This week, we’re making a French Bread using the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes method. A couronne is a beautiful ring or crown-shaped loaf that is a specialty of Lyon.
This is a very easy bread to make especially with this method. Instead of having to allow extra time to make the dough, we can use the last bit of dough from the batch that has been fermenting in the refrigerator for the past 14 days. We’ll make a fresh batch of dough next time to use over a 2-week period. I don’t know about you, but things have gotten a little crazier around my house now that high school is back in session so every little short cut helps to minimize the craziness if only just a little bit.
Couronne
Makes: 1 beautiful loaf
From Artisan Bread in Five Minutes by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois
Ingredients:
- 1 pound Boule dough
- Whole wheat flour for dusting the pizza peel
Directions:
Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1-pound (grapefruit-size) piece.I had a little over a pound left so I just grabbed the rest of the dough.
Dust the piece with more flour and shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go.
Once you have the ball-shape, poke your thumbs through the center of the ball and gradually stretch the hole so that it’s large enough to stay open while the bread is rising. The hole needs to be about three times as wide as the wall of the ring. Place the shaped loaf on a pizza peel covered parchment paper sprinkled with whole wheat flour.
Allow the loaf to rest for 40 minutes. The loaf had spread out a little more than I wanted so I pushed it back into shape.
Happy Baking!
Cathy
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