Processor Baguettes with Bran

° Makes 4 baguettes

I love to make bread but sometimes don’t have time to prepare it in the conventional way. This dough, made in a food processor, is easy and gives terrific results. The dough is not kneaded by hand and doesn’t even touch the work table, so there isn’t much cleanup involved, which suits me fine. I have a large plastic bowl with a tight-fitting lid that I use for letting the dough rise, and I use this same bowl beforehand for measuring the flour. So, when I finish this recipe, all I have to wash are the food processor bowl and steel blade, and the plastic bowl. I oil the bowl, which makes cleanup easier, and since the dough retains a little of that oil, it doesn’t stick to the baking sheet.

If the air is dry, the dough will tend to form an outer skin or crust while it is rising, especially during the second rise. To prevent this, either spray the baguettes a few times with water while rising (I use a standard plant sprayer for this), or slide the baking sheet with the baguettes into a large plastic bag, taking care to prevent them from coming into contact with the bag and sticking to it as they rise.

In professional bread-baking ovens, steam is automatically injected into the oven at the beginning of the baking time; this gives the bread a thick, strong crust. To imitate this situation, I spray about 2 tablespoons of water into the oven when I first put the bread in, and then repeat this a few minutes later.

If you like, you can partially bake the baguettes—creating “brown and serve” loaves—and then finish baking them later. Securely wrapped in plastic, the partially baked loaves will keep in the refrigerator for 3 or 4 days or in the freezer for weeks. When you are ready to eat them, all you have to do is moisten them lightly and bake them until they are brown and crusty.

I added bran to this recipe to create a type of whole wheat bread; if you prefer, you can add cracked wheat instead.

Place the tepid water in a food processor and sprinkle the yeast and sugar over it. Let proof for 5 minutes.

Measure the flour, bran, and salt into a large bowl and add the mixture to the processor bowl. Process for 1½ to 2 minutes, holding the base of the machine to prevent it from “walking” on the counter. The dough should have formed a ball at this point.

Oil the bowl you used for the flour mixture with the peanut oil and transfer the ball of the dough to the bowl. Cover and allow to rise at room temperature for about 1½ hours, until the dough has doubled or tripled in bulk.

When the dough is ready, pull it away from the sides of the bowl and push it down into the bowl, forming it into a ball. Line a heavy aluminum cookie sheet that measures about 14 by 18 inches with nonstick aluminum foil. Place the ball of dough on the sheet and press down on it until it is about 8 inches wide and about the length of the cookie sheet. Cut the rectangle of dough into 4 lengthwise strips and arrange them on the cookie sheet so that they are equidistant from one another. Sprinkle the baguettes with half the cornmeal, then turn them over and sprinkle with the remaining cornmeal. Set aside for about 45 minutes. Spray (or sprinkle or brush) the dough with water if it begins to form a dry crust as it rises.

Place a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Using a serrated knife, cut 4 or 5 gashes ¼ to ½ inch deep on a slight diagonal across the top of each baguette, or cut one long gash down the center of each. Place the cookie sheet on the middle oven rack and immediately spray about 2 tablespoons of water into the oven before closing the door. After 3 or 4 minutes, repeat the procedure.

If you are baking the bread completely, continue baking it for 30 to 35 minutes, until the loaves are brown and crusty. Remove and cool on wire racks. Serve warm or at room temperature.

If the bread is to be partially baked, remove the loaves from the oven after about 12 minutes, when they will have reached their ultimate size. (They will still be whitish at this point.) Cool completely, then wrap securely in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 or 4 days or freeze for up to 3 weeks. When you are ready to finish baking them, pass the frozen or refrigerated loaves under cool tap water to moisten them lightly all over. Arrange the loaves on a cookie sheet and bake in a 425-degree oven for 12 to 14 minutes, until nicely browned and crusty. Remove and cool on wire racks. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: Good bread dough is made with high-gluten (high-protein) flour, water, yeast, and salt. You can find good-quality packaged fresh or frozen pizza dough in most supermarkets. Fresh dough is ready to bake right away; frozen dough, which has a substantially longer storage life, is ready to use with very little advance notice—it thaws in a few hours in the refrigerator or in an hour or so at room temperature.