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    Home > Bread

    Homemade French Bread

    Published: Oct 11, 2019 by Valya's Taste of Home · 68 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner. I’ve been making this tasty bread for many years now and it’s proven to be one of the best. It's super simple, doesn’t take too long and just flies out of the breadbasket! A winner for busy moms.

    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner. #homemadefrenchbread #frenchbread #easyandtasty #familyfavoritebread

    It's easy to remember the yumminess of restaurant bread at some of our favorite places. But for a truly top-notch experience of common food, you may want to try homemade. And that starts with a good bread recipe. You might want to have a bread maker to assist you in some of the laborious tasks, such as kneading. If you don't already use one, I highly recommend owning this helpful little appliance.

    This bread is very ...

    ... tasty and has very few ingredients, especially compared to the crazy, out-there ingredients in store-bought bread. Which is essentially a lump of chemicals with a small addition of flour. This bread is super delicious, fresh and stays tasty for days.

    The crunchy crust and slightly chewy center make this bread irresistible, you must make yourself stop eating it. We almost never buy bread from the store since switching to homemade bread, which cannot compare in taste, freshness, and health-wise.

    When I make this bread, I often find my kids with a chunk of bread in hand, just snacking away. They love this bread even plain and say that our mom makes the best bread ever, lol. Now that you know my picky little eaters' opinion, try it out for yourself!

    Homemade French Bread Ingredients

    • Organic all-purpose flour
    • Dry yeast
    • Sea salt
    • Unsalted butter (softened)
    • Water (room temperature)
    • Organic whole milk (room temperature)
    • Organic sugar (optional)
    • Home egg
    Ingredients for the Homemade French Bread. #homemadefrenchbread #frenchbread #easyandtasty #familyfavoritebread

    Homemade French Bread Instructions

    Into the bread maker pan add all the ingredients: flour, yeast, sea salt, softened butter, and room temperature water and milk.

    Lock the pan in its bread maker and press the dough cycle for the dough to form. It usually takes 30 minutes of kneading and one hour of rising.

    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner. #homemadefrenchbread #frenchbread #easyandtasty #familyfavoritebread

    After the dough cycle is done, transfer the dough onto a well-floured working space (I use a large cutting board). Split the dough in two and roll both chunks into two spheres. Shape them into long French bread shaped loaves. Or one large French bread loaf (like shown in the picture below). Baking and rising time are the same for both.

    Place them on a greased or lined with parchment paper cookie sheet. Brush both loaves with egg wash. Slice a few line designs over the top of each loaf and allow them to proof for 30 minutes.

    Homemade French Bread Baking Instructions

    After about 15 minutes of proofing, preheat the oven to 350F (180 C). Then bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the cookie sheet. Cool completely before serving.

    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner. #homemadefrenchbread #frenchbread #easyandtasty #familyfavoritebread

    Slice and enjoy!

    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner. #homemadefrenchbread #frenchbread #easyandtasty #familyfavoritebread

    If you make this Homemade French Bread recipe, please share a picture with me on Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest. Tag with #valyastasteofhome. I’d love to see your creations! 🙂

    Homemade French Bread

    Homemade French Bread

    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner.
    4.91 from 11 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Keyword: clean eating, easy recipe, family favorite bread, Homemade French Bread, kid approved recipe
    Prep Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    1 hour 30 minutes
    Total Time: 2 hours 55 minutes
    Servings: 2 loaves
    Author: Valya's Taste of Home

    Ingredients

    • Homemade French Bread Ingredients
    • 4 cups – organic all-purpose flour
    • 1 tsp. - dry yeast
    • 1 tsp. – sea salt
    • 1 cup – water (room temperature)
    • 2 tbsp. – unsalted butter
    • ⅓ cup – organic whole milk
    • 1 tsp. – organic sugar (optional)
    • Egg to brush the loaves

    Instructions

    • Homemade French Bread Instructions
    • Into the bread maker pan add all the ingredients: flour, yeast, sea salt, softened butter, and room temperature water and milk.
    • Lock the pan in its bread maker and press the dough cycle for the dough to form. It usually takes 30 minutes of kneading and one hour of rising.
    • After the dough cycle is done, transfer the dough onto a well-floured working space (I use a large cutting board). Split the dough in two and roll both chunks into two spheres. Shape them into long French bread shaped loaves. Or one large French bread loaf. Baking and rising time are the same for both.
    • Place them on a greased or lined with parchment paper cookie sheet. Brush both loaves with egg wash. Slice a few line designs over the top of each loaf and allow them to proof for 30 minutes.
    • After about 15 minutes of proofing, preheat the oven to 350F (180 C). Then bake for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 minutes before removing them from the cookie sheet. Cool completely before serving.

    Notes

    Brushing bread loaves with egg wash is optional as well. Another alternative is to spray loaves with water before placing them into the oven. 
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    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner. #homemadefrenchbread #frenchbread #easyandtasty #familyfavoritebread

    Looking for more homemade bread recipes? Please check these out:

    • Mashed Potatoes Dinner Rolls
    • Multi-Grain Honey Whole Wheat Bread
    • Dutch Oven White Crusty Bread
    • Amazing Breadsticks Recipe
    • Homemade Rye Bread
    • Garlic Dinner Rolls

    Check all the bread recipes HERE.

    Kitchen items I used in making this recipe:

    (If you need any of these items, simply click on the picture to order. This post may contain affiliate links which won't change your price but will share some commission.)

    Love this Homemade French Bread Recipe? Please Save and Pin on Pinterest!

    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner. #homemadefrenchbread #frenchbread #easyandtasty #familyfavoritebread
    This Homemade French Bread is an all-time family favorite at my house, no matter how you slice it! And when things are either homemade or made with homegrown ingredients, it’s bound to be a winner. #homemadefrenchbread #frenchbread #easyandtasty #familyfavoritebread

    This is an updated recipe. The picture (above) is from Oct 27, 2014, when the recipe was originally posted.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Nora says

      April 24, 2020 at 12:35 pm

      How many breadsticks does this bread recipe make? Also, is the cooking method(time and temp) the same?
      Thanks!

      Reply
      • Valya of Valya's Taste of Home says

        April 25, 2020 at 5:31 pm

        It makes 2 loaves of bread. For breadsticks, it all depends on how big or small you want them to be.

        Reply
    2. Nadia says

      June 03, 2019 at 4:07 pm

      Hi can I replace with regular milk instead of dry ?

      Reply
      • Valya of Valya's Taste of Home says

        June 03, 2019 at 11:54 pm

        Yes, you sure can. I have been using 1/3 cup milk and 1 cup water proportion for a while. Thanks for asking, that's a great question.

        Reply
    3. Inna says

      February 13, 2019 at 9:33 am

      5 stars
      This bread was amazing!!
      I was wondering if I use this recipe but make buns instead would I still bake it for 20 min or less?

      Reply
      • Valya of Valya's Taste of Home says

        February 13, 2019 at 11:25 am

        Yes, about the same time. Bake until golden brown in color which should take about the same baking time. I hope this helps.

        Reply
        • Inna says

          February 13, 2019 at 5:31 pm

          5 stars
          I doubled the recipe and got a total of 16 buns about 6" in diameter. Baked at 18 minutes.. they were perfect! Kids enjoyed them with raspberry jam and a glass of milk ????

          Reply
          • Valya of Valya's Taste of Home says

            February 13, 2019 at 11:13 pm

            I’m so happy to hear that! My kids make this bread all the time. We use this recipe for pizza as well, and it’s the best! Thank you for your amazing review! 🙂

            Reply
    4. Roxanne says

      May 09, 2018 at 10:27 pm

      5 stars
      I have now been making this bread a few times per week for a couple months; figured ill add my input on the "crisp crust" question someone asked earlier. On 2 separate occasions I put the bread in the oven to bake and totally forgot about it. One time it baked over 1 hour, the other time over 3 hours (whoops!) Interestingly enough, it doesnt burn! I discovered that the longer you bake, the thicker/crispier crust you end up with. The time it baked for over 3 hours it came out of the oven golden (not burnt) and when i cut it the crust was super super crispy, but the middle was still fairly soft.
      So for those looking for a crispier crist, mess around with the baking time.

      Reply
      • www.valyastasteofhome.com says

        May 10, 2018 at 12:00 am

        Wow ?, I have to experiment baking for 1 hour. Thanks for the tip. 🙂

        Reply
    5. Roxanne says

      March 25, 2018 at 9:48 am

      5 stars
      I have made this bread 5 times in the last 2 weeks, we LOVE it! We eat it as sandwiches, with dinner or just plain with a pat of butter. I use unsalted butter in the dough so I add an extra tsp of salt, tastes perfect for our family. Also, when baking, I form it into 3 smaller loaves. Its a little easier to store them when theyre shorter.

      Reply
      • www.valyastasteofhome.com says

        March 25, 2018 at 3:07 pm

        That awesome! We make this bread pretty often. I like to make Italian or plain bread crumbs out of this bread as well. Thank you for amazing five-star review! 🙂

        Reply
    6. Olya says

      January 17, 2018 at 10:42 am

      Do you use regular all purpose flour or Canadian all purpose flour? Thanks!

      Reply
      • www.valyastasteofhome.com says

        January 17, 2018 at 9:36 pm

        This is such an easy recipe, that any kind of flour works well.

        Reply
    7. Lana Mayevsky says

      September 30, 2017 at 5:03 pm

      Today I made this bread first time and it was delicious! Keeping the recipe??. Thanks again for the best recipes!!

      Reply
      • www.valyastasteofhome.com says

        September 30, 2017 at 8:53 pm

        That is so sweet of you ? I'm glad you like my recipes. I use this bread dough recipe for a homemade pizzas too. Give it a try. Thank you kindly for such an amazing review!

        Reply
    8. Nat says

      September 16, 2017 at 6:27 pm

      5 stars
      Five stars bread

      Reply
      • www.valyastasteofhome.com says

        September 17, 2017 at 10:01 pm

        Thank you! Homemade taste BEST 😉

        Reply
    9. jessica says

      August 23, 2017 at 9:29 am

      Valya do you know how to make bagels? Thanks

      Reply
      • www.valyastasteofhome.com says

        August 23, 2017 at 5:38 pm

        Yes. The recipe is very similar to the sweet bread. I will post it sometime.

        Reply
    10. A.S says

      November 17, 2016 at 2:49 pm

      Hi Valya, Does the bread suppose to have a crisp korochka? I made it today and it tastes delicious, but usually store bought have a very crisp korochka, so I was wondering if maybe I did something wrong that it very fluffy and soft.

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        November 17, 2016 at 2:58 pm

        Hi Dear. If you are comparing to a store bough french bread that in not that crisp. But it still turns out really pretty crispy. You need to let it cool on a wire rack so the bottom of the bread doesn't get wet. I hope that helps. 🙂

        Reply
    11. Kristina says

      October 30, 2016 at 1:00 pm

      Do u have to use the bread maker or u can do the dough by hand ?

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 30, 2016 at 2:12 pm

        I've made this bread in the kitchen aid mixer, but never done it by hand. I think if you can kneed it well, it should be fine. Let me know how it turns out for you, if you ever make it by hand. Thanks for your question.

        Reply
        • Kristina says

          October 30, 2016 at 9:45 pm

          Does it turn out find if I do it in the kitchen aid mixer ?? And if I do, do it in kitchen aid maker how long do I let the dough sit to rise ?;)

          Reply
          • valya'stasteofhome.com says

            October 30, 2016 at 10:57 pm

            Let the dough rise for at least one hour to hour and half. The bread tunes out almost the same. The only difference is the bread machine kneads the dough longer with kneading intervals while rising and the bread turns out just a little fluffier. My bread machine broke after 10 years of constant use, and I used my mixer last week to make bread, until my new bread machine arived late last week. I'm glad I got to experiment different ways of make this bread. So, yeah..., perfect timing. 🙂

            Reply
    12. plasterers bristol says

      May 07, 2016 at 1:49 am

      Yummy, what a great recipe. been looking for decent bread making recipe. Thanks for sharing.

      Simon

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        May 07, 2016 at 3:02 pm

        I'm glad you found a great bread recipe. We've been making this bread for over 15 years and it never gets old. Enjoy!

        Reply
    13. Tanya says

      November 19, 2015 at 12:12 pm

      Yammm... I don't have dry milk . Is that ok if I skip that ?

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        November 19, 2015 at 12:16 pm

        Yes. I've done it without it in the past. Bread still works out, but taste better with dry milk in it.

        Reply
    14. angel says

      December 31, 2014 at 5:10 pm

      this looks very nice.

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        December 31, 2014 at 5:17 pm

        Thank you!

        Reply
    15. jessica says

      December 05, 2014 at 8:46 pm

      Valya, do you have a good recipe for a whole wheat bread? Thank you!

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        December 06, 2014 at 11:50 am

        I do make dark bread. And it's on my to post list. Thanks Jessica

        Reply
    16. Tatyana says

      November 26, 2014 at 3:42 pm

      Valya, I just made this bread , bread tasted very good but unfortunately my bread came out kind of flat and I had to pull the dough out of the bread machine 15 minutes because the dough was running out of the machine .... What did I do wrong? Did something like this happened to anyone else? Thanks

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        November 26, 2014 at 4:02 pm

        Hi Tatyana! What is the capacity of your bread maker? This is 2 lbs bread dough, so you need 2 lbs bread machine capacity. What do you mean 15 minutes? You mean before the end of the cycle? That tells me that your bread machine is not 2 lbs capacity. Its normal for the dough to rise all the way to the top of the cap. Turned out flat? That tells me that you added more water or not enough flour than recipe says, or you let it rise to long in the warm place and it lost its shape. The dough should be a little more firm that the dough for "пирожки", and should easily roll into nice rolls. No one told me of that problem and it never happened to me and I make this bread at least 3 times a week. Try it again and see how it will turn out. Let me know if you have more questions. Thank you so much for making my recipes. 🙂

        Reply
        • Tatyana says

          November 27, 2014 at 1:13 pm

          Valya, I have Sanyo brand machine. It said the maximum for the Dough setting is 41/2 cups of flour. I felt that my dough was too runny not spongy so maybe I will try more flour next time. Also, I have used instant dry yeast, do you think it maybe a problem? Thank you!

          Reply
          • valya'stasteofhome.com says

            November 28, 2014 at 2:27 pm

            Hm...sounds like you have right size. 4 cups of flour = to 2 lbs of dough. Give it another try, make sure you follow step by step recipe instructions. Practice makes it perfect. Thanks Tatyana 🙂

            Reply
    17. jessica says

      November 03, 2014 at 8:48 pm

      When the bread machine is done with the mixing, does the dough need to be soft or kind of thickish?

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        November 03, 2014 at 11:10 pm

        It's on the thicker side. The dough will be much softer after rising.

        Reply
        • jessica says

          November 04, 2014 at 5:39 pm

          Do you add 4 cups of flour at once or 3 and a half cups in the beginning and half a cup close to the end of the mixing process?

          Reply
          • valya'stasteofhome.com says

            November 04, 2014 at 6:20 pm

            You add all 4 cups at ones.

            Reply
    18. Vita says

      November 02, 2014 at 4:49 am

      Can I use butter instead of margarine?

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        November 02, 2014 at 6:39 pm

        Hi Vita! Thanks for stopping by! I been asked that question multiple times. I'm so used to the original recipe that I didn't try changing ingredients. In fact, someone mentioned in the comments that the bread turned out to salty for them. So I made it again and I will agree it was a little to salty. I decided to try it with butter instead of margarine and reducing the salt. Today, I made this bread again and used 1 tsp. of salt and softened butter and it was great. I think it was even better than original recipe. So, I went ahead and reduced the salt amount and added softened butter in the post. Thanks so much! 🙂

        Reply
        • Vita says

          November 02, 2014 at 9:53 pm

          Thank you for that info! I plan on going grocery shopping tomorrow and specifically to get everything I need to make this bread! 😉 I will be trying it out with the butter and I'll let you know how it goes once I get to making it.

          Reply
          • valya'stasteofhome.com says

            November 03, 2014 at 9:06 am

            You are welcome Vita! Please do let me know how it turns out and how you like it. 🙂

            Reply
            • Vita says

              November 06, 2014 at 2:54 pm

              5 stars
              Hi Valya! I made this bread yesterday using the butter instead of margarine and it turned out great! My kids kept asking for more! 😉 Thank you for sharing your recipes!

            • valya'stasteofhome.com says

              November 06, 2014 at 7:24 pm

              Thank you Vita! I so glad to heat that. Now you wont have to purchase french bread. You can make your own, and feed the kids with fresh and warm right from the oven! 🙂

    19. Natasha says

      October 31, 2014 at 12:37 pm

      Hi Valya, I've discovered your blog through Natasha's kitchen, and I'm happy/ you have so many great recipes!!!
      I've used already some of them and a lot are on my bucket list!
      I want to start baking bread at home, it's intimidating a little bit for me, I didn't even have a bread machine, but a hope to get one on Black Friday;). Are you satisfied with yours? Would you recommend to buy it? If yes, please, share the brand name.

      Thank you very much,
      Blessings, Natasha

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 31, 2014 at 6:49 pm

        I'm glad you found my blog. I hear that a lot from readers that they like my blog. I really appreciate that! Thank you so much!
        I have my bread maker for a long time, about 8 years now. The brand is "Sunbeam". It's on the less expensive brands, but still works great. I don't believe in black Friday shopping sales. Most of the time I get things on good sale for less than on black Friday. But that's me. If you go into "Shop" category I have the bread maker for those who wants to purchase things I have and trust. Let me know if you have any other question. Thanks Natasha! 🙂

        Reply
    20. Mom's Dish says

      October 28, 2014 at 10:18 pm

      This bread looks amazing. Looks a lot like the one we had in Europe.

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 28, 2014 at 11:40 pm

        It sure tastes like it too! Thanks Natalya!:)

        Reply
        • alena says

          October 30, 2014 at 8:31 am

          Hi Valya. Made mine yesterday tasted really salty. Maybe it's 1 tsp instead 1 tbsp? Or its the margarine I used?

          Reply
          • valya'stasteofhome.com says

            October 30, 2014 at 9:22 am

            Could be. It's normal for us. I don't even taste salt. We are all different too. Maybe you need less salt. Try putting 3/4 of a tbsp. Thanks Alena 😉

            Reply
    21. GiGi Eats Celebrities says

      October 28, 2014 at 9:26 am

      Ugh, reminds me of my delicious childhood. I miss the days of wolfing down baugettes!

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 28, 2014 at 10:42 am

        It sure does! Thanks GiGi!

        Reply
    22. Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice says

      October 28, 2014 at 5:14 am

      5 stars
      This french bread looks amazing! Definitely has the looks of bakery bread. What a fantastic idea to make a home-made version!

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 28, 2014 at 10:40 am

        It is Gayle! So much less ingredients in home made bread, compare what they put into the bread at the bakery. Thanks for your comment! 🙂

        Reply
    23. alena says

      October 27, 2014 at 9:59 pm

      Can I use Bonnet blue margarine?

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 27, 2014 at 10:22 pm

        I never used that brand of margarine(I think that all margarine brands have the same ingredients). Let me know how it turns out for you.

        Reply
    24. mira says

      October 27, 2014 at 4:36 pm

      This bread looks great Valya! It's been a while since I've made bread at home, will try your recipe!

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 27, 2014 at 4:39 pm

        Thanks Mira! Nothing beats home made bread! 🙂

        Reply
    25. tworaspberries says

      October 27, 2014 at 3:49 pm

      yummm, this looks really great! I love homemade bread 😉

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 27, 2014 at 4:38 pm

        Me too. Thanks Michele! 😉

        Reply
    26. Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy says

      October 27, 2014 at 10:03 am

      I can almost smell this through the screen. You can't beat homemade bread.

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 27, 2014 at 11:08 am

        I know! Right...? Homemade is the best!!! 🙂

        Reply
    27. Natasha says

      October 27, 2014 at 12:37 am

      My mouth just watered!! Yummy!! Love this bread recipe! Thanks for posting.

      Reply
      • valya'stasteofhome.com says

        October 27, 2014 at 9:03 am

        This is a good stuff! Thanks Natasha! 😉

        Reply

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