While on vacation in France, I indulged in so many fresh baguettes and pastries. Since returning home, I’ve been craving that same fresh quality, but without the hefty grocery store prices and unnecessary ingredients. So, I decided to give bread baking another try and refine my skills until it becomes second nature – something I can easily fit into my weekly routine. Honestly, nothing compares to a fresh loaf straight from the oven so it’s a worthwhile pursuit!
Bake Day: Saturday 8/24/24, morning bake
Last Starter Feed: 8/4/24 (19 days ago). Starter resting in fridge since.
Refresh – Thursday 8/22/24 9:00am
Since my starter had been dormant in the fridge for over two weeks, I decided to give it a refresh before building the levain to check on its fermentation activity. I fed it as usual, using a 1:1 ratio of flour and water. To my delight, the starter more than doubled and peaked around 7 hours!
Levain – Friday 8/23/24 9:00am
- 25g starter
- 25g whole wheat flour
- 25g bread flour
- 50g water
Despite today’s cloudy and cooler weather, the levain nearly doubled in size after just 4 hours. I was on a tighter schedule, so I couldn’t let it rest for the full 5-6 hours as the recipe suggested.
Autolyse – Friday 8/23/24 12:00pm
- 412g bread flour
- 57g whole wheat flour
- 301g water
With an hour left on the levain, I mixed the autolyse and let it rest for 1 hour. As I was editing this recipe, I realized my last dough was short 129g of flour! No wonder I kept mentioning how wet and shaggy the dough was. D’oh! Hopefully, this adjustment means this loaf will turn out even better.
Mix – Friday 8/23/24 12:45pm
- 9g salt
- 95g levain
- 25g water
This time, I used the full 25g of water, and the dough held up well. The final dough temperature was 80.8F (measured 15 minutes into bulk fermentation).
Bulk Fermentation – Friday 8/23/24 12:50pm
- Stretch & fold #1 – 1:20pm
- Stretch & fold #2 – 1:50pm
- Stretch & fold #3 – 2:20pm
- Stretch & fold #4 – 2:50pm
Shape – Friday 8/23/24 4:30pm
I skipped the Preshape step to save time and quickly shaped the dough into the banneton before placing it in the fridge.
Proof – Friday 8/23/24 4:45pm
Bake – Saturday 8/24/24 10:15am
Following the recipe this time, I baked with the Dutch oven lid on for 20 minutes and then another 30 minutes with the lid off.
Final Thoughts
Perfection! The crumb was moist, chewy, and dotted with evenly distributed tiny air bubbles. The crust was sturdy and crisp. There’s not much I would change about this recipe or process, aside from sticking to the 5-6 hour levain build and 4-hour bulk fermentation, which I couldn’t do this time. If I had to nitpick, I might try rice flour in the banneton instead of all-purpose flour, as there was slight sticking of the dough. All in all, I’m making this again!
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