|
Pre-Ferment:
In a bowl stir the flour with the yeast and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the water.
With a
bowl scraper or wooden spoon, work the flour into the liquid, until
all the flour has been moistened.
Lightly oil a small bowl. Place
the dough into the bowl and flip it over so the top of the dough has a light
coating of oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit (ferment) at room
temperature for about one hour. Then place in the refrigerator overnight (12-14
hours).
Seed Mixture: In a bowl combine
the seeds and water. Cover and let sit overnight at room temperature.
Bread Dough: In
a large bowl stir the flours with the sugar, yeast, and salt.
Remove the Pre-ferment from the refrigerator and cut into small chunks. Pour
the cold water into the bowl of your electric stand mixer, fitted with the dough hook.
Then add the Pre-ferment and the flour mixture. Knead the dough on 1st speed for
five minutes. Increase your mixer speed to 2nd speed and continue to knead the
dough for about 5-7 minutes or until the dough cleans the bowl and is smooth,
elastic, and slightly sticky. Add the seeds and continue to knead the dough, on
1st speed, for another 5-7 minutes or until the dough cleans the bowl
and is smooth and elastic.
Place your dough in a large
bowl that has been lightly oiled. Turn the dough once so
the top of the dough has a light coating of oil (this prevents a crust from
forming on the top of the dough). Cover with plastic wrap and let rise
(ferment) at room
temperature (about 75 degree F) (24 degree C) until almost doubled
(approximately 1 1/2 hours). After 45
minutes you need to stretch and fold the dough (this strengthens the dough and
equalizes the temperature). Do this by gently taking one edge of the
dough and stretching it and then fold it onto the top of the dough. Turn your
bowl 180 degrees and stretch the dough in the same way. Then turn your bowl a
quarter turn (90 degrees) and stretch the dough in the same way. Then turn your
bowl 180 degrees and repeat the process. (See video for how this is done.) After that, flip your dough so the
bottom of the dough is now the top, cover, and let the dough sit for the
remaining 45
minutes.
Next, turn out your dough onto
a lightly floured surface. You want the top of the dough to now be on the
bottom. Lightly flour the top of your dough and with the palms of your hands pat
the dough to break any large air bubbles. Then divide the dough into two equal
sized pieces (about 500 grams each). When you divide the dough use a pastry
scraper or knife and cut, don't pull or stretch the dough. Then, working with
one piece of dough at a time, pre-shape the dough. Do this by patting the dough
into a 6 x 4 inch (15 x 10 cm) rectangle. Fold over the top third of dough (like
you're folding a letter) and gently seal (this also increases the surface
tension of the dough.) Then take the top of the dough and fold it to the bottom
edge of the dough and seal. Place the palms of your hand on the top of the dough
and gently roll it back and forth to seal the dough and create tension. Place
the two logs of dough on a lightly floured baking sheet or board and loosely cover with
plastic wrap. Let sit at room temperature for about 30
minutes. (This is to relax the dough.)
At least one hour
before baking your bread, preheat your oven to 450
degrees F (230 degrees C). Have your oven racks in the top and bottom third of
your oven. On each rack have a pizza stone. Also, place a
cast iron skillet
on the floor of your oven (we will be placing ice cubes in the frying pan to
create steam which gives the bread a nice crust ).
Next, place the logs of
dough, upside down, onto a lightly floured surface. Lightly flour the top of the
dough. Form the dough into a rectangle (4 x 6 inches/10 x 15 cm) and have the short edge closest to you.
Start by taking the top edge of the rectangle and
fold the dough over about one third and seal. Then take the two top corners of
the dough and fold them over to meet in the center of the dough, forming a
triangle. Finally, take the top edge of the dough and fold it over to the edge of the
dough and seal. (See video for how this is done.) With the palms of your hands gently roll the dough back and
forth (to create tension) until it's about 12 inches (30 cm) in length,
tapered at the ends. (You want the center of the dough to be thicker than the
edges. This shape is called a 'batard'.) Place the batards (seams side up) on a
floured cloth (preferably linen),
separating the batards by a wrinkle in the cloth. Loosely cover with plastic wrap, and
let proof (ferment) for about 60 minutes at room temperature (the batards
should be plump and when you gently press your finger into the batard it should
leave a slight indentation).
Have ready a
pizza peel (or the back of
a baking sheet) that
has been lightly sprinkled with fine cornmeal or semolina. Gently
transfer the
batards to the pizza paddle, placing them seam side down. Then with a
razor or
sharp knife, held at an angle, score the top center of each batard lengthwise
with a long slash. Transfer the
batards onto the hot pizza stone, spacing the them several inches (5 - 7 cm)
apart. Quickly place about 1 cup (240 ml) of ice cubes into the hot cast iron
skillet (this creates steam). Bake the batards for about 25
- 30 minutes or
until golden brown
(if you tap the bottom of the batard it will sound hollow.) Then turn off the oven,
open the oven door slightly and leave the bread in the oven for an additional 5-10
minutes. Then remove from oven and place on a wire rack to finish cooling.
Makes 2
Batards.
View comments on this recipe on YouTube |
