Homemade French Bread

I made this last night for our weekly Sunday night dinner at my parents house. It was a big hit and sure smelled good! I got this recipe from a friend in college who said he got it from a French person who showed him how to make it.



FAVORITE FRENCH BREAD

2 1/4 cups warm water
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons yeast
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons oil
6 cups flour
1 handful of cornmeal
1 egg

Step 1: In a large bowl, combine water, sugar & yeast. Add salt, oil & flour - mix.

Step 2: Wait 10 minutes & mix again.

Step 3: Repeat step #2 five times. (I can only repeat 3 times before it gets too hard to stir, but my bread always turns out.)

Step 4: Turn onto flour board, knead 2 or 3 times. Divide into 2 parts.

Step 5: Arrange seam side down on baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover & let rise for 30 minutes.

Step 6: Cut 3 slashes on top of loaves. Wash with egg & 1 tablespoon water.

Step 7: Bake 30 minutes at 400 degrees F.

Enjoy!