Fabulous French Loaves

The editor changed the original recipe a bit. I do it this way: after mixing all ingredients together, let rest 10 minutes (leaving spoon in batter). Stir vigorously, let rest another 10 minutes. Do this a total on 5 times instead of the traditional rising. After the 5th rest, turn onto a floured board and knead lightly (I barely knead at all). I then shape the loaves and continue as in the posted version of the recipe. When shaping the loaves, I will sometimes put a mixture of basil, oregano, garlic, butter/olive oil, and onion on it cinnamon roll style before rolling it for special, pretty garlic loaves.

Delicious, great for bread & butter, or for dips! However, as I was reading the reviews, I noticed that Liz, who submitted the recipe, gave the proper direction as to how she prepares this recipe (about 9 reviews below this one). I'm confused Liz, as to why you would go through all of the trouble killing your arm, not to mention taking over an hour of stirring vigorously when you could simply knead it for the 8 minutes, let it rise for the hour & be done! I prepared this recipe as directed on the site & it came out beautiful! By the way, I added the 2 cups of water in step 1. Thanks Liz :), & thanks allrecipes for the modification!!

Superb - moist and chewy, just what french bread should be. I cut the recipe in 1/2 too and it turned out two small round loaves. One small loaf is perfect for one dinner. I used 3 cups bread flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar and 2.5 tablespoon olive oil. I dusted one loaf with dried basil/oregano and parmesan and left the other one plain. The herb one went first! So easy and fail safe. Great for beginner bakers. TIP- Be sure you add the sugar to the water/yeast mixture to help it proof. Also, after the first rise, punch down the dough to rid of all the air bubbles inside. This will make dividing the dough much easier. No need for a Kitchenaid, this can easily be done by hand. TIP - don't let this rise too long, 1 hour is plenty. If it over-rises, the texture will turn into regular white bread, versus a chewy french bread.

These loaves baked up beautifully- nice and golden. I didn't have cornmeal, but I dusted the baking pans with a tiny bit of flour, and they turned out fine. The texture turned out perfect- crusty on the outside, fluffy and soft on the inside. This recipe was exactly what I was looking for; will definitely make again and again.

Good recipe. Makes crunchy crust. I used a mixer and dough hook for mine. Don't over mix.

Crunchy on the outside,soft on the inside. Flavor was a little bland first time around. Increased the salt with the second batch. Everyone enjoyed. Thanks.

After spending 2 weeks in France and coming back home, I was dying for some good French bread...this recipe is great! Thank you!

Bread is good but as a first time french bread maker I was lost without directions on what to do with the 2 cups of water.

First time making french bread and it turned out fantastic!!!!!! Followed recipe exactly. Will be making it often. I have just made it again for the second time but this time made individual loaves for bread bowls to see if it would work, happy to say they turned out even better than the big loaves! Will be making "Super Soup Bowls" for Super Bowl Sunday!!!!

I have been trying different breads lately and this is the first that has come out light and not heavy as a rock. The recipe is very easy and could have easily given me 3 loafs of bread. I used honey in place of sugar and olive oil instead of veggie oil. This was fabulous!!

Soooo good! Even family members who are not bread lovers loved this!!! I will definitely make it again!

I followed the instructions as carefully as I could. I lined a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkled cornmeal on the paper. I really didn't know how to seal the seam, and used the egg white to try and glue it. I found out later from reading Julia Child that is not exactley how you seal a seam. My bread turned out exactley like white bread, not really a french loaf. My crust was soft and the insides was soft like white bread. My cooking time was a lot less than 35 minutes. I baked it for 20 minutes and it was burning on the bottom. The top crust looked great though. I checked it with a thermometer and it came out to 198 F, so I took it out of the oven 15 minutes a head of time. During baking the cornmeal and parchment paper was starting to burn. The bottom of the loaf did burn as well and I had to cut off the burned bit, the rest was really good though. This was the first time I ever tried to bake bread. I will try it again. My family enjoyed the bread and it is getting all eaten. The bread cuts very nice and makes great sandwich type of bread. I believe I need to get rid of the bakeing sheets however and next time I'll bake it on stone or ceramic tiles instead of metal. According to Julia Child there should be a 9x12x2 pan with water on the bottom rack and insert into that pan a very hot rock or brick to make steam for the first 5 minutes of baking. She also suggest spritzing the loaf with a mist of water a few times in the beginning to make crust crunchier.

These make perfect loaves for garlic bread/toast. I slice in about 2" thick slices, lay the slices out on cookie sheets and spread each slice with butter and sprinkle with garlic salt. Then I pop the sheets in the freezer until completely frozen. After frozen, the slices can be stored in the freezer in zipper bags. Then you can heat or toast as many as you need for each meal. Its soooo yummy!

It is not the recipe's fault if you come out with non-chewy crusted bread! To achieve the same effect, toss 4-5 ice cubes in the bottom of the oven every 10-15 minutes. The steam creates that crust you want.

I loved this bread! It is the first bread I have made except for some sourdough that I made years ago. I cut the recipe in half to test it (using the scaling option) and it worked great. I used my KA mixer to do the work. I mixed the yeast, sugar and warm water directly in the mixers bowl and let it work for 10 minutes. I preheat my bowl by pouring hot water into it and letting it set for a few minutes before adding the yeast mixture. This seems to work well as the yeast begins to ferment almost immediately. As one reviewer said, don't over knead. I think I let mine go a bit too long as the texture was a bit denser than what is on the recipe photo but the bread was great just the same. I also added a bit more salt as one reviewer said the recipe was bland. I baked it on a sheet pan sitting directly on my pizza stone. Had a nice crust all round.

Awesome, it's better then store bought. I highly recommend it.

Excellent recipe! I cut all the ingredients in half and made 2 baguettes. I placed a pan of water under the bread during baking and sprayed them occasionally too and they came out nice and crusty!

Not too difficult, very tasty. I ended up making three loaves because I wanted them to be a little skinnier for subs. The third loaf I spread butter and olive oil with herbs and garlic before I rolled the loaf. It turned out fantastic. The leftover plain bread made excellent French toast a couple days later.

The name of this was right on the money! FABULOUS!!!!!!!!! Thanks!!!! :-)))))

Makes really good french bread. My dad especially liked this bread.

These smelled great, and looked great. They tasted good, but the crumb was a little more dense than I expected--a little heavier than traditional French bread. I will try this recipe again, but will follow it according to Liz's note in her review written after the recipe was published. I wonder if the kneading toughened the dough, yielding the more dense crumb. I have a feeling her stirring might produce different results.

I halved the recipe (it yielded one large loaf), needed a little more flour, added a little more salt, kneaded in Kitchenaid with dough hook, used olive oil and didn't top with egg wash/seeds, instead basted with water a few times while baking for a crusty crust - and let me tell you it was fabulous! I was skeptical about the rolling stage, but it turned out just like at the bakery, with a sort of swirl. Next time I will make two smaller loaves out of half the recipe for a baguette. YUM!!!

this is such a good recipe...i halved it for just one loaf and did it all in the bread machine...forsure i will make again...thanks

incredible! It's amazing to see how this little bit of dough makes a huge quantity of bread! This bread rises so much that you end up falling in love with it like if it were a child you have raised! tastes amazing, and my dad even had a hard time believing I used a normal oven to make it. Tastes great and looks very professional. Thank you so much for this amazing recipe!

I always thought making bread was difficult. Not anymore! I even used all purpose flour and it turned out pretty good. I used half of the ingredients and it was no sweat. We will make it every week, if possible.

I am living in China, so maybe my flour is not strong enough, but the bread was very nice, but a little "cakey" - if I was to reduce the sugar and oil a little would that help ? P

This recipe really is fabulous! Love the taste, texture, aroma, crust--everything! I subbed honey for the sugar and EVOO for the vegetable oil, and I didn't use the egg wash or sesame seeds. Great, easy recipe!

This is a terrific recipe and even easier when I mixed it in my bread machine. I followed the rolling out instructions on a cornmeal sprinkled baking sheet. Before baking, I misted the loaves with water for a crispy crust. I omitted the egg wash and sesame seeds. For an even crispier crust, when preheating the oven, I placed a cake pan half full of hot water on the bottom rack. When the oven was preheated, I popped in the bread and baked it normally. The crust was absolutely perfect if you like a soft center and a hard crust. Thanks!

I FINALLY found a recipe for French Bread that hasn't turned out like a baseball bat! This bread is wonderful and the dough pulls together beautifully. I used this to make French Dip Sandwiches from this website, and it was divine. I used olive oil in place of the vegetable oil, and I also will make sure to oil the pans before adding the cornmeal, as they did stick some. I used my Kitchen Aid with the dough hook to do the majority of the work for me and I hardly had to knead the bread at all. My only suggestion would be to add a tad more salt to this recipe to bring out the flavors more. I also brushed the loaves with milk instead of egg, because I prefer a slightly softer crust. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!

WOW..used my bread machine on dough cycle, fast and easy. Brushed bread with cold H20 while baking, turned out nice and crispy! BEST FRENCH BREAD EVER FOR ME, thanks so much it is very much a keeper for me!!

Love it, would make thi one again, good base for French bread. Would like to find one a little sweeter though if possible, thus the 4 stars.

I absolutely love this bread! And my husband is always requesting this! As for the kneeding for 8 minutes, I put it in the kitchen aid and use the hook attachment and press go, and set a timer for 8 minutes, and voila- it's done! All I have to do is push the dough down every once in a while! I've made this a few times and it's delicious!

This is a great beginners' bread. It turns out wonderfully every time for me. I follow the recipe exactly most of the time. I don't always have sesame seeds. The more you bake it the better it always turns out. It makes four loaves for me which means I always give away 2 or 3 loaves and people love it. :D I recommend this recipe to everyone, especially beginners. Also wanted to add that I do knead this to a stiff dough and it really is fabulous.

These loaves are so versatile. I made them as directed the first time but decided to get creative with my next batch. Followed the recipe again except to brush olive oil, dried basil, minced garlic and a dusting of parmigiano reggiano before rolling up and the final rise. The other loaf I spread margarine on the dough and sprinkled brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg before rolling up for final rise. Both came out awesome!! The final time I did the cinnamon and sugar loaf but this time cut them into discs and let them proof before baking. Melted butter, brown sugar cinnamon and a dash of salt and poured over the finished rolls. My family ate them all immediately and demanded more! Thanks Liz!

This was a bakery style French bread, if you steamed your oven (I put ice cubes in a cast iron skillet). Very crusty and good flavor. Thanks for the recipe!

The shape of this bread is a little "misleading." It appears as though it is a baguette but, it is really a soft white type of bread. I didn't think it had a whole lot of flavor, and strangely tasted "doughy," even though it rose and baked up well. I wasn't sure why either, but the dough to work with was really sticky! I had to add between 1/2-3/4 of a cup more flour just to make it workable. After talking to someone else who made it I was told they had the same problem, and added at least that much flour or more. I have never had to add that much flour to a bread dough recipe. The bread looked great, just like the picture, but just had too much of an odd "raw dough taste" making it inedible.

My whole family LOVED this bread. I did not use sesame seeds but I did brush on a VERY thin layer of egg wash. As it turns out, even that wasn't necessary. Also, I used olive instead of vegetable oil. Like others, I spritzed the bread every 5 minutes or so (only had to bake it for 25 minutes) and the crust came out perfectly crisp while the inside was soft and not too dense at all. We had half a loaf eaten before I ever got dinner on the table. I can't wait to make this again as we didn't have any leftovers tonight and I'm anxious to use the finished product to make French toast and garlic bread. Awesome!

Really enjoyed this recipe. I let my bread hook on my kitchenaid do all the work as I added the flour and then had the machine knead the bread. Bread is very tasty!

I make this all the time and it's a household favorite. I have to halve the recipe to use my Kitchenaid stand mixer to knead the dough.

this was fantastic so easy and really good taste would not change a thing other than double the recipe

Yammy - this is a great recipe. The Bread tastes sooooo good, you can use it for so many things as side dish BBQ, Breakfast, ...... or make it as a coffecake if you use butter instead oil and fill it with Nut filling... LOVE IT

BEST french bread I have ever tasted!! I used one loaf for the overnight french toast and it was YUMMY!! The first time I made this I made them into french loaves. The second time I rolled out the bread and rolled it up the short way and put them into 2 bread pans. This is my new everyday bread recipe. Not one bit dry even after a week!!!

The best recipe for french bread!!! My loaves didn't look sloppy like in the pictures posted. The were perfect! Looked like a store-bought bread, but tasted way better. I followed the recipe to a T. The 2 loves were gone in 2 days! Love it and I am going to make it again!

Fabulous is the perfect word to describe this! First of all, this was my first time making french bread and this was the easiest dough I've ever dealt with! For the first time I didn't have to add more flour. I found the recipe to be perfect as is except for the cooking time. This may be because I only had one loaf in the oven, rather than two, but I took mine out at 25 minutes and it was already on its way to being slightly overdone (saved it in the knick of time!). So keep an eye on it, especially if you half the recipe. But other than that, it was perfect, especially the crust!

Even better than Blue Ribbon White Bread (this site) and I like that one, nevertheless a good variety. Kneaded as usual (no spoon). First time I tried this, it was quite dense and slightly salty and didn't like the egg white wash, so this time around I added an extra pack of yeast and reduced salt to 3/4 tbls, didn't bother with the 'wash' and seeds; used soft brown sugar instead, and buttered the tops of the loaves hot out of the oven. I used instant yeast which you add straight to the flour; the 2 cups water has the same warmth as the 1/2 cup. Ended up with 2 scrumptious, butter softened yet crusty loaves with a tender and less dense but still a heft to them; good bread. Thanks to all, for sharing useful tips. 12/2/04: Changing from 4 to 5 stars. Successfully baked wholemeal loaves too, using half plain and half wholemeal flours. Excellent.

Very good bread. I have made it almost every week now. I found I don't like the egg wash on it. It still is good with out, just not as crusty.

This bread is increadible!! I've made it numerous times now, and it usually comes out just a bit better with each improvement. Like suggested, I added a bit more salt, used olive oil, and every once in a while I just use all-purpose flour instead of bread flour if I ran out. It still comes out great (although bread flour is definately superior). I added a little bit of garlic powder to the dough, it comes out even better that way.

Thirty years ago I made French Bread regularly. This recipe is much easier than my old one. I never use bread flour so used plain and I used olive oil. Mainly I wanted to see if these old hands could still knead dough. Good recipe Liz! Will make this again.

This bread was very good- but i would say that its more of a supermarket french bread and not a parisian bakery french bread- this is not a baguette with a thick crisp crust and tender inside- it has a softer crust and is chewy inside. But, that doesnt mean its not good- it is very yummy. I used olive oil instead of vegetable oil in the recipe but otherwise followed it exactly.

This made two large fabulous loaves of bread! Crispy crunchy crust and a very soft tender center. Reminded me of white sandwich bread in the middle it was so moist and soft. I couldn't get bread flour at the store all they had was all purpose, so I used my favorite (White Wings by C H Guenther & Son, Inc. out of San Antonio). I'm no pro baker, just a home cook, but DH and I loved this bread so it worked out for me. This was so simple, mostly all it takes is time. Thanks so much for sharing this Liz. Mmmmm Mmmmm Good!

This is the 2nd time that I have made this bread. I could not ask for anything better. I love this bread. It is easy to make. It rises beautifully, and I have added several flavors to the bread. The first time I made it I did the first loaf just as french bread. I did the second loaf as cheddar cheese and jalapeno. The second time, (see photo). I did the first loaf as rolls. I made six rolls. The second loaf I did mixing in chopped sun dried tomatoes and chunks of mozzarella cheese. Yum

This is very good! I only had all purpose flour and I accidentally put the cornmeal in the dough but it still turned out wonderful!

These were GREAT! Once the warm bread came out of the oven, we could not stop eating it! It NEVER made it to the dinner table! Will make again, soon!

I tried this recipe because it's a little quicker than my standby French bread recipe. But I am sad at the outcome of this recipe; it just didn't work for me. I didn't get the rise I expected; the dough spread and looked more like foccacia (and yes, my yeast was fresh). The flavor was very good, the crust was beautiful. If I should ever try this again, I think instead of making two loaves, I'll make 4, and make them narrower. To make steam for a crustier crust, I heated a cast iron skillet on a lower rack while preheating my oven. When it was ready, I put in the dough and then added ice cubes into the skillet. Voila! Steam.

I'm not sure if I did something wrong or what but it was soo sticky. I had to keep adding flour again and again to even get it off my fingers. It actually turned out well and tastes pretty good but it was so frustrating that it didn't feel like bread dough should. I will try again - see if maybe I just messed it up so will put it at a neutral 3 for now.

went together well and easy enough to knead, I added 1/4 tsp more salt as others suggested, made and compared it to Jenn Halls Recipe from this site on the same day using same amount of yeast for both (2 pkgs.). This one was okay in taste, the other far better (crunchier-I threw ice cubes in oven for both recipes, as some suggested, and flavor better than my favorite bakery) Have to say jenn's recipe a little harder to mix as I don't have a kitchen aid machine. Her dough seemed heavier but hands down the family picked it "Blind taste test"!!! I don't need to give this another shot

Turned out fantastic! ... But I halved the recipe, put the sugar in the yeast to proof (seems always turns out better this way), kneaded in my KitchenAid, and brushed the dough with olive oil & melted butter, minced garlic and herbs de'Provence before rolling. Also skipped the cornmeal and baked on floured parchment paper instead, and had to lower the temp 25 and use 2 baking sheets b/c my new oven is so "efficient."

My family and I all loved this bread. It looks so pretty too. If you want a crispier crust, you can always mist it every 5-7 minutes with a spray bottle or bake it on a pizza stone. I like the texture of the crust just the way it is. I chose not to do the spoon mixing thing. I kneaded it like normal, although I did find it pretty sticky dough and had to keep adding flour to the counter and my hands to keep it from sticking. It didn't hurt a thing. It proofed up beautifully. We couldn't wait to get it out of the oven and try it. It only needed to bake for 25 minutes and it was perfect. If in doubt, it should read 195 degrees on a thermometer. A little more salt would probably make it even better. But great stuff! Will definitely make it again.

Better than store bought, easy to follow recipe. Crusty on the outside chewy on the inside. I made two large loafs from this recipes.

I made this bread yesterday. the consistancy of the bread was great, tasted good with butter. The only change I would make is adding more salt.

this bread is okay, but it's more like grocery store italian bread. when i think of "french bread" i think of crusty, chewy french baguettes, and this bread is not that. still okay, my six-year old likes it...

Delicious! The crust did not turn out as crunchy as a true "baguette", but it was certainly exactly what I get in the stores. I used some baguette pans to give the loaves a nice shape and went with a longer second rise for less density. It turned out great. Good recipe!

All I really have to say is mmmmm... After reading the reviews here, I added 1 extra teaspoon of salt and put a pan of ice cubes on the bottom rack to mist the bread. I did do the egg wash, but I did half egg whites with half milk, as I like a bit more of a tender crust. I also brushed the loaf with melted butter half way through baking, which made for great flavor and beautiful browning. Check on this bread after about 20 minutes in the oven, because mine was completely done after 25.

This is a great recipe! I just received a French bread loaf pan for my birthday, and was eager to try it out! This looked like a great, simple recipe to try out. It worked perfectly! I didn't change anything, except I skipped the cornmeal (it didn't work...my pan is the type with tiny holes on the bottom, and the cornmeal wouldn't have stuck) and I also skipped the sesame seeds, mostly because I forgot about them :) The only thing I would change about this recipe is the amount of salt...I felt that it was a bit much. The bread was great, though...with an awesome, soft texture and a crispy, crackly crust, which was probably because of the pan. Thanks for sharing the recipe! I'll be making it again!

Make sure loaves cool completely; if put away slightly warm, the nice crust texture is ruined.

Thank you!! First time I made anything with yeast, was very nervous. The recipe was very easy and the loaves came out great! Perfect on the outside and inside. Big Hit w/ the kids. Made pizza bread for them and they loved it. Going to try this as a pizza crust, will let you know how it goes.

Crusty outside & soft squishy inside - perfect! Such an easy recipe too, with delicious results! Well done Liz, this is a keeper!

This is one of the best recipes I have found. It was easy to make with a dough hook. My family loved it so much that I made it twice in one week.

I made this is my bread machine on the dough cycle. What a soft, yummy loaf!

It was excellent, didn't even last 1/2 hour with my family. Just threw everything into breadmaker machine and baked in oven. Thank you!!

My first attempt at making bread (loaves) and they turned out BEAUTIFULLY! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe. I followed it to a T and the results were phenomenal. I'll be making this often. :)

I halved this recipe and made in my bread maker. The inside was wonderful---great flavor, great texture! My only complaint might be that the crust was really, really tough. But that could be my bread maker, and the recipe wasn't meant for a bread machine so I have to be fair and give 5 stars.

This french bread was amazing! Much lighter than many other recipes I tried. I will try adding spices next time to see how it turns out.

Always a pleaser. Have been using this recipe for years and just haven't gotten around to reviewing. My Kitchen Aid Mixer broke, so I've been using a half recipe in the food processor. Still wonderful!

Very delicious. This was my first try making bread from scratch and it was very easy. Halved the recipe for only one loaf and it still turned out both visually pleasing, and great tasting.

My first time ever making home made bread, and I didn't mess it up! Very easy and yummy recipe. Thanks for sharing!

I LOVE this recipe! I use it almost everyday, and i almost always double or even triple the recipe to make loaves for my friends and family and they all love it too!

Love this!!! Thanks so much; love to bake but haven't really attempted french bread before. This completely hit the spot for fresh bread with that awesome sesame flavor!!

For me... this didn't make as good a French bread as it did pizza crust. It's an ok French bread, but it makes an AWESOME pizza crust.

I halved the recipe and used a bread machine on dough setting to mix and knead the dough, then baked it on a cookie sheet. The dough was very sticky and hard to roll out, so I just kind of plopped it on the cookie sheet and arranged it into a cylinder as best as I could. It made up in taste what it lacked in looks -- yummy! I'll still give it 5 stars because I don't know if the stickiness was the fault of the bread machine or the recipe.

This bread was sooo easy & good!!! I was making from scratch meat sauce for my spaghetti dinner & realized I forgot to pick up a loaf of french bread so I found this & oh boy was it good!! The house smelt wonderful too while it baked! I cut the recipe in half & made exactly as written except I didn't have cornmeal (realized that when it was too late) So I sprinkled the baking pan with flour instead & it worked fine. I also sprayed some olive oil pam on the loaf instead of the egg white & then sprinkled parm cheese on top since I didn't have sesame seeds. I will definitely be making this again!

I halved this recipe to make 2 thin baguettes (served with Chicken Breasts Pierre from this site). Mixed the dough in the mixer with the dough hook -- couldn't have been easier. Eliminated the egg wash/sesame seeds, instead took the advice of several skilled bread bakers and 'basted' the bread with water every so often as it baked. That produced a perfectly brown and crunchy crust with a tender middle. Thanks so much!

Easy bread...and tastes fabulous!

Absolutely the BEST BREAD EVER! I am a novice bread maker, and it was SO easy. It was crusty on the outside, soft and chewy inside. Wonderful texture. I will be making this ALL the time! I made the recipe exactly as is, but did spritz with water halfway through.

To make this recipe more simple, I didn't roll the dough out. Instead, after I let the dough rise the first time, I made to halves and stretched each to 12 inches. Then I let them rise a second time without even covering them, till 2x in size. They turned out wonderfully. Next time I might put cornmeal on the sides of the dough out. There was one part that stuck to the cookie sheet.

So good..my favorite french bread recipe and the dough is a dream to work with. You will love it.

I've tried multiple bread recipes, but this one is by far my favorite! It has a nice crust and a perfect crumb- chewy yet tender. It slices easily without falling apart. I make a really taste variation where I use extra virgin olive oil instead of vegetable oil, and add in a glove of garlic (mashed with some salt to make a fine paste) and 7-8 basil leaves torn into small pieces. I also brushed the loaves with a little more olive oil before baking. Not only does the final product look great, it tastes great too!

My skills with yeast breads are notoriously bad, much to my chagrin. But I keep trying, and I finally scored a winner with this recipe. I made three loaves instead of two, and they urned out the most glorious, golden-brown, smooth-textured, chewy-crusted, delicious loaves of french bread ever. They even rivaled my mom's best, according to the family (and she is very skilled with french bread). I couldn't be prouder- the family keeps raving about the bread- I've made it three times in 2 weeks, and with great results each time. Thanks!

Wonderful french bread, nice and crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside. I used my mixer to mix it instead of by hand and it was so easy and came out perfect.

The name says it all "fabulous". The loaf comes out just like the fresh baguette they sell here daily at the major chain grocery. Didn't know it was possible to make it myself at home. Thanks for a great recipe!

Wonderful! Crisp crust. I used the doughhook on my mixer and it required no kneading.

My family ate both loaves in an evening all the while asking if I actually made them from scratch! Excellent recipe I didnt change a thing. I used my kitchenaide hook to knead the dough for about 8 min. GREAT!!

I have already used this recipe three times and am making it at the moment. Really nice bread. It does wear your arms out but it is worth it.

Absolutely perfect French bread recipe! Delicious, and easy.

This is my first time at making a bread such as this. I cut the recipe in half since it is only my husband and I. This is such an easy recipe to follow and the result is a beautiful loaf of bread that you can actually say that you made yourself. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe:)

This was actually the first bread I ever made. It was moist and chewy and absolutely fantastic. It was so hard to wait for it to be done - it smelled so good I wanted it immediately!

This Bread lives up to Its name!!! Omg! Fabulous! Nice an crusty Soft an chewey in the center I did have to add way more flour then the Recipe called for Excellent Bread!

This bread has a nice taste and texture, but it lacks the crisp crust of French bread. It's easy to make, although additional flour is required (as it often is in breadmaking.) Overall I was pleased with the results.

Halved the recipe and the dough was very sticky. Had to keep adding flour to achieve the right consistency. The bread baked beautifully though, texture was great. However, the bread lacked flavor, really bland, perhaps I needed to add salt to compensate for the extra flour....?