Instruction manual

Page 22
and fold the dough three times, at 20, 40 and 60 minutes. To stretch and
fold, gently stretch one side of the dough with oiled ngers, then fold it
towards the center and repeat on the opposite side, creating a business
letter fold. Repeat with the other two sides, forming a square package
in which all four sides have been stretched and folded to the center. It is
not necessary to press down on the dough to degas it, that will happen
naturally during the stretch and fold. After three stretch/folds, leave the
dough undisturbed for the remaining hour, until it doubles in size (to about
four cups volume). A gentle indent made with an oiled nger should ll in
slowly.
Shape and Proof the Boule. Cut an oval of parchment about 12”/30cm
long (the longer ends will serve as handles to lower the bread into the
Dutch oven) and set aside. Cover a circular area about 7 or 8”/18-20cm
in diameter with a thick layer of the reserved white wheat bran, then turn
the dough out onto the bran, smooth (top) side down. Being careful to
maintain as much air in the dough as possible, gently fold all four sides of
the dough to the center to form a square package. Then pull the corners
up and towards the center, just enough to round the shape and focusing
on gentle stretching of the bottom surface of the dough (be careful not to
compress the air out of the center of the boule). Gently ip the boule over
onto the oval parchment and set it on a quarter sheet pan or plate for
support. Set the proong temperature to 78F/26C and proof uncovered
for 60 minutes. Depending on how tight the shaping is, the loaf may
spread sideways a little as it proofs, but it will still rise nicely in the oven.
Preheat the Oven and Bake the Bread. While the boule is proong,
place a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 450F/230C. If
using a Dutch oven, also preheat the base (the lid may be left cool). The
bread will develop a somewhat more open crumb in the Dutch oven (due
to steam from the dough remaining in the sealed bread chamber), but
other methods of producing steam also work well, such as adding hot
water or ice to a pre-heated sheet pan. If using a cast iron Dutch oven,
preheat the pan for only 20 minutes to avoid scorching the bottom crust.
Gently score the bread with a very sharp knife or baker’s lame, dipping
the blade in water before each cut. Place the boule in the preheated
Dutch oven, still on its parchment (use the parchment to lower it into the
hot pan). Place the lid on top and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid,
rotate the bread to facilitate even browning and bake for an additional
20 minutes, until well browned. The internal temperature should be
205-210F/96-99C. Remove the bread from the pan, slide it off the
parchment and allow to cool on a rack about 2 hours before slicing.