Easy French Bread

I found this recipe on Pinterest and have been wanting to give it a try.  It was really easy, and it was really tasty - even Tiernan loved it!  In case you don't know, Tiernan doesn't like bread (so weird, I know... he sooooo doesn't get that from me!).  Anyway, it's not quite like the French bread that you buy at the store.  The crust wasn't crusty and chewy, but the flavor was good and that's what matters, right?  : )  I also realized that I didn't have any cornmeal, so I just sprayed the pan with Pam and they turned out fine.  It took about 7 3/4 C. flour for my dough,  but it will depend on the humidity that day, so just add one cup at a time.


French Bread

2 1/2 c. warm water
2 Tbsp. yeast
3 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. white vinegar
Add the above ingredients together and let sit until bubbly (about 3-5 minutes). Then add:
1 Tbsp. salt
1/3 c. Canola oil
6-7 c. flour (or a little more if it's too soft), one cup at a time--add enough until the dough is soft, not too sticky, and firm enough to mold into dough loaves.
Knead for 2-5 minutes.  Put the dough into a large, greased bowl and then put in the oven with a small pot of boiling water. The water will keep the dough moist.   (I actually took the water out after a bit because the dough wasn't rising very much and was very sticky. Perhaps I had too much water in there. Anyway, the dough rose much better after I removed the pan of water from the oven.  So I suggest starting out with the water in there, and then removing it if you need to.)
Watch the dough and punch it down when it gets to the top of the mixing bowl. Do this every time it gets to the top of the bowl, as long as you have time to babysit it (2-5 times). Put the dough on a greased counter top and divide into 2 or 3 sections.  Spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray and sprinkle a thin layer of cornmeal on the bottom of the sheet. Roll the dough balls into rectangle/long French bread shapes. Slash tops of bread diagonally 3-5 times and cover with a beaten egg.  Preheat oven to 375 and let the loaves rise 30 minutes (or until doubled).  Bake at 375° for 30 minutes. Enjoy!  

Recipe from dealstomeals.blogspot.com