I haven’t finished a lot of books lately. Started a few, but instead of reading to the end, I have been baking. Somehow, summertime is great for dinner sandwiches, bread and salads, and just plain warm bread dipped in olive oil. To get a sense of what a five-plus pounder looks like, compare this loaf to the full-size dinner plate in the upper left.
They say great bakers make a thousand baguettes before they get them right. I’m getting closer. I got the shape, length, and slashes right on these three. The crumb should be a riot of different size holes as gases inside the dough explode and stretch gluten in every possible direction inside the super hot oven. My crumb was better than usual, but not yet something that’s photo worthy. Also these are a little pale. Tasty though.