CUBAN BREAD (James Beard)
Makes 2 long loaves, 12 slices each.
This recipe is adapted from the seminal work Beard on Bread, by the late James Beard, who explored and celebrated the food of North America in all its manifestations. The method he originally called for asked that the dough be placed in a cold oven, which was then set at 400°F, and then baked for 35 minutes. This method would probably work in a gas oven, but our kitchen has electric ovens, and the cold-oven technique was a disaster. The thermostat on our ovens calls for lots and lots of power to get the ovens up to temperature as quickly as possible. In doing so, the temperature often screams past what was called for and overheats before settling in. My first two attempts at the cold-oven method produced loaves that were charred black on the top; the third attempt, using a preheated oven, yielded much happier results.
This bread has a nice chewiness that makes it a candidate for Monte Cristos or other grilled sandwiches. —Susan Reid, Editor.
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast (J.B. used 1 1/2 packets active dry yeast)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups (16 oz, 454 g) lukewarm water
1 tablespoon (0.5 oz, 15 g) salt
5 1/2 to 6 cups (23 1/2–25 1/2 oz, 666–723 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons (7/8 oz, 25 g) yellow corn meal
1 egg white mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water
MIXING THE DOUGH. Place all the ingredients except the cornmeal and egg white in the bowl of your mixer or the pan of your bread machine programmed for dough, and mix and knead until the dough comes together.
If using a bread machine, allow it to complete the dough cycle.
If mixing by machine or by hand, transfer the dough to a lightly floured board and knead until no longer sticky, about 10 minutes, adding flour as necessary.
Place in a lightly greased or buttered bowl, turning to coat the surface. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 – 2 hours.
FERMENTATION. Sprinkle an ungreased baking sheet with the cornmeal.
Deflate the dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface.
Divide it in half, and shape each half into a long baguette-style loaf. To do this, pat the dough into a rectangle, and fold the long edge over on itself, coming toward you. Pinch the seam of the dough down as you go, until you’re at the edge nearest you. Pinch the seam together, and transfer the loaves, seam-side down, to the prepared baking sheet.
Allow the dough to rise, covered, for 15 – 20 minutes, while the oven is preheating.
SLASH the tops of the loaves diagonally in two or three places with a lame, a razor blade, or a sharp knife, and brush the loaves with the egg white and water.
BAKE THE BREAD in the preheated 375°F oven for 30 – 35 minutes, or until it is well browned and hollow sounding when tapped on the top.
Susan Reid, Editor, The Baking Sheet, Vol. XVI, No. 1 (Winter 2005), page 13, © 2005 King Arthur Flour, Inc.
10/27/06: Corrected the yeast conversion to 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 tablespoon instant yeast would give you too short a fermentation time -- adjust your yeast by 1/4 teaspoon at a time until the fermentation/first rise is about 2 hours). Internal temperature of the bread after baking will be around 200°F, give or take about 3-5°, but it's best to go by the color of the loaf. -- Rita
Makes 2 long loaves, 12 slices each.
This recipe is adapted from the seminal work Beard on Bread, by the late James Beard, who explored and celebrated the food of North America in all its manifestations. The method he originally called for asked that the dough be placed in a cold oven, which was then set at 400°F, and then baked for 35 minutes. This method would probably work in a gas oven, but our kitchen has electric ovens, and the cold-oven technique was a disaster. The thermostat on our ovens calls for lots and lots of power to get the ovens up to temperature as quickly as possible. In doing so, the temperature often screams past what was called for and overheats before settling in. My first two attempts at the cold-oven method produced loaves that were charred black on the top; the third attempt, using a preheated oven, yielded much happier results.
This bread has a nice chewiness that makes it a candidate for Monte Cristos or other grilled sandwiches. —Susan Reid, Editor.
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast (J.B. used 1 1/2 packets active dry yeast)
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups (16 oz, 454 g) lukewarm water
1 tablespoon (0.5 oz, 15 g) salt
5 1/2 to 6 cups (23 1/2–25 1/2 oz, 666–723 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons (7/8 oz, 25 g) yellow corn meal
1 egg white mixed with 1 tablespoon cold water
MIXING THE DOUGH. Place all the ingredients except the cornmeal and egg white in the bowl of your mixer or the pan of your bread machine programmed for dough, and mix and knead until the dough comes together.
If using a bread machine, allow it to complete the dough cycle.
If mixing by machine or by hand, transfer the dough to a lightly floured board and knead until no longer sticky, about 10 minutes, adding flour as necessary.
Place in a lightly greased or buttered bowl, turning to coat the surface. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 – 2 hours.
FERMENTATION. Sprinkle an ungreased baking sheet with the cornmeal.
Deflate the dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface.
Divide it in half, and shape each half into a long baguette-style loaf. To do this, pat the dough into a rectangle, and fold the long edge over on itself, coming toward you. Pinch the seam of the dough down as you go, until you’re at the edge nearest you. Pinch the seam together, and transfer the loaves, seam-side down, to the prepared baking sheet.
Allow the dough to rise, covered, for 15 – 20 minutes, while the oven is preheating.
SLASH the tops of the loaves diagonally in two or three places with a lame, a razor blade, or a sharp knife, and brush the loaves with the egg white and water.
BAKE THE BREAD in the preheated 375°F oven for 30 – 35 minutes, or until it is well browned and hollow sounding when tapped on the top.
Susan Reid, Editor, The Baking Sheet, Vol. XVI, No. 1 (Winter 2005), page 13, © 2005 King Arthur Flour, Inc.
10/27/06: Corrected the yeast conversion to 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 tablespoon instant yeast would give you too short a fermentation time -- adjust your yeast by 1/4 teaspoon at a time until the fermentation/first rise is about 2 hours). Internal temperature of the bread after baking will be around 200°F, give or take about 3-5°, but it's best to go by the color of the loaf. -- Rita