Daring Bakers #3- "Rising" to the Challenge with Julia Child....

Well "she did it again". Making bread is a time consuming task and truthfully I have never made an artisan type bread before. That is what being a Daring Baker is all about and "rising" to the challenge...and conquering!! I conquered it all without a stand mixer, bread peel or bakers oven and using Canadian flour and not the less glutenous French flour that Julia suggested. You are most likely inundated by 100's of French loaves today by our fellow bloggers who have followed the icon Julia Child's French bread recipe to a tee. Kudos to all who completed the challenge!! Your loaves are a thing of beauty!!

Today is February 29 and it will be 4 years before we are able to post on this day again. Perhaps every 4 years we should be baking bread in memoriam. The Daring Bakers are the brainchild of our lovely and industrious co-founders Lis at La Mia Cucina and Ivonne of Cream Puffs in Venice . They started baking in their kitchens and it has grown to a movement of over 500 strong dedicated bakers. The greatest thing about belonging to the Daring Bakers is all the support from the DB community. I appreciate all the comments and encouragment from every one of you. My baguettes are not the most beautiful in the bunch you will see today but they were delicious, with a light crumb and a crispy crust. I liken them to the childrens story of the Ugly Duckling who grew up to be a swan!! It brings back memories of eating bread fresh straight from the oven slathered in butter and lovingly made by my dad. I cheated a bit because by making baguettes I was able to eat one of the loaves fresh from the oven :D I hope Julia Child would be proud of me for trying.

**Pain Francais (French Bread) **
(From Mastering the Art of French Cooking: Volume Two by Julia Child and Simone Beck)

Hosts: Breadchick Mary (The Sour Dough) and Sara I Like to Cook

Recipe Time: 7 – 9 hours

To continue with Julia's recipe check it out here at Breadchick .