The most common bread in France is the wheat baguette. It is served as an accompaniment to soups and main courses, and is also used to make traditional sandwiches. The most popular fillings are ham and cheese.
Homemade baguette
In France, you can buy a delicious baguette in almost every bakery. In Russia, the situation is different - this type of bread is not always available in the assortment, and even if it is sold, it may be stale. So if you want to experience the real French atmosphere, bake a sandwich baguette yourself.
You will need:
- 500 g flour;
- 24 g of fresh yeast;
- 10 g of salt;
- vegetable oil;
- 300 ml of water.
Warm up the water, while it should not be hot, but warm. Pour yeast into a glass and dilute 3 tbsp. warm water. Let the mixture sit for half an hour. In a deep bowl, combine the flour and salt. Add yeast and remaining warm water to the mixture and knead the dough. This can be done manually or using a special mode in a food processor. The dough should be kneaded for at least 15 minutes so that it becomes smooth and not sticky to your hands. Cover the finished dough with a towel and place in a warm place for an hour and a half. If the house is cool, pour hot water into a basin and place a container of dough in it.
Mix the finished dough thoroughly. Form sausages from it - blanks for a baguette. Place them on a greased baking sheet, cut diagonally with a knife and let sit for 15 minutes. Then bake the bread for 25-30 minutes in a preheated oven.
If you've baked too much bread, don't wait for it to dry - freeze it. For use, it will be enough to heat the baguette in the microwave or in the oven, after sprinkling with water.
Sandwich with ham, eggplant and parmesan
You will need:
- 2 baguettes;
- 200 g of Parma ham;
- a small eggplant;
- Parmesan sliced into thin plastics to taste;
- 1-2 cloves of garlic;
- paprika;
- arugula salad to taste;
- dried rosemary;
- olive oil;
- 70 g of butter;
- salt and freshly ground black pepper.
The eggplant in this recipe can be substituted for zucchini.
Peel and cut the eggplant into wedges. Crush the garlic. Rub each eggplant wedge with a mixture of garlic, paprika, salt, black pepper, rosemary and olive oil. Preheat a skillet and fry the eggplant pieces in it.
Cut the baguettes in half lengthwise and crosswise. Grease each part with a little butter. Place a slice of ham, a few slices of eggplant, a slice of cheese and some arugula between two pieces of baguette. Fold the baguette slices into a closed sandwich. Serve immediately after cooking.
