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Homemade golden-brown French bread loaf sitting on a wooden cutting board with a butter knife and a small dish of butter on a white marble countertop.
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60-Minute Monday French Bread

Monday is for the mission. This 60-minute French loaf is our ultimate 'Heritage Hack' for the busy home cook. Designed specifically for the Bread Machine, we’ve stripped away the 24-hour wait without sacrificing that classic crust and airy crumb. Whether you’re splitting it for a quick French Bread Pizza or dipping it into a flash-simmered sauce, this is the 'Pasta Tempo' way to get fresh bread on the table before the kids—or the critics—start asking what’s for dinner.
Prep Time1 minute
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time56 minutes
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: French-American
Keyword: Bread Machine, The Pasta Tempo Shortcuts
Servings: 10

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups Water (Room Temp)

1 tbsp Maple Syrup

½ tsp Salt

3 cups King Arthur Bread Flour

2 ¼ tsp Bread Machine Yeast

Instructions

Instructions

  • The Morning Dump: Add water, maple, and salt to the bread machine. Cover with flour. Make a small well in the flour and add yeast. Set your machine to the DOUGH cycle with a delay timer to finish when you arrive home.
  • The Evening Shape: Remove dough from the machine. On a lightly floured surface, use the Envelope Fold & Roll method to shape into a tight cylinder.
  • The Flash Rise: Place on a baking sheet. Place in a pre-warmed (then turned OFF) oven for 30 minutes.
  • The Bake: Remove loaf from the oven. Preheat oven to 400°F Convection.
  • Score & Bake: Use a serrated knife to make 3 quick slashes. Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Serve warm with dinner.

Notes

The "Flash Rise" Support

Since we are cutting the final rise time down to just 30 minutes in a warm oven (compared to the usual 60–90 minutes), the extra yeast acts like a turbo-charger. It ensures the bread gets enough "lift" before the heat of the oven sets the crust. Without that extra boost, a 30-minute rise might leave the loaf a bit dense.

2. The Delay Timer Factor

Yeast can lose a tiny bit of its "oomph" while sitting in the bread machine all day, especially if the kitchen gets warm. Using a full 2.25 tsp ensures that even if the yeast is a little tired by 5:00 PM, there is plenty of it to get the job done quickly.

One Tip for the Monday Load:

When using that much yeast on a delay timer, make absolutely sure your salt is at the bottom of the pan and your yeast is at the very top in that dry flour well. If they touch too early, the salt can "kill" the yeast before the machine even starts!