal recipe. You did a great job Mel, thank you for the great recipe!
This may be why several comment that their loaves were flat – they may have used 1 packet instead of 1 tablespoon.
Sometimes I think trolls like this just have zero life. I just made these and totally came out perfect with 1 TABLESPOON of yeast… which also happens to be the exact amount they give you in the single serving packets….
This is my favorite bread recipe! I make it every week for my family. However, we are moving to a state with a much lower altitude than where we currently live. Do you have any suggestions for what I may need to change?
Hi Laura, I would suggest making the bread as is and see how it goes. Chances are you may not need to change much (possibly adding a bit less flour but maybe not)
I love this recipe! Sometimes I add butter Cinnamon and sugar before I roll it up. My daughter who has five kids puts cheese and ham in before rolling. Best recipe ever, thanks so much.
Had to scroll for 5 minutes are so to get to the recipe. Did not bother with the recipe.
Not sure if you know, but I don’t want anyone missing out on this great recipe…….. there is a link directly under the title at the top of the post that reads “jump to recipe”. If you click the link, you can bypass the blog post.
Hi Mel,
Sorry for the extreme rudeness and lack of brain power from some of your commentors. I hope that doesn’t discourage you from releasing recipes. Thanks for all you do!
Thanks for your kindness, Allison! I’m not going anywhere! 🙂 But I really do appreciate the comments that are civil and kind (even if they don’t love the recipe!).
Tastes ok. Ended up flat and pale and not at all appealing looking. Not sure what I did wrong.
If it went flat, you most likely over proofed it. “French” bread isn’t meant to be incredibly flavorful. The goal is a pretty neutral bread you can dip, or add flavor on top of.
Mine is also pretty flat and pale, unfortunately.
Thank you! I chose this recipe because I just bought a perforated sandwich bread pan that would accommodate five, foot-long subs. This recipe worked out perfect. I tossed everything in the bread machine on dough cycle. I should have transferred it to another bowl because it rose to the very top, thankfully didn’t spill over. But I really loved the crisp crust and tender interior. We enjoyed them as carne asada tortas and will have them for cheesesteaks. Also looking forward to trying other readers creations.
My family loves the bread and asks me to make it once or sometimes twice in a week. It is so easy! I add garlic salt just before I place the bread in the oven. Thanks.
The hardest part of this recipe is the waiting! Amazingly flavorful and delightful. I’m going to devour the rest of the loaf before my husband gets here.
I just ran a crossed this today, I have made 2 loads, one soft crust other crunchy. Have to say it was really good bread.
I don’t normally comment on recipes, but this one is so good and foolproof that I felt compelled. My rating is for the recipe exactly as written. I’ve also found that it makes excellent sandwich bread. I follow the recipe to the end, but instead of rolling into loaves, I put into two 9” loaf pans. Rise and bake time is no different. I also like to make one of the loaves with fresh chopped rosemary. This is my go to recipe for every day bread!
Kevin! Hopefully you solved my issues of the bread spreading out! Using wine bottles!! Brilliant. My bread is always 4 feet wide and 1 inch high!! Hope this does the trick! Thanks!
I am a novice bread baker trying to improve my skills. I have made this recipe twice and it turns out so beautifully every time! Thank you for such an easy recipe that yields perfect results! I would love to try the whole wheat version next.
I’ve used this recipe countless times and it always comes out amazing. The ice trick changed my life. This is the perfect french bread!
Needed a quick French bread for family dinner tonight, made this recipe, both loaves look beautiful, house smells wonderful – can’t wait for the family to show up – thanks for the recipe!
Can you cook this on foil instead of parchment paper?
All I had was wax paper or foil.
I just baked directly on the baking sheet, as I also did not have parchment.
The crust didn’t stay “crunchy” once it cooled. Any suggestions?
No punching down after the second rose method?
You kinda end up punching it down when you roll it out into the rectangles, so not really necessary.
First time ever making any kind of bread. I baked it for 25 minutes, took it out put some butter . Then put it in for another 5 minutes.
The crust is golden…but not brown. Also, it’s kind of crumbly, but it doesn’t actually crumble. I was making this for bruschetta …but I don’t think it will work.
Where did I go wrong? Should I have baked it longer? Suggestions?
Have you checked your oven temperature? (I recognize I’m a few months late!)
I had this struggle when my oven was dying and the temperature wasn’t actually hitting my set point.
I have made this recipe multiple times. I love it and so does everyone else who eats some. It is gone within two days or less. I have also used it to make garlic bread and it was the perfect bread to do so.I recently got whole wheat flour and want to use it in this recipe by substituting all the all purpose flour for whole wheat. You mention adding a couple of tablespoons of gluten flour if using 100% whole wheat flour. Is this vital gluten flour? How much tablespoons would you recommend?
Yes, gluten flour is sometimes labeled vital wheat gluten. For this recipe, I’d use about 1/4 cup.
I just made this bread today after meaning to make it for over a month, and it ended up absolutely beautifully. I would 100% recommend this to any first-time baker. This was my first time making actual loaves of bread, having done bread machine bread (that turned out badly) and breadsticks (that turned out beautifully), and they came out soft, fluffy, and flavorful with a crispy crust that started quite dull. However, as soon as I brushed it with the melted butter, the color became absolutely vibrant and shiny, and the loaves were picturesque. I’m going to use one on its own and one to make into garlic bread!
just made this as my first time ever baking bread!! the recipe was easy and yields delish results. thank u so much!
I cut recipe down to 2/3 and it made two beautiful french baguettes. Only rose each time in warmed oven for 1 hr! Baked 30 minutes. Texture was light and delicious. This will be my go to recipe from now on! The quickest and best recipe I’ve ever made!
I really liked the ease of this bread recipe. When searching for a good recipe ,I also looked at the pics, and yours looked lovely. However, I found my bread looked nothing like yours ! It was dull looking ,not golden and shiny. Tasted good ,but I was after that nice shiny golden crust. I did my own searching and found the egg white and water glaze ,Viola!! Now it looked more like yours. It was disappointing that you did not give out that information with your recipe. I know to get that crust that a glaze was needed. Bread tastes great!!
Mine came out like that, but the melted-butter wash will fix that up quick- it enhances the color and the shine!
The amount of time I’ve made this bread is ridiculously high. I love it and while I make changes (add more flour since my dough is always wet) I make round loaves, brush oil on the bottom and top, bake at 425 they always turn out perfect and I love it!!!
Hosnetly my favorite recipe!! A useful thing I learnt from a.frined is to get a spray bottle with water put the loaf in the oven and spray and much water as you can on the loaf it will help the get the crust, instead of the icecubes.
Do you think you could make this a day ahead a refrigerate it before it does the second rise?
Usually bread dough like this does well being refrigerated so I think that should work.
I made this recipe but added chopped fresh Rosemary. It was beautiful and DELICIOUS!
This bread is incredible, classic restaurant and bakery style. If you rated this poorly or it turned out bad it is because you failed to follow the instructions properly.
I have tried several bread recipes during the pandemic and this is by far the absolute best recipe! It was SO good! From now on it will be the only bread recipe I use!
Oh, That was good idea. About to make it for a third time, but with our new baguette pans. The directions are easy and even the ugliest outcome is delicious! Thank you for sharing!
I’ve messed up at least 2 different ways each time I make this, including using a packet of yeast instead of 1 tbsp and waaaaay overproofing because I forget about it for hours (life with toddlers). The bread is somehow still perfect every time. I never thought a yeast bread recipe could be described as “forgiving” but this one is practically a saint. I attribute 5+ miracles, and counting.
Easy to make, looks great, tastes even better. Two loaves don’t last more than an hour with the five of us!
Dough sunk in oven. Tasted great but was very flat.
I have made this recipe a number of times and it always turns out perfect! We love it at our house. I read the salt measurement wrong and have only been putting in 3/4 teaspoon haha. Still delicious! Mine are never as prettily rounded as yours. How do you get yours so evenly rounded? Thanks for an awesome recipe!
Hi Judy, it’s probably the way I shape the loaves. How do you shape yours?
Just about to make your Easy Salsa recipe, and got “lost” looking at different recipes in your posts!
A question about this French Bread recipe…have you, or do you know anyone who has tried a gluten-free version of this? I really need to stay away from wheat-based products (as I just finished a box of Mini Wheats!!), and bread is the most difficult item to “replace”.
I have a great recipe for regular bread, but when it comes to specialty breads, it gets more difficult!
Any direction would be much appreciated!
Hi Patti, unfortunately, bread like this doesn’t often translate well to gluten free without a whole truckload of changes. You’d probably be better off googling a tried and true gluten free french bread recipe.
One of my most go to recipes!!! Thanks for sharing your gifts!!
Can you make a video for making the French bread. I would love to make it, but I feel intimidated.
Trie this recipe for the first time yesterday,and the result?Perfect.Thanks for the best recipe so far.Cheerz!
I followed this recipe except cutting it in half for one loaf.
The rise time was a good bit shorter, both times of quick i attributed to a warm kitchen.
But …..the color was not there on the top…i baked it at 375 for whay ended up being 33 munutes. I was afraid to bake it any longer sp i took it out and buttered the top.
Oh and i did put the ice cubes in the oven bottom.
Any idea why the top didn’t brown?
It’s usually an issue with specific ovens as each individual oven will vary in specific temperatures as well as other factors related to baking. You can try increasing oven temp to 400 degrees and moving an oven rack a bit higher in the oven – both of those things can help the bread develop a nice golden crust.
Hi Mel,
I have made this Frenchbread 3 times now, and it has come out perfect each time. I use the rising method #1. I think doing it that way must build structure into the dough, similar to stretch and fold when you make sourdough. I put my 2 loaves about an inch apart on my baking stone, and then throw the 3 ice cubes into the bottom of the oven. I also spritz the loaves good with water about 4 or 5 times during baking. It makes the crust come out really light and crisp, and the bread inside is soft and perfect. I think next time I use this recipe to make dinner rolls.
This was so easy and came out awesome. I’ve struggled with other recipes coming out doughy in the middle. This recipe and instructions were perfect. Used it for garlic bread with spaghetti and Italian sandwiches the next day.
My only issue was that I ate way to much.
Fantastic recipe! I cut it in half and only made one loaf to go with my boeuf bourguignon dinner last night. So good…
Hello. The loaves seem pretty large in my baguette pan. Could I make 4 smaller ones instead of the 2 large ones? If so, how long should I bake them for? Thanks!
Yes, that should work just fine. Watch the baking time closely – maybe 10 minutes less depending on size and shape of loaves.
So Great! Perfect directions! my whole family loves it!
Thank you.
No doubt this recipe tastes good but French bread doesn’t have anything other than flour, water, salt, and yeast. Oil and sugar make it no longer french
I have made both this French bread and also your French bread rolls and both were delicious. My question is can I bake the bread in regular loaf pans? I’d like to use it more as sandwich bread.
Yes, I think so!
I made this bread. Super easy method using rising method 2. My family loves it. When the quarantine started back in may my husband bought 2lbs. Yes…that isn’t a typo I said TWO Pounds of yeast. We’ve got a lot of baking to do Lucy. Glad I found this recipe.
Hi Mel,
Would it be okay to let it rise more than an hour the first or second rise? Also, can I use regular honey since I don’t have any raw honey?
Yes, regular honey will work. The rising time depends on the temperature of your kitchen and other factors. You don’t want to let it over rise or it will affect the texture, shape, and taste of the bread.
I loved this recipe but my crust didn’t come out as pretty and golden as these pictures not sure if it’s because I used APflour instead of bread or if because I didn’t have enough ice but still solid result!
My electric Stand Mixer is broken. Can I make this without it/by hand?
Yep, per Mel “this dough can be made by hand using a large bowl and a wooden spoon the good old-fashioned way!“
Hi Mel!
This French bread recipe is simply the best!! The recipe is simple, instructions are clear, which probably explain why it’s always a success! I’ve been sharing it around with friends and it’s a hit for them too!
On a personal note, I started baking breads during the quarantine (from March to June in my part of Canada), and thanks to you, I gain self confidence in baking! I now bake every Saturday or Sunday for the whole week and your French breads are always on our menu.
Thanks for the great recipe!
Forgot to ask – what happens if you omit the slashing? Does that affect it when baking?
It might affect the rise in the oven, but overall, it probably won’t make a huge difference except in the way the bread looks.
Currently have the dough rising! I can’t wait. Instead of using ice cubes (hubby doesn’t think I should lol), would a pan of hot water in the oven work? And is it okay to bake one loaf at a time? My oven is super old and horrible and when I try and bake to baking sheets at a time, ultimately, one of them will burn
Hi!
I put the ice cubes the first time, and I omit them now. Hubby says it tastes better (crunchier dough), without the ice cubes. The melted butter – after baking – is a must.
I also bake one loaf at a time, no worries. Keep same baking time.
Good luck!
Yes, you can bake one loaf at a time…and a pan of hot water will work, too! 🙂
which method of riseing do you think is best and do you prefere a p or bread flour
Could I use the bread machine to make the dough, then continue on manually by hand to form and shape?
Can definitely try (I don’t own a bread machine so I haven’t tried it myself).
This bread tastes great but out of the 5 times I have made it, it always flattens out right before putting it in the oven. I proof the bread in the oven both times, heating it to 150 and turning it off (my house is cold). I put my timer on and wait the full hour. But after its been shaped during the second proof, it flattens out, especially after I score it and before I put it in the oven. Any ideas?
Hi Monica, try scoring the bread before it rises (as explained in step #5 of the recipe). That should help!
It could also be that your yeast is dying. Yeast only can survive while proofing around 120 degrees Fahrenheit at most. You might try letting your oven warm to just over a hundred degrees and see if that helps make them more fluffy, before you bake them. Happy baking!
I made this for the first time tonight. It was incredibly easy, very delicious and came out exactly like the picture. I followed the directions as written, but used a very sharp knife instead of a lame. My family devoured the first loaf and I’m saving the second one for tomorrow. I will definitely be making this again. Thank you Mel!
Followed the recipe exactly. Turned out great! So simple and delicious.
I’m making this bread et praying it turns out as my great grandson love garlic bread! I used rapid rise yeast as that was all I had!
I give this recipe 5 stars.
I’ve been feeding an active sourdough culture that’s been “alive” on my counter for almost 4 years. For those of us in that game we’re always looking for how we can incorporate the starter in recipes. Typically they include adding our starter to the base, then the recipes venture from there.
What I love about this recipe is that its quick and easy. Do I get the entire flavor profile by not adding some starter, or by not mixing then refrigerating for the cold ferment? Probably not. But my 8 year olds couldnt give a rip about your flavor profiles.
I made the whole recipe (2 batards). We kept one and gave one away. The neighbors ate the one we gave away in one sitting.
I make this bread often! When I first started making it I would make it once a week. It is a no fail french bread recipie. Only one I make now. It is SOooooo good! Thank you!
So I have made this twice. First effort was with the full ingredient list but the dough was just to big for my french bread pan. This time tried to make a 2/3rd recipe. Better fit on the pans but when I touch the raised loafs they seem to loose all their “air”. Did I do something wrong or is there a way to make the dough a little more “stiff”?
Love the taste regardless.
How would you make this bread using a bread maker even if only for the mixing?
I don’t see why you couldn’t use your breadmachine to mix and go thru the first rise……anybody???
For a stiffer dough, you can definitely add more flour! (But also try not to let the loaves over rise – they can also collapse if they’ve risen too long).
Did this again, but this time reduced the second raise to 40 minutes (seemed more than enough) and added a little extra flour. Results were perfect. No loss of lift and loafs came out just right. Also used a little egg wash before baking. Gave a nice shiny finish.
Over rising is true..trust me.. I’ve done it! Do the touch rule.. if once pushed on and dough returns… need more time rising. If after touching it stays down.. done rising!! Hope that helped!
I read the comments and saw that I could cut this recipe in half so that’s what I did because there’s only two of us. This bread baked up beautifully and looked just like the picture. I thought it was on the sweet side but that’s because I never put sugar in my French bread. The bread is delicious! I will definitely use this recipe again and next time I’ll omit the sugar.
The yeast needs the sugar, it feeds it and makes it active. I’d be careful omitting completely.
Thank you for this easy and delicious recipe. I have made this at least 10 times and my 12 year old grand daughter has also made it- always perfect. Thank you
I made this as instructed and it tastes great, however, mine wasn’t shiny nor did it have a nice crunchy crust as it came out of the oven. It just looked very sad and matte. Crust was kind of soft when pulled out of the oven. Kept it for 30 mins, I did add the ice cubes.
I had the same problem.
Mel???
LB – much of the end result (crust and color) will depend on your oven. You can try increasing the temperature by 25 degrees, moving an oven rack up higher in the oven, or using an egg wash prior to baking.
If I halve all of the ingredients, will that be ok to yield one loaf? Thanks!
Yep!
Can you make this dough ahead?
How far ahead are you wanting to make it?
I let the dough rise the first rise. Rolled out my loaves. And put one loaf in the fridge. Tomorrow I plan on letting it do the second rise and bake. I’m hooping this will work well.
So I have made this recipe so many times – it is my go to. Never had a problem with it.
Last night I made it and I guess too little flour as during second rise it would not hold a shape.
Today I remade and used the 6 cups of flour. Dough rose beautifully during second rise – but sank when I sliced with a lame.
Any advice on what caused this so I can avoid in the future?
Thank you.
If it’s turned out a lot of times for you, it’s hard for me to know exactly since I’m not there in the kitchen with you. Was it humid and rainy the last few times it hasn’t worked out? Sometimes making bread on rainy/humid days can cause the bread to turn out differently.
Hi,
Thank you for replying. No it wasn’t really any different than normal. I tried again today and though they rose better they’re still spreading. My normal loaves look like your picture but the ones today look more like flattened American footballs. The crumb is normal and they taste great – just frustrating that my loaves which normally look amazing look very much homemade 🙁
Loved this recipie i’m 13 and it’s my first time making bread. It turned out amazing and my whole family was impressed! I added a tablespoon of salt due to the comments and will add less next time. I used the 10 min and mix method as well as the ice cube tip. I cooked the loaves on seperate pans with parchment paper for 30 min and they looked great as well.
i have made this recioe with great success several times. I have started making cinnamon swirl bread with one of the two loaves and we just love it. I roll it out to 18 x 8 inches, sprinkle a mix of brown sugar Truvia and cinnamon on it, add some chopped nuts and dried cranberries and roll it up. Bake it in a loaf pan right alongside the other regular loaf. ❤
After baking, how long should I wait before cutting in?
I like to let the loaf cool completely, otherwise the texture can be a little gummy if it’s warm (but that doesn’t stop us from digging in when it’s hot and fresh from the oven)
This recipe didn’t work for me at all. The formed dough spread like crazy when rising and was almost completely tasteless upon baking. Another commenter suggested using the full 1 tbsp of salt and I agree. I think I’ll be sticking with other recipes that have clearer instructions and use weight measurements.
I used the full tbsp of salt, kneaded it by hand, and added a little more flour as I kneaded it, it came out perfect. Also, i added ice on a tray at the bottom of my oven, and repeated this again halfway through the bake.
Timing is always an issue for me. My goal is to have a freshly baked, warm loaf for the dinner table. Is it possible to make the dough, rise, shape the loaves and let them rise — and then refrigerate them to (like Cryo-sleep) and bake them to come out just as dinner is ready?
You can definitely experiment with this timing – my recommendation would be to put the loaves in the refrigerator prior to letting them rise otherwise, depending on how long they are in the fridge, they might over rise.
Love this recipe. I have made it multiple times. The only problem is that there are only two of us . I don’t want to cut the recipe in half just in case it’s doesn’t come out correctly. What is the best storage method for the remaining bread? I live in a very humid climate.
Hi Barbara – this recipe actually works great cut in half. But if you still want to make the full amount you could freeze the other loaf (or store well-covered at room temp).
I had the same problem.
Mel???
It fed my family of 8 quite easily, but I’ve also eaten both loaves on my own because it’s so tasty!
It makes me sad to see any ratings on here besides 16 stars. This was by far the easiest bread I have ever made. I tried it last week and it came out picture perfect. My wife thought I bought it from the local bakery. I’ve since made it 10 more times for friends and family. We have done it strict to this recipe and I feel like I could sell it at our local farmers market. Try brushing an egg on it before baking and using the ice cubes… nothing more beautiful!
how many people does this serve ?
It fed my family of 8 quite easily, but I’ve also eaten both loaves on my own because it’s so tasty!
How would you make this recipe in a high altitude. Would you cut down the rise time?
You can try googling high altitude adjustments for baking bread…a lot depends on the exact elevation. I’ve heard cutting down the yeast a bit and increasing the flour amount can help, but I don’t live at high altitude so I can’t say for sure.
Ok, thank you!
Very good, very easy. Thank you for sharing this recipe. <3
This bread was so good my family asks for this all the time. I will try and add sesame seeds the next time it sounds good.
If you add sesame seeds you can try brushing the top with some. water to. help them stick better! (In my experience they just fall off of you don’t)
This is the best and easiest French bread recipe yet. We live at 9,000 ft elevation and it comes out perfect every single time!! It’s my go-to recipe for quick bread and I freeze one loaf after it’s made. Lovely.
I wanted to make a good French Dip sandwich. I love them. Since I had the time I made your French Bread Recipe. WOW. The sandwiches turned out so so good. We had them for dinner, and then my family wanted them again for the next nights dinner. Since then we have them at least 1 time a week. Thank you for this delicious recipe. It is so good. Make extra bread for snacking. My family can eat bread like this all day long, with nothing else but maybe a little butter.
So I’m assuming then that you formed the dough into rolls? How many did you get? I’d love to make those!
This is one of my favourite recipes. I’ve made it dozens of times as the long loaf you show.
Could I also half the recipe to shape and bake it in a pullman loaf tin (9x9x4 inches)?
I haven’t tried that, but it stands a pretty good chance of working!
This is one of my favourite recipes. I’ve made it dozens of times as the long loaf you show.
Could I also half the recipe to shape and bake it in a pullman loaf tin (9x9x4 inches)?
Delicious and easy recipe! Used it for my garlic toast- which turned out so well!
look at that crumb. So fine like a milk bread. The worst part is that it’s intended to be a rustic bread but it failed rustic bread university. It aspired to be a rustic loaf, but it can’t. The folds are replaced by a knockoff version of stirring the dough down every 10 minutes. And “pressing out any air bubbles”??? Do you not know the definition of French bread? You can’t even see the ears produced by the lame. Look at all that yeast, 1 tablespoon of it. There’s no preferment either. The sugar and other ingredients degrade the bread’s title of being French and lead it to the sweet bread path. No cold retard, either. There’s probably very little lactic acids in that dough that you can’t even taste it. The baking sheet isn’t preheated, and the oven is at such a low temperature. The hydration of that dough is so low, only ~50%. This is more of a bagel than a French bread. Higher hydration doughs ferment faster and also become more crusty.
The baking hack can be improved by using boiling water since it steams faster idk. Also why not put the water in a tray like a normal person?
Is it really necessary to seek out a bread recipe and leave your nasty comments? If you’re such an expert on bread, why are you even looking up recipes from bloggers? Any true expert would educate, not belittle.
I might not be an expert on true “French bread” but I am an expert on being kind. You are just mean. If this is how you find a way feel good about yourself, I truly feel sorry for you.
Sara Sarah Higgins- Get a life! If you don’t like the recipe, don’t follow it. You can buy loaf of French bread instead.
In the words of Taylor Swift, why you gotta be so mean???
“Say it in the street, that’s a knock-out
But you say it in a Tweet, that’s a cop-out
And I’m just like, “Hey, are you okay?”
And I ain’t tryna mess with your self-expression
But I’ve learned a lesson that stressin’ and obsessin’ ’bout somebody else is no fun
And snakes and stones never broke my bones.”..TSwift.
Learn it. It’s good advice.
Also, BEST BREAD RECIPE online!!! Thanks Mel!
Get a life…Someone takes what was probably several hours of their time to share this recipe and you spend your time criticizing how bad it looks from the pictures and their instructions? Just move on to another recipe? How about you work on your writing skills with your spare time. “look at that crumb. So fine like a milk bread.” Couldn’t even capitalize the first letter of your paragraph and smartphones and tablets do that for us these days…Not to mention the broken english that doesn’t even form correct sentences.
Sara..so sorry you are such an unhappy person. Maybe you should not be baking but seeking help to find a positive life approach. I wish you well.
This recipie inspired my love of bread making. IT is so versatile, makes amazing garlic knots, and delicious, flavorful, bread. I love this recipie so much, I really can’t overstate the quality of the bread it makes. Even when I overprove it or forget about it, it still makes a decent loaf. Highly reccomend!
Made Bread at home for the first time .
Landed up with 2 amazing loaves of French bread
Fantastic recipe!
Thank you
I’ve made this twice. It has a good flavor but the cooked bread has a wetter texture than I expected. I was thinking of the fresh loaves you get at the bakery all light a fluffy inside and mine was much more dense and moist – not as springy. The outside crust was beautiful crunchy and browned perfectly at 22 minutes of bake time. Any suggestions for what I might have done wrong? Or do I have flawed expectations?
I don’t think this homemade bread recipe will produce the same super light and fluffy, almost “cloud-like” texture of the bread I can find at my supermarket. It’s going to be soft and chewy but a little more dense than that bread that just squishes together. 🙂
The taste of this bread is very good. I will have to order one of those pans, so the bread does not flatten. The bread was still good even though it flattened.
Delicious! I’m a bread snob, but NOT a cook and I totally pulled this off. My husband and kids were crazy impressed and all loved it!
Quick question though. I’ve made this twice. Both times, using the ice cube technique, my bread came out nice and crispy on the outside. But, after a few minutes, the outside went soft again. What am I doing wrong?
I just tried and face the same issue. The bread become soft after it cool down.
Te bread tasted great but once I cut the bread on the top it deflated and it was close to a flat bread
I have to say this is the best French bread I have ever made
I’m in Idaho have a gas oven and it was absolutely perfect
Hello, I’m going to make this without the stand mixer and I’ve been Googling – “how to knead dough without stand mixer.” Do you have any tips for this and can I follow the recipe as is if kneading manually?
I never use a stand mixer. I prefer hand kneading. Just follow the recipe exactly but once you cant mix with a utensil anymore, flour your hands and dig in. Once the dough is ball like, I fold in half, turn fold again, kinda just working it around. I find it easier to tell if more or less flour is needed when doing it with my hands. Once all the flour is worked in, lightly flour your working surface, turn the dough onto the counter and knead until it is smooth and soft.
Hello Mel and all bread-making people out there,
This is my second review of this recipe and yet again, it is amazing! Today I decided to prepare only half of the recipe for one loaf and it’s still a winner! 🙂 Do NOT skip the brushed butter!
Steam Side Note: If you’re worried about the ice cubes on the oven floor, throwing them in a small pan does the trick too – a couple sprays of water on your loaf while it’s getting cozy in the oven makes a world of difference too! Happy baking and stay safe!
I made your recipe several times by now. I like it. However, the baking time is too long. My oven is not overheating. I noticed that when I bake only 20 minutes, the bread is perfect. When I baked 30 min. for the first time the bread was too dry. Even 25 minutes is too long (at least for me). Thank you for this simple, yet delicious recipe.
Hi! I have an electric oven and I want to achieve the beautiful brown effect after baking.
1). Do I place the bread in the middle rack during the entire baking time?
2). Do I need to egg wash the dough before baking or slathering with butter right after out from oven will help?
Thank you! ^^
I would suggest using the middle rack or placing it a little higher in the oven (for better browning on top of the bread). I don’t egg wash the bread before baking but you can. (I do spread melted butter over the top of the baked bread after baking – that doesn’t help with browning but gives it a nice shine)
Is it okay to cut this recipe in half for just one loaf?
Yes, it can definitely be halved.
Thank you so much for this recipe! I make bread regularly but it’s nice to have a french bread that can be quickly and easily made for dinner. I have made this twice now and have had excellent results both times. It truly has the denseness and texture of a french bread. The tip about the ice cubes is wonderful.
This recipe is amazing! I made great bread in just a few hours! My family loves it and I’ve played around with making smaller individual loaves for things like subs/sandwiches. So so good. So easy!
I’d like to make sandwich rolls with this recipe to use for Italian sausage sandwiches. How many can I make, how big do I roll them out and how long do I bake them? TIA
Hi Brooke – it really depends on how big or small the sandwiches will be. You can shape them the same way, just in smaller pieces and the baking time will probably be around 15-16 minutes.
If I use bread flour, is the amount the same as all purpose flour or will it change the consistency of the bread?
You can use the same amount of bread flour and it should be fine.
Turned out perfect, great tip with the ice!
Thank you for a new FAVE!!!
Super yummy and easy! I used3/4 tsp of salt- and I recommend using the whole teaspoon next time! But still delicious
it says to use 3/4 tablespoon which is just shy of three teaspoons 🙂 It turned out perfect using the amount in the recipe, I hope that is helpful!
Hi Mel! I have made this too many times to count now! I have a question though, would it be fine to make this dough ahead and bake the next day? This is a quick recipe but sometimes I need that extra time to cook another recipe! Thanks again, you have been a life saver!
Hi Lizbeth! You can definitely try that! Usually yeast doughs do quite well in the refrigerator overnight. If so, I wouldn’t let it go through the first rise (in the 10-minute spurts OR in one big mass) and instead after the dough has mixed fully, I’d transfer it to a container and pop in the fridge and let it slow rise overnight.
Can dough be put in the fridge for use the next day?
Thanks
Yes, that should work just fine.
Wow, this was so easy and delicious! Thank you for sharing it. It was my first time baking bread and it turned out with a crispy crust and chewy center. I was intrigued with two parts of your process:
1- I went with the first method of rising, I’ve never seen that method before (rise for 10 minutes, knead for 10 seconds, repeat five times). I was curious if it would really work, it does!
2- Oil the board, then flatten the dough. Usually it’s flour and then flatten. I tried the oil method and it didn’t work for me. I decided to flour the board and then flatten. That worked. Quick question, what did I do wrong? How do you stretch dough to a 9×13 rectangle on a slick surface of oil?
I accidentally over proofed the formed breads during their second rise (eLearning got in the way). They were still tall, but also wide.
Your recipe is so foolproof that the breads were still delicious! Thank you again for sharing. We will definitely be making this again.
Hi Theresa, when I use cooking spray for the counter, I only use a very light misting of oil. Too much oil and it will be difficult to shape.
Today I made French bread for the first time. I used this recipe because it said easy. It was very easy to make and delicious too! Will definitely make again.
I really enjoyed making this bread and my family wants me to make this often! The second time I made it, I made two pizzas!
Thank you for this recipe!
Thank you for a great recipe. I have made the French bread as stated and also pinwheels. It’s a huge hit in our family
I tried this recipe during the quarantine for the first time and it turned out really good. The only thing that I would like to comment is that the parchment paper stuck to the bottom of the bread. Brushed olive oil at the bottom of the bread to scrape all the paper off with a knife. This was upsetting because I had to break the nice crunchy crust of the bread.
This was absolutely delicious and SO manageable for a first-time bread maker. I did it a second time with whole wheat flour- so good.
This is the best bread ever! I use 7 grain WW flour turns out great every time! So easy thank you !as always Louise
Mel, everything turned out great with this recipe… except how it looks!! Can you give some more guidance on how to form the loaf? A video would be great! I did what you said in the recipe notes but mine are so crooked and wonky. Only my first time making it, but I want to improve. Help!
I’ll try to get some how-to pictures or a video up as soon as I can.
Made this bread so many times during quarantine and now I’ll never be able to get out of making fresh bread cause the husband keeps asking for more! Thanks for the delicious easy recipe!
Fabulous! Makes a good bakery quality loaf. It freezes very well. I only wanted one loaf so I froze half the dough. Once out of the freezer, it took ages to rise, like 2 and a half hours. Just thought I’d share since people have asked if you can freeze the dough. You can, but tbis bread freezes so well, next time I’m just going to bake both loaves and freeze one. Thanks for the recipe ❤
Good bread easy and fast
I coated one of the loaf before And just after baking with a mix of olive oil and herbs (dried basil, parsley, oregano , and garlic) and salt… and it came out delicious .
Better than Wegmans Tuscan garlic bread according to my family comments .
I gave it only 4 stars as It is not a French bread as already mentioned in some comments.
Mel, can you please say a little more about making french bread if you don’t have a stand mixer with a dough hook? Like, how long to mix by hand, what to expect, how to keep it from getting too sticky, all that. Thank you! I want to try to make this delicious treat but I don’t have a stand mixer.
Hi Helen, the best way to mix is to combine all the ingredients (minus a cup of the flour) in a bowl and then turn out onto a lightly floured counter and start to fold it over and over until it isn’t so sticky, adding more flour as needed. Then once it’s manageable, knead it by hand for 10 minutes or so.
Does the rest and stir cycle end on the rest or the stir?? Thanks!
It will rest for a total of six times.
Either way, this recipe turned out AMAZING highly recommend, like everyone else!
Happy Mothers day Mel! Making this with my two daughters today ( and they didn’teven fight over whose turn it was to dump ingrediants into the mixer!) was a gift to us! Just want you to know that your recipes have totally changed dinner time at our house! Thank you again and again for sharing these!
Thank you so much, Natasha!
What would be some suggestions if I wanted to cook both loaves at the same time? Use a bigger baking sheet and rotate during cooking? Does it matter if loaves are horizontal or vertical when cooking two? Also does this freeze well after baking & what’s the best way to reheat ? Thank you so much!
First time bread maker here and this recipe turned out perfect!! My family of 5 devoured one whole loaf in an evening (oops!). Huge hit!
During this pandemic you have been a life saver! We make 2 of these batches of French bread a week! It’s so easy and tasty! Thank you!❤
Hey Mel,
Can I make this recipe with fresh or cake yeast? If so, what changes need to be made. This will be my first attempt at making fresh bread.
Hi Sue, your best bet would be to google a substitution for instant yeast using fresh or cake yeast as I don’t have much experience with that type of yeast.
Lovely flavour, but defnitely not the crumb of a French loaf. Having lived in France and Belgium, all types of French bread, baguettes, are well known.
So, have you altered this recipe or found another you think is better Katherine?
Ok. I rarely cook very much and NEVER bake. And eventhough i did the ice cube thing, the crust wasn’t super crunchy, but otherwise my bread turned out PERFECT!!! Thank you so very much! Great recipe and very easy to follow and be successful — even for those who don’t cook nor bake much. 🙂
I never imagined I would be able to make such delicious French bread at home!!! Thank you for this easy and user friendly recipe!!! 🙂
Just one question, how to keep the bread fresh for the day after if we are not going to devour them in the same day? Thanks! 🙂
I always store the cooled bread in a bag (and close it/seal it well).
I’ve made this recipe a dozen times in the last couple of weeks and it’s always amazing. My husband loves it.
Though, I believe this technically isn’t French bread because it contains sugar and oil. But it’s still great.
You can also use this recipe for any white bread you want. I’ve made it in a sandwich loaf pan, without the steam, as well as bread bowls, etc…
Wonderful recipe, family approved. Makes you feel like a pro Baker! Thanks for the recipe which will be my go to for French Bread loaves.
Amazing recipe! From this dough I made 4 loaves to share with my family. It was my first time making actual bread and everybody loved it, including myself. Tasted so good and I am definitely going to be doing this again
Hi Mel any chance of putt8 g the measurements into grams and millilitre as we don’t use cups over here in wales and I tried to to translate using google but it went a bit awry. Many thanks
Hi Lisa!! I’m not Mel, but I grew up in England on RAF Alconbury and would trade my right arm to be stuck in Wales over being stuck in Rio Rancho, NM ANY DAY!! Conversions of US to UK measurement…
2.25 cups warm water = 0.5323235 liters OR 18.73517uk fl oz
2 Tablespoons sugar = 28.35g 25 grams
3/4 Tablespoon salt = 12.80 grams
2 Tablespoons oil= 0.03 L/30ml
5.5-6 cups flour = 688.35-750.93 g
1 Tbsp Instant yeast = 8.50-9.45g
Good luck!! Mine is proofing as I’m typing!!
I plugged the recipe ingredients into google and this is what I get (I haven’t measured this way myself so please understand this is just online info and not personal experience): 530 milliliters warm water, 28 grams sugar, 9 grams yeast, 15 grams salt, 30 milliliters oil, 780 to 850 grams flour (I don’t like giving a strict flour measurement because the exact flour amount will depend on a lot of factors like elevation, humidity, etc).
what does the bottom of the bread look like
Hi Mel! Making this for the first time and wondering if I can proof in my oven? The proof temp is 110°.
Thanks for your reply
Yes, that should work…I get a little nervous about ovens being too hot. You might set it to proof and then turn it off so it cools just a bit.
Hi there! If I were to convection bake this bread (still individually) about what temp or time should I do it at? New to bread baking and wanted to try one regular and one convection. Thanks! Super excited about this recipe!
I usually set my convection oven to 25 degrees lower than a recipe that uses a standard oven temperature.
Hi Mel, thanks for this recipe, which I truly would love to make. I’d like to know whether I could half this recipe and whether the resultant bread would be the same, please? Thanks Mel and much appreciated.
Yes, the recipe can definitely be halved! Turns out great.
We are new to making bread, but we tried this recipe and loved it so much we are on our third batch in three weeks! I want to add the following:
1) we used a package of active yeast, which is 2 1/4 teaspoon yeast, but it worked perfectly.
2) the second time we made it, we brushed it with an egg white wash and it browned and crisped a bit more.
THANK you for the wonderful easy recipe, my family never wants store bought French Bread again!
My bread is not golden brown and I did try the steam. What can I do to get the golden color?
Sometimes, moving the oven rack to a higher position makes all the difference.
I made this exactly as stated. I did not have an electric bowl mixer but went old school. It came out fantastic and my husband loved it. I will be making it again.
Thank you Mel for all these wonderful recipes with clear cut instructions! I just bought a kitchen aid mixer and cannot wait to use it. I was curious though for your bread recipes, have you ever tried baking the bread directly on a baking steel? And if so would the baking time/temperature be any different?
Thank you.
I haven’t – sorry I’m not more help!
Hi I’m attempting to make this recipe now but I only have one pack of instant yeast instead of a full tablespoon. Would it still rise?
One packet is 2 1/4 teaspoons so it should be ok.
Thank you my bread turned out perfectly!
My first attempt and it was amazing, didn’t go with the ice trick, but still was on point.
I’ve made this recipe twice already. It came out amazing both times! So easy to follow and delicious!
Love this recipe! It is foolproof and comes out great each time! Thank you for sharing
It was good! However, I used the amount of salt recommended in the recipe before I read that the recipe originally called for 1 tbsp of salt and this recipe cut pack a little. Personally, I think I’ll actually add more than 1 tbsp. I think it needed more salt and flavor.
It was good! However, I used the amount of salt recommended in the recipe after I read that the recipe originally called for 1 tbsp of salt and this recipe cut pack a little. Personally, I think I’ll actually add more than 1 tbsp. I think it needed more salt and flavor.
First time making French bread, used my kitchenaid mixer… really happy with this recipe. It was a little dense, just a touch… but great taste, crispy crust… and it made A LOT of bread.
Hey Mel! This is the 4th or 5th time I have made this recipe. I have gotten different rising results each tine. All have been fine but different. I always opted to let it rise in the bowl slightly greased and covered. Then I split the dough and made two different loaves. Should I split the dough first, roll it out then let it rise as a loaf? Have you ever tried that? Just curious about results.
The loaf should rise as well – so I think I’m confused about what you are asking. I’ve never skipped the first rise (where it rises as one big mass or rises for 10 minute increments in the mixer), so I don’t know how it would work to only let it rise once shaped into a loaf?
The amount of time it takes to rise in the proof stages depends on how warm the water was when you used it as well as how warm the room is while proofing. The warmer it is, the faster it will rise.
You should allow your dough to rise twice.
Hi there!
Looking forward to trying this recipe. Wondering if it can be baked in a cast-iron dutch oven as a boule instead of shaping into loaves. Any thoughts? Would I need to change the cooking times?
Thanks!
I haven’t tried it, but I think it’s definitely worth a try! If the cast iron pot is preheated in the oven, it’s hard to know what the exact baking time will be. I’m guessing it will be about the same.
The bread spread out like a pancake. Will not be making this recipe again. Very disappointing!
You must have done something incorrectly as this is a pretty flawless recipe as attested to by all of
The great reviews. Try again?
You probably need to bake it in a baguette pan or add a little more flour next time. It is really a good recipe if done correctly.
I agree with Cheryl. You must have missed a step. You should try again. It really is fantastic.
Your methods to measure the flour and water may be off a bit making the dough too wet.
You are supposed to add flour while mixing until a “sturdy but soft” ball of dough forms. That’s why is states 5 1/2 to 6 cups flour and not an exact amount.
Very simple recipe to memorize so I’ve made it my go to recipe when I want to wip up some great bread…… family and friends love it and so do I
Thanksff
Brad
I’m not all that experienced with making bread, and this recipe turned it perfect!! Thank you! And it was super fun to throw the ice cubes in the oven. 🙂
I really wanna make this, but I’m having trouble understanding how you shape the loafs.
I have gluten and wheat allergy do you do any free from bread recipes?
Hi April, unfortunately, I don’t have many gluten-free yeast bread type recipes. I would suggest glutenfreeonashoestring.com – her recipes are wildly tested and she has a lot of bread recipes!
Delicious! Mine was huge so I didn’t want one to keep rising while the other baked. So I baked them together and they turned out just great! Did 30 minutes and that was right no; I do not have convection. I do have a extra large sheet pan than has no rims so they both fit on the pan and on the same shelf in the oven. Yum! And yes—EASY!
Turned out great and I even messed up on the amount of salt but it was still delishous.
Followed recipe exactly with all purpose flour. Worked perfectly!
This recipe is amazing!! I have now made this recipe a total of three times and it was my first yeast bread I’ve ever made and every time it turns out better than the last. My boyfriend goes crazy for this bread and always asks if I’m making more on the weekends. Also to note I made this “the old fashioned way” aka with a wooden spoon and still it turns out great.
It seems like I have to use a lot more flour than called for to get my dough to form a ball while in the mixer (more than s cup more than recipe calls for). And then it is still very sticky when I go to flatten and roll it. Could I be doing something wrong?
The exact amount of flour is dependent on a lot of variables (elevation, humidity, temperature in your kitchen, how we each measure ingredients, etc) so don’t stress if you have to add more flour. As long as the dough is soft and smooth without being overly stiff, it should be fine.
Can I split into 4 small loaves? Would you recommend any adjustment to the baking time?
Yes! I would bake for about 5-6 minutes less (and add more if you need it).
Mine was also still very, very sticky. I tried it out for the first time yesterday and I kept on putting more and more flour, hoping that it would get less sticky. Today, I tried it again and it was getting sticky again. Kept putting flour, then finally decided to take it out and knead it, adding more flour as I kneaded. Worked a lot better. Hoping the second time’s the charm.
Flawless recipe. My first attempt at making bread was a total success. Don’t get fancy with any deviations, just follow exactly…..and now I digress…..
I placed a ramekin on the floor of my oven when I started the preheating. That is where I threw my ice cubes when the loaf went in and it worked perfectly.
My loaf was a little on the fat side so I recommend going the full 30 minutes.
And don’t forget the melted butter once you pull it out of the oven. It is often the over looked finishing touch that attracts you to the best loaf in the bin at the store.
Just sensational and if you have a standing mixer….it does 90% of the work. You just need a few hours, just don’t be in a hurry.
Can’t wait to try your french bread & lots of other receipes! Thank you for sharing!
It seems like I have to use a lot more flour than called for to get my dough to form a ball while in the mixer (more than s cup more than recipe calls for). And then it is still very sticky when I go to flatten and roll it. Could I be doing something wrong?
Thanks for your advice earlier! Next question: Have you tried making smaller loaves from this same recipe? I am trying to make 3 loaves, but smaller sized, but I am not sure how long to bake them for. Thanks!
I have made this recipe multiple times and it is amazing – the last two times I split the dough into 4 loaves and baked for the same amount of time using the ice cube method in my oven set for convection baking. Absolutely delicious french bread.
Yes, you can make any size of loaf with this recipe. For smaller loaves, just watch the baking time – you can probably take 5 or so minutes off the baking time.
I’m making this as I write. Nothing better than homemade bread. 🙂 I’m curious, what does the 10 minute wait, mix and repeat 5x accomplish? I’ve never heard of this method. Thanks for posting the recipe!
It’s just an alternate form of rising – helps develop a fluffy, light texture in the bread!
I made this once and the flavor and crust turned out great! I felt like mine was a little dense. Not as many air bubbles. Did I knead it too long? Also, I don’t need 2 loads at one time. Am I able to make and freeze half? If so when do I freeze it? Before the 1st rest or before the 2nd rest? Thanks for this wonderful recipe!
Yes, you can freeze half (or make half the recipe at a time). I’ve never frozen the bread dough prebaked but I have frozen the baked loaves a lot, and they freeze great. I don’t think kneading too long would be an issue – could be the bread needs less flour OR more kneading time so it isn’t as dense (to develop the gluten).
This bread is fabulous! Easy to make and delicious. However, my bread isn’t looking as golden brown and pretty as yours. It is blonde–even using the ice cube trick– and a bit lumpy looking. Any suggestions?
Hi Meridith – sometimes moving an oven rack up or down in the oven is the trick to good browning. In my oven, it tends to be in the upper half of the oven that my bread browns the best.
I made this last night. It was my first time making bread at home. I didn’t slice it deep enough so it didn’t look as pretty as yours but it was still delicious. We had it warm with butter last night, then had French bread pizzas for lunch and now I have a French toast casserole in the fridge waiting to be popped on the oven in the morning. I call this a success! Thank you for the recipe!
I tried yesterday. It was the BEST plain bread recipe EVER! The one and only one successful one. Thank you so much. Just to share i only have 1 cup of bread flour and i topped up the rest with the normal plain flour. I was worried at first. I spent more time kneading the bread though. Pls share the recipe with your loved ones.
I made this bread for the first time and WOW!! My family loved it!! I used all purpose flour and 1 packet of active dry yeast. I also added the ice to the oven when baking and the crust was firm and the inside so soft. This will be my GoTo recipe for homemade bread. Thank you!!
So good and so easy for this beginner to try!!! Didn’t have a stand mixer so I kneaded it by hand, family was happy and so were my neighbors who got the extra loaf 😉
I unfortunately don’t have a stand up mixer, is there a way I can still make this bread?
Yes, you can mix the ingredients in a bowl with a spatula or spoon and knead by hand. Others have tried that if you read through the comments!
Ten stars! Best I’ve ever made and I’ve been looking for awhile! I used bread flour but added 1 tablespoon wheat gluten because I like it chewy! It was so easy. I’m giving my neighbor a loaf but will have to make more tomorrow because the two of us will finish it off. I’ve read that putting the dough in the fridge overnight makes bread taste better so I may experiment with that. Thank you!
Hi Mel! I’ve made your bread about five times now! I love it. During this horrible pandemic It’s been very therapeutic for me to make something so comforting and so delicious. I follow your recipe exactly… even down to the ice cubes in the bottom of the oven! Thank you for such a great recipe.
Recently found this recipe and have since made it several times. This became an immediate family favorite for grilled veggie sandwiches, French toast, pasta night, and so many other occasions. I have also found it to be the perfect bread for croutons and stuffing cubes, after it gets a little stale. As others have noted, it is technically an Italian bread, which is what I wanted!
So my dough looked really good. I shaped my loaves and put them in a warm place rise. I came back an hour later and they were wide and very flat. Did I over rise them? My dough wasnt sticky at all. I’d love to try this again and get it right, but I dont want to waste my precious yeast!
Hi Maralee, if that happens again, you can reshape the loaves and let them rise again and they should bake up just fine. Otherwise, next time, it sounds like even if your dough wasn’t sticky, it might need a bit more flour so the structure will help the dough rise up instead of out. Another thing to try to do is roll or shape a very tight loaf.
Hey Mel ! It’s my first time using yeast and i had a couple questions ! Is it one tablespoon for either instant / dry active yeast, are the measurements the same regardless of the yeast ? I read that the instant is more concentrated compared to the dry active.
Thank You ! Can’t wait to try this recipe.
I always use the same amount interchangeably, but I know some people use 1/4 less if using instant yeast vs active dry yeast.
Hi Mel,
Thanks for the recipe; tried bread baking my second time and it’d turned out perfectly! My first time with a different recipe was a disaster as I’d read the instructions wrong and had killed the yeast with too hot water. My family lived the bread and devoured it within minutes. One question I have is how to reduce the yeasty flavor from the bread? Any suggestions?
Thanks again for sharing this great recipe!
You can try reducing the yeast and see how it goes, but that may affect rise times and texture of the bread.
This is a fantastic recipe. I have made it with 100% wholewheat, and half wholewheat and AP flour, it just gets better with each try. I really want to try it with dark rye flour- would you have any advice on that?
I haven’t tried this bread with dark rye flour, so I’m sorry I’m not more help, Dee! My recommendation when using new, heartier flours in bread is to start with 50% white flour and 50% of the wheat (or rye flour) in this case.
Followed instructions to a “t”. Used half whole wheat flour and half bread flour. It’s ok. I’ve baked a ton of bread and this was “meh”…
I made these and it was really good! Except the log that was waiting while the first is baking list it’s size any thoughts?
Hi Nathan – if your kitchen is really warm and that second loaf has the potential to overrise, pop it in the refrigerator to hang out until it has its turn to bake.
This recipe always turns out perfectly.
This recipe is so good. Crust is crispy but not hard and inside is so soft and fluffy
Just used this recipe to make rolls for po’boys. Excellent.
I did not look up the bottom of the oven concerns and just used this cool mini loaf pan I bought many years ago an only used them one time. This was a perfect use for the ice, I assume any oven safe pan that fit would serve the purpose, but this worked perfectly. I also went with an individual loaf for the sandwich and I finally got to use my bread couche I have had in the cabinet for years. Definitely recommended.
I also do not have a stand mixer and feel I actually make better bread by hand, just keep them floured and cool.
Thank you for this great starter recipe.
Made this using the leave in the bowl method – which is so easy! And I used the ice cubes. Why have I never heard of these tricks before? Bread turned out lovely, the perfect thing for to smear a little rhubarb ginger jam on. Yum!
Hi, I’m super excited to try this. i’ve been working on bread making of late (like many others) and I have a question. I don’t see any kneading or mention of it. The 10 second spurts on the mixer is all that’s needed? with limited ingredients, I want to be sure I’m doing the correct method before diving in! Thanks!
In step #2 it says to knead the bread for 2-3 minutes. 🙂
I have never made French bread before-just always banana or zucchini or nut breads and I was very hesitant to make this but I followed the directions (and I do not have a stand alone mixer) and it was easy and AMAZING!!! I am so excited that I found your website and this amazing recipe. Thank you!!
2nd time making this recipe. Both times were great. I did by hand both times because I was to lazy to pull out the stand mixer. I think I may need more flour ( I used 5 1/2 cups but I notice when I’m rolling into the loaf shape, it’s a bit soft and therefore doesn’t roll up tightly which makes mine rise more wide. It was also Rai y and dreary out and I know moisturize can affect the baking process. Any tips?
If the bread is rising out instead of up, then yes, you probably need a bit more flour.
Never had made bread before but made these for the first time a couple of weeks ago and my family loved it! It was delicious.
However, I made it again last night and these ones came out even better!! This time I really took my time with adding flour. I think last time I added a little more than necessary.
Obsessed with this recipe! Crispy outside but beautiful soft pillowy inside!
Thanks for the recipe!!
Never had made bread before but made these for the first time a couple of weeks ago and my family loved it! It was delicious.
However, I made it again last night and these ones came out even better!! This time I really took my time with adding flour. I think last time I added a little more than necessary.
Obsessed with this recipe! Crispy outside but beautiful soft pillowy inside! Love it! Thanks for the recipe!!
Delicious, and so easy. I baked both loaves and froze one. Can’t wait to make French toast in the morning!
I’ve made this recipe about 4 times already and the bread disappears. Can you use loaf pans for this recipe or would it mess things up?
Yes, you can! The bottom of the bread is much softer, but a lot of people have done so with good results.
Hi. Delicious bread. But can more than our family of four needs at once. Can you tell me if it works ok to put leave the second loaf in the fridge and make it 12-18 hours later?
Usually bread dough like this does fine slow rising in the refrigerator like that.
Thank you!
And I just have to let you know…the next day bread was EVEN better.
Thank you Mel. This was my very first attempt at making bread. I woke up today, after practicing self quarantine for over a month now. I had a craving for fresh French Bread. I followed your recipe. The bread was / is FABULOUS!!! Thank you so much for sharing this incredible recipe. Because I had great success, this recipe is definitely fool proof!
Way to go, David!!
Can I make this without a mixer?
If I missed it in the post I sincerely apologise.
Yes! You can mix the ingredients together in a large bowl by hand (with a wooden spoon, etc). Just take care not to overflour the dough.
I made it with out a mixer. It turned great!
( It took about 30 minutes to need by hand)
Can the dough be made in a bread machine using this recipe? I twould save a lot of work.
Feel free to experiment! I don’t have a bread machine so I can’t give any expert advice.
The recipe (as stated) is ‘jaw droppingly delicious’. It was easy to use and worked like perfection. I used bread flour, so I used little over 6 cups of flour. The waterbath/ice crube trick really got this beautiful crust encasing the soft bread. Thank you so much.
I will definitely be making this again.
Made this , this morning because the dog got me up again.I digress turned out lovely but have made two , one by the kenwwod chef and the other in the panasonic bread maker so will compare when ready.
Thanks for a great recipe was easy.
I love this recipe … one of my loaves went flat as I was about to put it in the oven! I don’t know what happened but it happened fast, haha. I baked it anyway and it actually turned out just fine!
I made this bread out of boredom sitting at home – I did everything as the recipe said but it looks good though it became very hard- any idea why?
I may try again as it’s such an easy recipe.
Have you actually cut into it and tried it? I made it today and it looked and felt super hard and maybe overcooked, but when I cut into it it was super soft inside.
Hey mel!
This recipe is absolutely fantastic! Not only it is simple, its end result was better than any other bread I have made to date, and I make dough and bread every day at work.. I was blown away by how tender the insides were compared to the crispness of the crust, if you are struggling with that you probably need to cook longer. Thank you for this awesome recipe!
Hello! I’m pretty sure I didn’t make the dough the right consistency. I think it may be a bit too soft. It wasn’t sticking to the bowl anymore, but felt sticky when I transferred to a greased bowl. Anyways, I only want to cook one loaf. Can I freeze the other dough loaf? Or should I cook both? If I can freeze, what is best way to do that? Thank you!
I’ve only ever frozen the baked loaves, but you could try freezing the dough
This recipe is my go to for delicious French bread. If you want the bread to be lighter, you can knead it for an extra 5 minutes.
The critical part of this recipe is to make sure your yeast activates by producing foam. If you don’t have a thermometer to indicate water temperature, I highly recommend purchasing one.
Perfect. Seriously it came out perfect.
I’ve made this bread 4x within the last 3 weeks. My husband goes COMPLETELY crazy over it. It’s easy and delicious.
Since there are only 2 of us in the house, I chunk the bread up in 4’s, wrap it in wax paper then foil and pop in the freezer. When we’re ready to eat our portion, I pop in the micro for 30-45 seconds and it comes out tasting like you JUST baked it. Y’all. This is so good.
I am about to make this bread! If I am using active dry yeast do I also use 1 tablespoon or the whole package (I believe about 2 1/4 tablespoons)?
You should only use a tablespoon and not the whole package.
Yep!
My daughter (8) said it’s the best bread she’s ever had.
I have never had much success with bread but made this out of boredom while “Staying Home”. It was AMAZING! I was sure that I had some crazy beginners luck but I made it again. Also AMAZING! I used rapid rise yeast and poured a small amount of boiling water in a small oven proof bowl on a rack below the bread for the steam effect. If I can make this, anyone can make this. Winner!
So good! I was craving garlic bread, so I came here to find an easy French bread recipe. This was super easy to make and came out crispy on the outside and soft and fluffy on the inside (thanks to the ice cube trick!). I would have added more salt though (I used 3/4 Tbsp).
VERY GOOD STUCK TO THE RECIPE better than store made an much cheaper
This was my first attempt ever at making bread, and it couldn’t have been easier than with this recipe. I followed it to a T, with the only difference being I brushed it with an egg wash, and it turned out delicious. I threw in the ice and it did indeed make a crunchy, crumbly exterior. My neighbor loved it, and I think it will be a family staple.
After trying and failing with two other recipes I decided to try one more. This was fantastic!! I added the full six cups but had to add more and unfortunately I just eyed it and don’t have an accurate measurement. I am not well-versed in the skills of bread making and was nervous trying to determine when I had added enough flour. I let my kitchen aid do the bulk of the work but kneaded a few more times before placing it in the bowl for the first rise. My husband and daughter were very pleased! Thank you so much.
You know I don’t know that it’s necessarily French bread, mine kind of came out tasting like Olive Garden breadsticks but with crust, but I’m also not complaining…
Hi…can you use self rising flour instead of yeast? I am not a baker so hopefully this is not a stupid question. Lol
No, unfortunately this recipe needs the yeast for rising (not a stupid question, by the way!)
This was a huge hit in my home. Made this yesterday with my youngest (10) who is bored because of the stay home orders. The bread was delicious! We used the second loaf to make french bread pizzas today for lunch. I am adding this to my go to recipe collection.
Too salty! Do not add so much salt.
This bread recipe is amazing.
1. The second rise I topped with some roasted veggies.
2. Coated with an egg wash
3. Covered loosely with parchment paper to protect the veggies.
I could seriously eat the entire loaf! Wish I could post a picture.
This bread is more like Italian bread, not French. French bread does not have sugar nor oils in it. This bread was too sweet and flavorless for my liking.
Italian or french or IRISH IT TASTED GREAT
Isn’t that Italian bread? I thought French bread did not include sugar and oil.
How do you store French bread so it maintains its crust?
It will inevitably soften over time…I usually store in a bread bag so I don’t have a great way to store it to keep the outside crusty (without drying out the entire loaf).
Oh my heavenly French bread!!! Thank you Mel, I’m going to gain the Covid-19# with all of these delicious recipes!
Made this twice and love it! Shared with neighbors who are requesting it again! Going to make it again today but attempt to use small loaf pans to make it easier to share. Fingers crossed!
Made it today and it came out perfect on the first try. My oven took the full 30 minutes to get the nice golden finish. Thank you!!
Yes brenda 30 mins perfect
Made this today, and wow so perfect! One thing I did do, after removing the first loaf and putting the butter on, it got soft. So, I tossed it back in for 5 minutes. PERFECTION! Thank you!!! My son is doing online school bragging to his friends 🙂
This is a perfect recipe for french bread. It man two beautiful loads of bread, delicious!
Hmmmm. This recipe was just ok. I have made bread before so not my first time. I may have needed more flour because the dough seemed too soft. Bread came out more dense than I like. I didn’t get the browning I would like but I DID forget the ice. Also I like a yeastier flavor.
I made this once already and it turned out great. Can I divide the dough and bake in two regular loaf pans? I would Like to use for sandwiches.
I haven’t tried that but you could definitely experiment…
I made this today halfed it for one loaf only issue I had was it did flatten some. The second issue is not very browned after 34 minutes. Any ideas? Longer cook
Sometimes moving the oven rack up a level will help the bread brown better. If it’s flattening, it sounds like it may need a bit more flour to hold structure so it rises up instead of out.
We noticed as soon as we buttered the bread when it came out , it browned up! Made this earlier and omg. Tha is for this delicious recipe.
I have a hard time picturing step 5, not sure what to do here.
How can I help? You basically want to roll the dough up into a log or loaf shape, pressing the seam so it seals. Does that help?
Any advice for making the recipe into individual sized loaves? I’d like to use them for sandwiches next week. Would the cooking time change? Thanks in advance!
It should work really well! You could probably cut the baking time down by 5-6 minutes.
Thank you!!!!
A couple of questions: first, rather than risking your stove by tossing ice cubes in it, couldn’t you put an empty cake pan in the bottom of the oven and toss the ice cubes into that when you put the loaves in to bake? And second, with almost all ovens and microwaves having a proofing setting these days, could you use that setting instead of conventional rising based on time?
I don’t have a proofing setting on my oven or microwave so I’m not sure, but you could definitely try (sounds like it should work great!). I’ve heard of some people saying their heated glass baking pans cracked when they came into contact with something cold so I wouldn’t recommend that, but if the pan is metal, that should work.
I used my proofing setting on my oven. I still let it rise for about an hour for both rises. It turned out amazing but I was silly and let it cool on the pan instead of a rack so I lost the great crustiness of the outside. Definitely won’t make that mistake again!
I’m on social distancing in Canada here, and I decided to learn to bake. My baking skill is pretty much zero, I’ve made buns 3 x and bread once in the last few day and I just made this bread… it’s a keeper!! My family is beyond happy with it also! So thank you!!
Easy to follow and turned out great. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Mel
I will try this French bread tomorrow can’t wait actually! question why do you say bake the loaves separately ? what do I risk if I bake them at the same time? And does the second loaf over rise while it sits waiting to be baked? can or should I put corn meal at bottom of pan?
thanks
I am unable to fit both loaves on one baking sheet so I bake them separately but if you can bake them at the same time, definitely do that!
I made this bread today and it came out great. I followed the recipe and times, especially for the rise. After the initial 3 cups of flour, I used another 2 1/2 to get it to the right consistency, and kneading it by hand a few times got it really smooth….that nice dough feel. I put the cuts in before the second rise. I’m not a frequent bread-baker and I found this recipe easy and produced delicious bread.
Just made this and it’s perfection!!! Thank you!
SPOILER ALERT: I never made French Bread Baguettes before today – the fluffy inside, crunchy outside, and beautiful golden brown loaves of joy in the grocery store always seemed like something I could never achieve. Mel, you are an absolute genius and thank you for sharing this incredible recipe with the world! I followed exactly as recommended, used bread flour, and a good ol’ fashioned glass bowl, wooden spoon, and my hands. Kudos to you for the the luscious smell of fresh bread still lingering here as I wonder where the first loaf has disappeared to! 6 stars if I could give it! 🙂
So easy to do with a stand mixer! I have made this recipe a couple o times in the last 2 weeks and it turns out perfectly every time! Thanks for an easy, tasty, and quick to pull together recipe!
Looks lovely. I would love to try it myself, I have a few questions if you may be kind enough to answer.
-I only want to bake one loaf, how should I go about dividing the ingredients then?
-Also since I don’t have a stand mixer- can I use a hand mixer with the kneading hook? Or would I get better results kneading by hand?
-Is it ok to use the ‘default’ baking tray that you get with the oven? It has taller edges than the one shown in your recipe.
-Is it crucial to slash the top of the bread or is it mostly for the appearance?
Thanks!
You can divide the ingredients exactly in half for one loaf. I would suggest kneading by hand. I’m not sure what default baking tray you are referring to – I’m sorry! The slashing on top helps the bread rise.
I made the bread taste great but did not slice the top and it’s not crispy the bottom is not the top I did pour melted butter on bread please advise
Thanks for sharing this. Posted a while ago, but it is still reaching people! In COVID-19 lockdown with the immediate family in Northern California. We just received active dry yeast and 24 lb bag of flour today. Will use your instructions to make some awesome fresh bread! (Baker’s lame has been ordered and should be here later this week.)
Thanks for well described steps. Stuck at home due to our state being on lockdown and I was actually able to make this. Also, fun to do with your kiddos so they can learn life skills while they’re at home.
This is excellent homemade bread, and easy to make. My only wish is that it had a crispier exterior, as it had softened as it cooled.
Made my first loaf. Thanks! A nice distraction during these times. Always good to break bread with family.
I’ve made this recipe before and loved it! I’d like to make it again, but the recipe yields 2 loaves and we won’t need that much bread all at the same time. Halving recipes like this one doesn’t always turn out right. Can I freeze either the dough or a finished baked loaf? Thanks!
The baked and cooled loaves freeze great!
Oh my Heavens. I made this this afternoon and it turned out DEVINE! My husband’s eyes just lit up at the first bite and that to me was worth all the effort. We are also socially isolating ourselves in the wake of this pandemic and due to the shortage of bread this recipe will be #1 in our home. Thank Mel.
the bread tastes great, but I couldn’t get the outside crusty even with your ice cube trick. any idea what I did wrong?
delicious with minimal Kneading compared to other breads. I made by hand with Red Star instant yeast and all purpose flour.
I made this recipe today because our stores are out of bread here and wanted some bread for the kids. Every thing was fine until the 2nd rise. I place it in a warm oven and it didn’t rise up but spread out and flattened. Not sure what I did wrong.
Hi Sarah, if it flattened, it sounds like you might need a bit more flour to help with structure.
Thanks. We are trying again today. This time I upped the flour so I’ll see how it goes!
I have been making breads for 40+ years. I absolutely recommend this recipe. Crust has the perfect crispness and the inside is soft and light. I placed a round cake pan with boiling water in the oven, rather than risk the ice cubes. I did not vary from the original ingredients. Slashed bread at the end of the rise. I brought two baguettes to a family BBQ a week ago and it was a hit with old and young alike. I can’t remember the last time I received so many compliments. I had no problem sending the small remainder home with my oldest granddaughter. This recipe is a winner in my opinion.
Hi Mel. I just made your French bread and I can’t wait to taste it! I was wondering what to do to keep it from spreading out so much on the sheet pan when baking. Did I need more flour? Thank you for answering!
Yes, it sounds like a bit more flour will help the structure of the dough so it rises up instead of out!
With 700+ comments, I knew I had to try. AMAZING! Thank you for making bread-making more manageable in my life. I love easy, yummy recipes like this. Will be making more loaves this week to leave on door steps for neighbors…I think we all need a little more bread at times like this.
Fantastic! This was my first effort with bread. I love French bread the best and this is wonderful. I will keep this and make it often definitely a 5/5. Thank you.
I can’t see anything in the notes about using bread flour…just AP and whole wheat flours. The grocery store sold me 50 lbs of bread flour, telling me it was AP flour. So now I need to use bread flour! Is there anything different about the recipe if I use bread flour? Thanks for your help and expertise!
Hey I’ve used bread flour and AP both came out great
Thanks, Alli!
Just used this recipe to make rolls for po’boys. Excellent.
I did not look up the bottom of the oven concerns and just used this cool mini loaf pan I bought many years ago an only used them one time. This was a perfect use for the ice, I assume any oven safe pan that fit would serve the purpose, but this worked perfectly. I also went with an individual loaf for the sandwich and I finally got to use my bread couche I have had in the cabinet for years. Definitely recommended.
Thank you for this great starter recipe.
Bread flour will work great – no need to change anything!
Hi Julie,
Bread flour will work perfectly! :]
hello Mel…thank you for sharing this …dying to try this this morning!
Do you have this recipe in grams?
This is a great recipe. My kids and I love this recipe.
This was fantastic. Much Appreciated! I was a little skeptical because with the handful of times I have made bread, it hasn’t been great.
This bread was so soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside. Made it exactly to specifications using the second rising method.
Thanks again! <3
Hello! I tried this recipe and everything was going very well until I baked them. Mine never got the golden crust that the pictures seem to have. I’m sure it’s something I did rather than the recipe, but I can’t figure out what. If anyone has any suggestions or ideas, I would appreciate it!
Hey, most likely you just didn’t let them bake long enough. Maybe your oven tends to run on the cold side or something. I personally don’t use hard and fast baking times, so I’ve found that when my bread is nearing the 25 minute mark I tap the bread with my nail, and if it’s slightly golden and sounds hollow when you tap the crust, it’s done. Ovens sometimes cook differently, so using your senses is a better bet than relying on the timer. Hope that helps.
I love it! Made today and turned out so scrumptious.
Lol just made toast with it and topped with PB and honey. This is so bad. But oh so good!
Anyone know how many calories in a slice??
I made this for the family yesterday. It was perfect and made the social distancing a little more bearable. Thanks Mel!
Hi! Could I braid this bread instead of turning into artisan style loaves?
Yes, I think so!
Did you try braiding it?
This bread is fantastic.Everyone could not get enough!my kids loved it!
Used second rise method. Loaves were beautiful. Thank you!
I’ve never tried to bake bread before today and thanks to your recipe it turned out perfectly! So delicious – thank you!!
We are very lucky to be on holiday but we’re missing our usual homemade bread! This recipe fit the bill and came together easily as you promised and turned out beautifully. I usually hate it when people comment on how they changed a recipe but I had to adapt a bit as I’m not at home. So I had to sub honey that was available for sweetener and I halved the ingredients and mixed it by hand ( no stand mixer here). Success! Real bread fresh from the oven! So easy you can do it anywhere!!!
Thank you so much for sharing the recipe. I’ll be using it again.
I forgot to add the salt- what can I do?
Yes I did and it was delicious but a little pale. The texture was great and the crust was crunchy
My French bread didn’t cone out too golden. The cane out good but not the top. Why is this.
I tried this recipe today.. used the full tablespoon of salt, and it was excellent. I e tried so many french bread recipes, and this one was by far the best. The kids were gobbling it up. Thanks for posting. Can’t wait to make some homemade garlic bread with pasta this week with it. Absolutely will be using your recipe again!
I have a Emile Henry 13 inch Bread Baker. Can I use this instead of the ice in the oven method?
I’m not familiar with that so I’m not entirely sure – sorry!
Quick note to yall making this, the author does its yeast wrong. When doing the yeast, your water should be pretty warm. The general guide is to ask yourself would you take a bath in that water? If yes, it’s perfect. Make sure to mix the yeast together properly and let sit for about 10 minutes not five.
Other than that, this is an incredible recipe. Great job.
How incredibly rude. The recipe clearly states warm water. She also goes over this process on her website through multiple tutorials and explains the water should be warm like you indicated. Five minutes of sitting is the standard recommended time, this is what King Arthur flour suggests as well…. if you want to let it sit for 10 go ahead but she’s not wrong just because you feel it should be longer. Also she says you could use instant yeast and then this wouldn’t matter at all…
So I am not a baker, but I’m trying. I absolutely love this recipe. I’ve made the normal, bread bowls, and jalepeno cheddar bread. I love it so much and so does my family. The only complaint is that it doesnt taste as good room temp. Thank you so much for this recipe!!!!
Bread HEAVEN!!!! I’ve been experimenting with making bread for the last month-after I was gifted a Kitchen Aid by my DO for Christmas.
I started with No-Knead, slow rising, Artisan doughs. They do get an amazing crust, but the inside was lacking that fluffy, French bread, texture. This has it!
The dough was a breeze to make in the Kitchen Aid, I mean so easy. I did knead with my dough hook for about 5 minutes on speed 2, and then a couple extra minutes on speed 4, it just didn’t have the smooth texture that properly kneaded dough has at the suggested 3 minutes of kneading.
The loaves rose for an hour—except for the second loaf that was cooked— and I put a pan of water on the bottom rack. You can tell they are done rising when you poke an indent with your finger, and it doesn’t fill in (bounce back).
At 15 minutes of baking I added more boiling water to the bottom pan, and they got a beautiful, golden crust.
The second loaf had more rise time, so it spread out more, and browned faster. I took them out at exactly 25 minutes, but 30 seems like it would keep a crispier crust, once they cooled the crust was soft.
Going in the recipe book! Can’t wait to try different sweet, and savory, additions to this dough. Thank you
This is definitely a keeper. Great recipe. Great results. Didn’t change a thing. Absolutely scrumptious. Thank you.
Whenever I bake bread I try and plus it into my Magnum opus so now I put 1/4 cup honey (you won’t taste it trust me) and 1/4 melted Kerrygold butter before the addition of flour, bread comes out amazing.
Hi! this bread is delicious – it’s my boyfriends new favourite bread that I make. I like to braid it with shredded cheese or cinnamon sugar! One question though – can I make the dough and put in the fridge and let it sit for a couple days? I want to eat it friday but won’t have time thursday or before dinner on Friday to make it fresh! Will the dough be okay in the fridge? 🙂
The longest I’ve refrigerated is 24 hours…not sure how it would fare longer than that but it’s worth a try.
I made this over the weekend and my husband said, “You are getting SO good at baking bread! This tastes professional!” I loved the compliment, and told him it was due to this recipe on your site. I used olive oil within the recipe, and did Rising Method #1 – which I had never heard of before! It was awesome! And I used the lame my mom got me for Christmas too, so life is definitely good. 🙂
I’m a professional chef ,and I would say that anyone should have a success with this recipe,so easy to make,it turned out perfectly for me
Bread turned out great! Now the real test is the taste. Easy recipe and rather quick using rapidrise yeast. Thanks!
Thanks for the recipe Mel! Hands down, the best loaf of bread ever! I halved the recipe and it was perfect!
I have just started to make homemade bread. This French Bread recipe is so simple and easy to follow. My results were nothing short of fabulous, great tasting bread. From now, it is the only one I will use for French Bread.Thank you so much Mel !
1000 % perfect
Thank you
Fantastic bread! I find it’s very soft and tastes amazing. Easy to make
This isn’t actually French bread, as they are strict about ingredients. This is more akin to Italian. Just being nerdy and letting you know!
French cooking typically has a lot of butter I thought. I tried this recipe 3 times and it tastes like it needs double the amount of salt requested. I also thought about adding another tbsp of sugar and using melted butter instead of oil. Other than that, I think it has a nice texture. But it doesnt have that really nice bread smell to it. I will have to make some changes and try it a fourth time
Would it work to add chocolate chips to this bread after its risen?
I haven’t tried that, so I’m not sure – but if I was using an add-in I would add it during the kneading process.
That is the best bread I’ve ever made! I opted for the 10 minute incremental rising. You, my friend, are a genius. ❤️
For some reason, I can’t get this recipe to cast to my Google home device. Would be great if I could see it there and save it to my cookbook.
Does it have to be in the rectangular shape? I am curious if this recipe will work in a round loaf shape or even cut into little rolls. Thanks for your insight.
Yes, you can definitely use different shapes.
Thank you so much for this recipe! I have made it about 5 times now. It it a huge hit! (And I am getting better and better at perfecting my technique). A family member that had some about 6 months ago requested that I make a loaf to bring to tonight’s dinner party. To me, that is the ultimate compliment. It is extra yummy with garlic, herbs, and cheese.
Thanks so much!!
What a wonderful recipe. Big hit in my home tonight.
How do you get your loaves so shiny? Mine were dull, which was fine, but yours look a lot nicer lol. Egg wash? You don’t mention it in the recipe.
Thanks!
I don’t use an egg wash – I just butter the tops when they come out of the oven.
This was so easy and turned out CRAZY SOFT!! It’s delicious and stays moist and soft for days. Make this recipe.
do you use bread or ap flour
You can use either in this recipe.
This recipe was super easy to prepare and the bread got rave reviews from my family. It held its shape nicely and was super delicious! I will keep this one for future Thanksgiving dinners for our family. Thanks for posting.
What if I dont own a dough hook and stand mixer? Can I make any bread or is that type of mixer a must?
You can make many yeast doughs with a bowl and wooden spoon/spatula.
The results were great, but I’m confused about how the total time can be listed as “2 hours 5 minutes” when there are two “about an hour” rises. Total time was more like three hours and it threw off the timing of Thanksgiving dinner. (Luckily, we’re all pretty laid back so not a huge deal.)
Thanks for sharing, we’ll definitely be making it again!
Thanks for the heads up on that, Erik – I’ll adjust the timing. I agree it is off and I’m not sure why. Thank you!
I want to make this bread because the comments have been very good
My question is that I don’t have a bread pan can I just put it on the baking sheet?
What do you mean when you say press the seam.?
If it is rolled in a cylinder where goes the seam come from.
Do I have to cover this bread when baking?
Thanks
Hi Feroza, if you look at the tutorial in the post you’ll see that I don’t use a bread pan either, I bake the bread freeform on the baking sheet so you should be good there. By “press the seam” it basically means pinch the seam together so it seals the bread (so it doesn’t unravel). I put the seam on the bottom. I don’t cover the bread when baking.
Hello,
When I make this recipe, it rises so much that it spills over the french bread pan which makes a weird shape. It also seems to “deflate” when it it is cooking so it really doesn’t have a pretty shape.
Thoughts?
Dana
Hi Dana – try letting it rise for less time. It sounds like if it’s deflating that it is rising too long before it goes in the oven.
Made this today and it came out perfectly! I’m impressed considering how little time it took. Crispy outside and soft and fluffy inside. Fantastic recipe! Thanks!
Came out perfect!! I put water in an oven proof crock while preheating oven. I do this for French macarons. Will be making this for Thanksgiving!
Can you freeze the bread?
Yes
Best French bread recipe, I made today.
I’ve been making bread for decades. I use to use a recipe off of an old bread machine. But I graduated to making breads the old fashion way, proofing, kneading & such. Then came the KitchenAid mixer #1 and a few years ago upgraded to the “professional “ model. Making bread is a breeze now. Unfortunately, I lost that recipe & have been looking for YEARS trying to duplicate it, always with disappointing result. Searching once again for French Bread recipes, I came across your recipe. I was intrigued by the 10 minute rest followed by a “stir” down in the same mixer bowl, you had me. Today….I made the most delicious loafs of French Bread I had EVER made. Large loaves with perfect, tender texture. And the ice cube trick- brilliant! I always threw water in my oven to achieve a crunchy crust. Everyone RAVED about the bread. Tomorrow morning- French toast from the leftover 1/2 loaf. Can’t wait to make those freezer burritos either
If you’re worried about tossing ice cubes into your oven, place an old small loaf or cake pan on the bottem rack while you’re preheating the oven and put the ice cubes in it. Works just as well. Thanks for the great recipe. Second loaf froze beautifully.
Do you still bake at 375° for same time if using convection oven?
If using convection, I’d suggest lowering the temperature by 25 degrees.
The loaves baked up beautifully but mine turned out rather salty! I would definitely make it again but with much less salt.
Mel,
I have used your recipe twice, and both times it came out fantastic! Thanks so much for sharing with us!
Great recipe!!! This was my first attempt at making homemade bread. It came out amazing! My sister was so surprised that it was homemade. Will definitely be making this again. Now I’m not afraid to start baking breads!!! Thanks!!!
Great recipe! I have never been able to successfully bake bread – even bread machines give me a problem. But this bread turned out GREAT! Following other reviews; I put a pan of hot water in the bottom of the oven. Increased salt to 1 TBS., used 29 oz. King Arthur flour (1 c bread, rest AP). Preheated convection oven to 425F but immediately dropped to 375F. Brushed with egg wash and sesame seeds first. Baked both together for 23 min. They looked very ugly going in, but came out beautiful, and tasted even better! I’ll probably add an extra 1/4 tsp salt next time. Thank you! The bread was fabulous! I’m trying to give this a 5/5 star rating, but the website only gives me a column of single stars with no meanings…
Delicious recipe, thanks. I am always wary of putting ice in a hot oven, so I have a small spray bottle for just this purpose. I spritz the loaves right before I close the oven door and it works wonderfully. My sourdough recipe calls for the same thing to get that beautiful crust. I turned this into an amazing cheesy garlic pull-apart bread, and took it to a staff party. The entire loaf was gone in 20 minutes! Thank you. I linked to this recipe on my blog as well.
Baking my third batch. First was great, second batch I over baked, my fault,but still good. My wife wants to give some bread to shut ins in our church. Follow recipes and you you doo well.
This recipe worked very well! I used the second rise method. I also used Demerara sugar to make the bread vegan. The colour of the finished loaf was a little pale but the taste was perfect! My mom’s French bread recipe says to put a shallow pan of water on the bottom rack so I did that. Maybe that is better than throwing ice cubes in the bottom of the oven. I have tried several different yeast bread and roll recipes in the past and this one is by far the best and easiest! Thank you!
I’ve been looking online about doubling bread recipes, some places suggest to double the yeast and some don’t. Would you suggest doubling it with this recipe?
Thanks
Yes, I would double the yeast if doubling this bread recipe.
can i half this recipe?
Yes
I just baked my first loaf of bread ever and think this would make a great second attempt. A question about the yeast though. I would be proofing Active dry yeast. Your instructions call for 1 tablespoon of instant or active yeast. Are you saying to use only 1 tablespoon of what is produced when proofing? Or just use 1 package and use all the mixture produced?
If using active dry yeast, use a tablespoon of the yeast and proof it in a bit of warm water and a pinch of sugar and then use the entire mixture in the recipe. Does that make sense?
Have you ever used French Wheat Flour?
I haven’t.
I followed the recipe exactly, but.. after I added up to an extra 2 cups of flour and the dough was still sticky, I wasnt comfortable compromising taste by adding even more flour so I left it be. It rose beautifully but was completely unable to be handled or shaped due to stickiness. I’ve made bread for years and never had this problem. Ideas of what could have gone wrong?
Probably needed more flour – always go by the texture and feel of the dough vs the exact flour measurements.
This was the easiest and tastiest bread. We make it at least once a week!
Can I use self rising flour to make this recipe
I haven’t tried that, Patricia, but I would recommend using all-purpose or bread flour.
Self rising flour has baking soda/powder which are metallic rising agents. They would kill the yeast.
What’s the shelf life once it’s baked. I baked two loads and one was gone before the other could cool. So great recipe. Thank you.
I’ve made this twice. The first time I think I overproofed it with Rise Option 1. It was super dense and never really rose.
I just made it for the 2nd time with the Rise Option 2 and it’s much better, but not perfect. I’m thinking I must be doing something wrong. It’s not as dense, but it’s also not golden brown like French bread usually is. It’s just white. Any suggestions??
Hi Ashley, try raising your oven rack a bit higher than middle position and/or increasing the oven temp by 25 degrees – that should help the browning!
Gorgeous loaves! Thank you Mel! Wish I could posts pic! It would’ve the main coarse if it was up to me!
I tried this recipe as soon as I found it. I liked the instructions… they were very specific which was helpful for this first time bread baker. I found it so nerve wracking figuring out if my bread was done. I fussed with it and I kind of broke it so it deflated a little. I was worried about ruining my oven so I put the ice in a preheated ceramic dish. Mistake! Should have known before I did it, but just in case others were thinking the same thing. I will experiment with different methods. I also read that you can use a spray bottle to create the same effect, but it was more involved. Be careful if using ice!!! My loaves came out tasting great! They got a little dense at the bottom, which I think means I over-proofed? But still tastes deelicious and such an easy recipe for a beginner!!!!
This bread is amazing!! So simple and the flavour is delicious! Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Quick question! If I don’t have a dough hook for my mixer (I think I lost it :(. . ) is there something else I can do?
You can try mixing by hand – many commenters have reported back it works great!
My new French bread recipe!! Wonderful. Tastes like it was made by a professional baker—-ME!
The taste was OK but the appearance not so much. The reason To wanted to write this comment though, is to let you know that your advice on throwing ice cubes in the hot oven should NOT be given so lightly. I assumed you knew it was OK to do so, so I did what you said. At some point while the bread was still in the oven, I heard a horrible noise and when I looked in the manual I found out that under NO circumstances was I supposed to put any liquid on the bottom of the oven that was cold, much more in the form of ice cubes which are even colder… So, please, caution your followers to read their manual before they follow your advice.
Sorry that happened, Mary. I’ve used the ice cube trick countless times in several different ovens over the years with no problem, so yes, I probably did assume too much and I apologize. I’ve added a note to the recipe and in the post to encourage others to check their manual before using the ice cubes.