{"id":3100,"date":"2019-08-12T14:05:04","date_gmt":"2019-08-12T18:05:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/french-barn.com\/blog\/?p=3100"},"modified":"2019-08-12T14:02:59","modified_gmt":"2019-08-12T18:02:59","slug":"chocolate-cherry-sourdough-fougasse","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/french-barn.com\/blog\/food-wine\/desserts\/chocolate-cherry-sourdough-fougasse","title":{"rendered":"Chocolate Cherry Sourdough Fougasse"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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When I was a wee one, I would have my mom cut off the crusts of my bread. Like most children, I wouldn\u2019t even consider taking a bite of my lunch if any remnants of brown remained around the edge of my sandwich, I\u2019d discard the fat ends of pizza, and wouldn\u2019t come within 15 feet of a piece of pie. Fortunately, as I grew older, my palate developed and I grew to love crust. Now, each morning when I cut my daughter\u2019s toast, I relish eating from the discard pile, gleefully enjoying each crispy bite. I happily scavenge the pizza ends off both her and my partner\u2019s plate. And, I now seek out pie for any and every special occasion. Birthday pie for me, please! Forever and always.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Fougasse is a bread made for crust-lovers! So you can imagine my excitement when I discovered how easy it was to make at home. While it\u2019s not an ultra<\/em>-beginner bread recipe<\/a>, it sits neatly in the beginner to moderate designation. So if you\u2019re eager to make a beautiful, treat-like, and fancy-as-heck loaf of bread, this is the recipe for you. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chocolate Cherry Sourdough Fougasse: The flavour profile is slightly sweet with hints of subtle sourdough tang. Structurally, it has a high crust to crumb ratio; the crust, golden and crispy, the crumb tender and airy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most fougasse recipes are savoury and adorned with things like olives, herbs, garlic, sun dried tomatoes, and cheese. But I focussed on that flavour-profile last time<\/a>, so wanted to take advantage of the ripe summer produce. Fruit is bountiful (and cheap) this time of year, so I opted for ripe juicy cherries juxtaposed with shards of bitter, dark chocolate. It makes a beautiful breakfast bread on its own–the sweetness is so minimal. But if you want to give it a little extra je ne sais quoi, it also does well warmed and brushed with fresh, salted butter and drizzled with a slick of honey.  
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The dough itself is quite easy to pull together. On its own, it could probably be a no-knead loaf, but with the addition of the chocolate and cherries, the stretch and folds help give it shape and incorporate the treasures. Now, if you\u2019re new to bread baking, I already know that the shaping might be intimidating to you. So let me break it down: After the bulk rise, the bread is turned out on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and dusted with flour. Let it rest for a few minutes on the pan. Easy so far, right? Then, it\u2019s dusted with flour and gently coaxed into a leaf or oval shape–it\u2019s supposed to look rustic, so try not to get caught up in the imperfections. The dough is then given a series of cuts, traditionally to resemble an ear of wheat. The cuts are also stretched out a bit with your fingers and the dough is set aside again to proof. The multiple openings in the finished bread not only look gorgeous, they help it to bake more quickly. So after all that waiting time for your dough to develop, your bread will be ready in under half an hour! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I’ve also included a quick video to help illustrate the shaping process below. Make sure you are on the parchment paper and not on a countertop (like I was in this video). The transfer to a pan is challenging once it’s scored!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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