Ghost Bread, or No-knead Ghost Fougasse

I saw this adorable recipe in my Insta feed from Simply So Good and had to give it a try in the Delaney test kitchen.  Plus  - I love learning new French words. 

A Fougasse is a type of bread typically associated with Provence but found in other variations in other regions as well.  Some versions are sculpted to resemble an ear of wheat.
 



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These ghosts are "souper" cute for Halloween, and for dipping into soups or with pasta.
 
I’m listing the recipe as posted on simplysogood.com, but I’d like to make a few recommendations:
 
The recipe says to break the dough into 8-12 pieces for the “ghosts.”  Maybe I let the dough sit in the fridge for tool long overnight, but I had a lot of dough.  So I would say that it could make closer to 20 ghosts. Mine were just too big and as a result were too puffy and took too long to bake.  They would have started to burn on the bottom before they were going to turn golden on top.
 
Also, the recipe doesn’t list a temperature for the oven.  Depending on how hot your oven runs, I think 350 – 400F works great.
 
 
No-knead Ghost Fougasse 
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INGREDIENTS:
·                  3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
·                  2 teaspoons salt
·                  1 teaspoons yeast
·                  1 teaspoon sugar
·                  1 1/2 cups warm water
·                  2 tablespoons olive oil
·                  2 tablespoons butter melted
·                  Flakey sea salt optional
 
 
 
PREPARATION:
Part I:  the Fougasse Dough
1.    In a large mixing bowl combine flour, salt, yeast, and sugar. Stir to combine.
 
2.    Add water and olive oil. Stir just until all the flour has been mixed in and no dry spots appear. The mixture will look kind of shaggy, but not too lumpy.
 
3.    Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 2-3 hours or until the dough has risen to double the size. Do not punch the dough down. Place in refrigerator overnight or at least 4 hours.
Part II:  Shaping the Fougasse
1.    Remove dough from the refrigerator and pour it onto a floured surface.
 
2.    Divide the dough into 8-12 pieces depending on how large you'd like to fougasse. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes to make it easier to shape. Pull and shape the dough into an oval or round shapes.
 
3.    Using a pizza wheel or sharp knife make slits in the dough. Pull and stretch the dough to create fun ghost shapes and faces. Place on parchment-lined baking sheets. Cover and let rise for 10-20 minutes. Bake in preheated oven for 12 minutes or until golden.
 
4.    Remove from oven and brush with melted butter and flakey sea salt.
 
Recipe Notes
·       Fougasse dough can be left to rise overnight and used without chilling.
·       Chilling the dough makes shaping the fougasse easier.

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