The Noble Baguette & More Fantastique French Picnic Finds

When you shop at Dorothy Lane Market, you most certainly see that we're passionate about finding, making, and sharing good food. But how do you measure what is good? For a starting point, quality is most discernible when food is presented in its simplest state. 

Take bread, for example. Every few years in Paris, une compétition intense takes place called La Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie—Bakery World Cup. It draws the best bread bakers from all over the world: America, Japan, Brazil, France, and more. Bakers are judged in various categories. The most prized award is the simplest, yet most difficult bread to perfect: the baguette. 

While our cadre of artisan bakers at the DLM Bakehouse produce an impressive array of artisan breads, from hearty Raisin Walnut to cheesy Asiago, to our famous, lip-smacking Sourdough, the Baguette is still our first love. Perhaps the name invokes the romance of an April picnic in Paris. Or, maybe it’s a symbol of easily accessible, good eating? 

The baguette has a long history of excellence at our Bakery. DLM VP Scott Fox honed our very own baguette recipe baking alongside members of the French team who had competed in La Coupe du Monde while on a journey he made some three decades ago on a trip to Aurillac, France. That recipe still guides how we make our baguettes today.

To this day, I can’t help but smile every time I visit our Bakehouse and see artisan baking alive and well! You see the pride and passion our bakers take in their craft. They use the finest organic flour, mix the dough with expertise, and use purified water at specific temperatures. The bakers then shape every loaf by hand, and bake on the hearth in our beautiful bread ovens. 

How do you tell the difference between ordinary and artisan baguettes? A mass market baguette will have an even, light tan color. The texture will be soft and the surface smooth, giving easily to the touch. It's usually in the shape of a perfectly round cylinder. 

Our artisan baguette is markedly different. The color is a deep, golden hue. Its shape will not be perfectly cylindrical; rather, has a flat side, a bit more uneven elsewhere with perhaps a little bulge here and there. The uneven shape is part of its beauty, made so by the dough being dropped directly onto the hot surface of the stone hearth oven. The intense, direct heat from the stone causes the bread to “jump” creating the little holes and giving the loaf its texture. The outside is crackly and crispy, while the interior has scents of whey and an almost creamy feeling on the palate, which is ahhh … such a delight!

So how do you judge good food? In this case, authentic good bread? Go to the most common, yet toughest of loaves to perfect: the baguette. We enthusiastically submit ours for your scrutiny … and more importantly, your enjoyment! Just tear a piece and slather with a rich salted butter, as I’m doing for lunch today, dipping into a tasty fisherman’s stew. Whether on your dinner table or at a picnic, be sure to have a DLM Baguette. You don’t need to wait for a special occasion. Anytime is good to enjoy the simple pleasure of the noble baguette!