February challenge- French Bread

This month the wonderful Mary (Breadchick) and Sara choose a recipe for French Bread, or Pain Francais, From Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Volume Two by Julia Child and Simone Beck. I am sorry to be a little late in posting- I've had a hectic weekend so far with baby showers and various other things to cook for. I made beautiful fruit tarts actually- they were just exquisite and I am so cross I didn't take photos to post on my blog.

I really liked this recipe. It did take an awfully long time, but it was mostly just waiting time. If it is a rainy day and you've no where to go, I would definetely recommend you make this.

I kneaded the dough by hand, which wasn't at all painful. Besides, I find it a much more rewarding experience than machine kneading. I couldn't find the camera until the bread just came out of the oven, hence there are no photos of the kneading and rising and baking etc. I do however, hope that you enjoy these few photos that i took of the final result. A must try recipe for the baking enthusiast. Thanks Mary and Sara