"La Flûte" Baguettes

"La flûte" baguette is a French bread where a tightly rolled log of dough is snipped almost all the way through with scissors, then the slices are fanned out to opposite sides. That's exactly what gives this baguette its soft crumb and its many crunchy crusty edges. The dough couldn't be simpler: flour, water, yeast and a spoonful of olive oil. A truly excellent bread, I recommend it.

"La Flûte" Baguettes

French bread with a soft crumb and lots of crunchy crusty edges: a rolled yeast dough log is snipped with scissors and fanned out.

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Rising and proofing 2 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Total Time 3 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Servings: 3 baguettes

Course: Bread

Cuisine: Home cooking

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 500 g flour
• 250 ml water warm, boiled
• 2 tsp dry yeast
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1.5 tsp sugar
• 1.5 tsp salt

Method

 

1. In a deep bowl, combine the dry ingredients - flour, yeast, sugar and salt - and mix well with a spatula.
2. Add the warm boiled water and olive oil. Knead the dough by hand until smooth, so it stops sticking to your hands.
3. Shape the dough into a ball, cover with a towel and leave in a warm place for 1.5-2 hours.
4. Turn the risen dough out onto a floured counter and divide into 3 parts. Roll each into a fairly thin sheet and roll up into a log, pulling slightly with each turn so the log comes out tight.
5. Dust the logs with flour. Holding scissors at about a 45° angle, snip the bread into slices almost all the way through. Fan the slices out to opposite sides.
   
6. Transfer the baguettes to a parchment-lined baking sheet, cover with a towel and let proof for another 30-40 minutes.
7. Preheat the oven to 210 °C and bake the bread for about 30 minutes until golden.
8. Remove the finished baguettes and let them cool under a towel. Enjoy your meal!
   

Notes

The key to this bread is a tightly rolled log and angled scissor cuts - that's exactly what gives it the signature "flute" shape with crunchy crusty edges.

Tips

• Knead the dough until smooth - it should stop sticking to your hands while staying soft.
• Roll the log tightly, pulling slightly with each turn: a loosely rolled log will fall apart when snipped.
• Hold the scissors at about a 45° angle and snip almost all the way through - this lets you fan the slices out to opposite sides for the signature "flute" shape.
• Don't skip the second proof - 30-40 minutes on the baking sheet under a towel before the oven.
• Let it cool under a towel: the crust stays crunchy without drying out too much.