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Épi de Blé

Épi de Blé

I started learning breadmaking about ten years ago. It was a long process, but it completely changed how I cook at home and gave me the ability to make the bread I want whenever I want it. Épi de Blé was a much more recent discovery. Once I saw it, I knew it was for me. The shape creates plenty of crust, the sesame seeds add great flavor, and the dough is built on years of making baguettes.

Prep Time 40 minutes (plus fermentation)
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time About 5 hours
Servings 2 loaves

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Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Mix the flour, water, salt, and yeast until no dry flour remains. Rest 20–30 minutes, then knead or fold until the dough is smooth and slightly elastic.
  2. Bulk ferment until nearly doubled, folding once or twice, about 2–2½ hours at room temperature.
  3. Divide in two, preshape into logs, and rest 15–20 minutes.
  4. Shape into baguettes. Roll the tops in sesame seeds.
  5. Proof until the dough is puffy and a light poke springs back slowly, 45–75 minutes.
  6. Heat the oven to 475°F (245°C) with a stone or steel and a pan for steam.
  7. Transfer the loaves. With scissors, cut the épi: hold the shears at an angle and make a series of cuts down the loaf, shifting each “ear” to alternate sides so it looks like a wheat stalk.
  8. Bake with steam for 10 minutes, then without steam until deeply browned, 12–15 minutes more.
  9. Cool on a rack before tearing.

Chef’s Notes

The dough is a straightforward baguette dough; the scissors are what make it an épi. Those cuts create more crust than a standard baguette, which is why I keep coming back to this shape. Tomato-topped slices show up in the photos from this bake, but they are not part of the bread itself. These fermentation times are a working draft—adjust them to your kitchen.

Equipment Used