All those crêpes last week made me think of French camp and the awesome breakfast of baguette and chocolat chaud we got to have every morning. I got to thinking, why not? I am a grown-ass woman who eats a giant piece of leftover almond tart from a dinner party for breakfast if I feel like it. Why not have a tranche of baguette slathered with butter and dipped in hot chocolate like I did when I was eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen…. yeah, yeah, I became a counselor. I told you, I loved French camp with an ardor that scares me now. I went every summer from eleven to seventeen. It was my glee club.
As luck would have it, I’ve been experimenting with baguettes.
“Experimenting” is, perhaps, a strong word. Last week I started baking some French bread. My dashing husband and son both love baguette, and after the whole “Mama can make crêpes?” episode, I’ve been in a bit of smack-down mode. “Yeah, not only can Mama make a mean crêpe, but she can bake a baguette, too – booyah.”
The problem is, I’m not so terribly great at baking a baguette. They were tasty enough, but look at those things! They stuck to the floured kitchen towel on which they were raised, I had to untangle them to get them into the oven, and I ended up with these mangled, twisted sticks. But wait – what was that first part? – oh yeah, they were tasty enough. That is what matters. The family gobbled them up – I ate mine with plenty of butter. Dipped in hot chocolate.
Q. | 17-Nov-09 at 12:00 pm | Permalink
Oh this cracked me up:) “A grown-ass woman” – love that line!
I’ve tried making my own baguettes at home, too. Mine were, like yours, “tasty enough.” And there is NOTHING better than fresh-baked bread, even when it is “so so.” Love the idea of dipping buttered bread in hot chocolate.
Tracy | 17-Nov-09 at 12:03 pm | Permalink
The dough did not defeat you…that’s all that matters.
Denise | 18-Nov-09 at 10:21 am | Permalink
Bread is ALWAYS good no matter what it looks like. What a great idea. I always love to find more ways to add more chocolate and bread to my diet. Yum.
Michelle | 21-Nov-09 at 1:05 pm | Permalink
“I’m a grown-ass woman who eats a giant piece of…tart for breakfast if I fee like it.” – YES! I have to remind myself of that all of the time. I can eat whatever I want whenever I want (!?!) – it is such a basic right, yet we all forget it, get stuck in our little routines, and forget to have fun with food.
Good for you! Now I want some chocolate too…
clotilde | 26-Nov-09 at 8:52 am | Permalink
I think your baguettes look inordinately appetizing, and that twisted, hand-shaped look is currently gaining momentum at Paris bakeries. So, you know, you’re just ahead of your time!
Dana V | 26-Nov-09 at 10:01 am | Permalink
I love the shape of your baguettes! I think they’re some of the most beautiful baguettes I’ve ever seen.
Molly Watson | 27-Nov-09 at 12:16 pm | Permalink
It has been entirely too long since I was in Paris – so it’s nice to hear that perhaps I’m channeling a bit of Parisian trend, that I’m still connected in some way!
Anyone who wants the same effect – simply shape the loaves and let them rise too near the oven on insufficiently floured kitchen towels and the twist them out of the towel-flour-dough creation. I wonder how the Parisian bakeries do it….
clotilde | 28-Nov-09 at 5:05 am | Permalink
Molly – Thanks for sharing your sophisticated technique.
I’m not sure how Parisian bakers achieve that same look, but I’d love to find out. If I do, I’ll let you know!