Walnut Fougasse

Making Rose's Walnut Fougasse

was certainly a learning experience.

I had no idea what this should be.

After reading the instructions 

a few times,

I played it safe and made a list.

Dough after the first rise

There are so few ingredients;

unbleached flour, yeast, salt,

milk, walnuts and walnut oil.

The texture of the dough is very stiff

compared to other breads we have made.

After each rising, and there are three with

additional rest times,

the dough becomes fluffier.

It was a bit tricky kneading in the walnuts.

They kept wanting to pop out.

Didn't open the slits wide enough

With so much oil added in between risings,

I had difficulty getting the bread to knead

back together.

I would really like to see a video of

Rose making this bread.

I did tent the bread with foil

for the last few minutes

until the internal temperature was reached.

When I pulled it out,

all I could think of was 

the Disney song from Peter Pan

"Never smile at a crocodile"

I will say this is an amazingly

textured bread.

It reminds me of our family's

very favorite pizza crust

from an authentic Italian pizzeria,

minus the walnuts.

This bread peaked my curiosity

and I've spent a fair amount of 

time watching different bakers

making it on youtube.

I'll definitely have another go at Fougasse.

Oh, and the house smells wonderful!

~

The Bread Bible

by

Rose Levy Beranbaum