Gerard's Country Bread
Prepare the poolish, or starter, six to eight hours before baking.
For the poolish:
1/4 cup spelt and rye, ground from whole grains, sifted
1 1/3 cups of all-purpose white flour
1 1/3 cups plus 1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon dry commercial yeast
Mix ground spelt and rye in a bowl with all-purpose white flour. Mix in water
and dry commercial yeast. Make sure the temperatures of the flour and water and
the kitchen's air temperature are 80 degrees. Mix into a paste, put into a
tightly covered tall plastic container, and let ferment for 6 to
8 hours at 65 degrees or 4 hours at 80 degrees.
For the dough
3 3/4 cups all-purpose white flour
1/4 cup ground rye and spelt, mixed (half of each)
2 3/4 cups water
2 tablespoons sea salt
Once the poolish has sat for the required time, combine all-purpose white flour
with ground rye and spelt. Quickly mix in by hand all the water. Compact the
mixture and cover with a plastic sheet. Let it sit for 30 to 45 minutes at 70
to 80 degrees.
Next, incorporate the poolish into the flour and water mixture, kneading for
about 10 minutes. Make sure to just stretch the dough as you knead, rather than
pulling or tearing it. When the surface is smooth and shiny, form the dough
into a ball. Sprinkle the surface with sea salt and mix again for 5 minutes.
Place in a bowl and cover with a clear plastic bag or lid. Let it rise for 1
hour at 70 degrees.
After 1 hour, punch the dough down. Divide the dough into three equal pieces,
shape into balls, and let rise again, covered, for 30 minutes. Flatten to let
the gas escape, round the dough into a baguette shape, and let it rise a third
and final time for 1 to 1 ½ hours. Make four light slits in the surface, dust
the surface with flour and place in preheated oven. Bake at 450 degrees for
about 20 minutes or until golden brown.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
------------------------------------
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BREAD-RECIPE/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BREAD-RECIPE/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
