Whole Wheat French Bread

Directions

Combine yeast, sugar, lite salt and water in a large bowl.

Gradually add the flours and mix well(hands work best).

At first the dough will be very sticky; add enough flour to transfer it to a lightly floured board.

Knead until the dough is no longer sticky(about 10 minutes), adding more flour as necessary.

Place in a lightly oiled bowl.

Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume(1½-2 hours).

Punch dough down.

Transfer to a floured board and cut into four equal parts.

Roll and shape each part into a long loaf.

Place loaves into a lightly oiled, special long-loaf pans (baguette pans).

Slash the top of each loaf diagonally in three or four places and brush with egg white and water mixture.

Let dough rise another hour or until doubled in volume.

Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃).

Bake the loaves until browned and hollow-sounding when thumped, about 25 minutes.

Halfway through baking, it may be necessary to cover the loaves with foil to prevent scorching the tops.

Let cool on rack. Makes 4 loaves, about 18 inches long.

• If planning to freeze bread, underbake, i. e., bake in oven only 15 minutes. Wrap in foil when cool. Freeze. When ready to serve remove from freezer.

Leave wrapped in foil. Place in 350℉ (180℃) oven for 10 minutes.

Remove foil and continue to bake for 5 minutes, until crisp.