Sesame French Bread

Directions

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the sugar, oil, salt and 4 cups of flour; beat until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
• Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
• Punch dough down. Divide in half. Roll each half into a 15x10-in. rectangle. Roll up from a long side; seal well. Place with seam side down on greased baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal.
• Beat egg white and water; brush over loaves. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Cover with plastic wrap sprayed with cooking spray; let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes.
• With a sharp knife, make 4 shallow diagonal cuts across top. Bake at 400° until lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack.