Classic Baguettes Recipe 445

Steps:

• Make and ferment the poolish: Combine the water and yeast in a medium bowl. Let stand 1 minute, then stir with a wooden spoon until yeast is dissolved. Add the flour and stir until the consistency of a thick batter. Continue stirring for about 100 strokes or until the strands of gluten come off the spoon when you press the back of the spoon against the bowl. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Cover with a clean damp towel or plastic wrap and put in a moderately warm, draft-free place until it doubles in volume.
• Mix and knead the final dough: Measure the remaining ingredients. Measure and transfer 1 cup (9 ounces) of the poolish into a 6-quart bowl. (Discard remaining poolish) Add the water and yeast. Break the poolish up well with a wooden spoon and stir until it loosens and the mixture foams slightly. Add 1 cup of the flour and stir until well combined. Add the salt and only enough of the remaining flour to make a thick mass that is difficult to stir. Turn out onto a well-floured surface. Knead, adding more flour as needed, until the dough is soft and smooth, 15 to 17 minutes total. The dough is ready when a little dough pulled from the mass springs back quickly.
• Ferment the dough: Shape the dough into a ball and let it rest on a lightly floured surface while you scrape, clean, and lightly oil the large bowl. Place the dough in the bowl and turn once to coat with oil. Take the dough's temperature: the ideal is 78 degrees. Cover with a clean damp towel or plastic wrap and put in a moderately warm (74 to 80 degrees) draft-free place until doubled in volume, and a slight indentation remains after pressing a finger into the dough.
• Divide the dough and rest: Deflate the dough by pushing down in the center and pulling up on the sides. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead briefly. Cut into 4 equal pieces. Flatten each with the heel of your hand and shape into a tight ball. Cover with a clean damp towel or plastic wrap and put in a moderately warm draft-free place for 30 minutes.
• Shape the dough into loaves: Flatten each with the heel of your hand on an unfloured board. Shape each into a 14-inch loaf.
• Proof the loaves: Place the loaves seam side up in a well-floured couche. Cover with a clean damp towel or plastic wrap and put in a moderately warm draft-free place until increased in volume about 1 1/2 times, or until a slight indentation remains when the dough is pressed with a fingertip.
• Bake the loaves: 45 minutes to 1 hour before baking, preheat the oven and homemade hearth or baking stone on the center rack of the oven to 450 degrees. The oven rack must be in the center of the oven. Gently roll the loaf onto a lightly floured peel, seam side down. Score the loaf with a sharp razor blade or serrated knife making quick shallow cuts. Using the peel, slide the loaves onto the hearth. Quickly repeat with the next 2 loaves. Quickly spray the inner walls and floor of the oven with cold water until steam has filled the oven. Quickly close the door to trap the steam and bake 3 minutes. Spray again, closing the door quickly so that the steam doesn't escape. Bake until the loaves are a rich caramel color and the crusts are firm, 15 to 20 minutes.
• To test the loaves for doneness, remove from the pans and hold them upside down. Strike the bottom firmly with your finger. If the sound is hollow, the breads are done. If not, bake 5 minutes longer. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Steps:

• Make the starter by mixing the yeast with the water (no need to do this if you're using instant yeast), then mixing in the flour to make a soft dough. NOTE: I had to use about 3/4 cup water to get a soft dough, and it worked. Cover and let rest at room temperature for about 14 hours; overnight works well. The starter should have risen and become bubbly. If it hasn't, your yeast may not be working. Dissolve 1/4 teaspoon of yeast in 1 tablespoon lukewarm water with a pinch of sugar, and wait 15 minutes. If nothing happens, replace your yeast, and begin the starter process again. Note: I keep my SAF Instant yeast in the freezer, and it lasts for a long time. If you're using active dry yeast, mix it with the water, then combine with the starter, flour, and salt. If you're using instant yeast, there's no need to combine it with the water first. Mix and knead everything together by hand, mixer or bread machine set on the dough cycle till you've made a soft, somewhat smooth dough; it should be cohesive, but the surface may still be a bit rough. Knead for about 5 minutes on speed 2 of a stand mixer. Note: I used my Kitchen Aid Stand mixer, which is the easiest way (in my opinion), Place the dough in a lightly greased medium-size bowl, cover the bowl, and let the dough rise for 3 hours, gently deflating it and turning it over after 1 hour, and then again after 2 hours. Turn the dough out onto a lightly greased work surface. Divide it into three equal pieces. Note: I wet my hands, which makes handling the soft dough very easy to do. Shape each piece into a rough, slightly flattened oval, cover with greased plastic wrap, and let them rest for 15 minutes. To shape the dough: Working with one piece of dough at a time, fold the dough in half lengthwise, and seal the edges with the heel of your hand. Flatten it slightly, and fold and seal again. Note: I use a large plastic mat, very lightly dusted with flour, and my hands are lightly dusted with flour. With the seam-side down, cup your fingers and gently roll the dough into a 15-inch log. Place the logs seam-side down into the wells of a baguette pan; or onto a lightly greased or parchment-lined sheet pan or pans.* Note: I made my own baking couche, by placing a clean pure cotton towel across the length of a baking sheet. I then rubbed a LOT of flour into the towel. I placed one piece of shaped dough on top, and cradled it with the fold of the towel, and did this with the remaining shaped dough. I had three rolls of dough "cradled" with the towel. Cover them with a cover or lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow the loaves to rise till they've become very puffy, about 1 1/2 hours. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat your oven to 450°F; if you're using a baking stone, place it on the lowest rack (I placed it on the second to lowest rack, to leave room for a pan of water). Note: I don't own a convection oven, so I filled my cast iron skillet with water and placed that on the very bottom rack of my oven. Using a very sharp knife held at about a 45° angle, make three 8-inch vertical slashes in each baguette-- think "1-2-3" very quickly and slash as fast as you can. Spritz the baguettes heavily with warm water; this will help them develop a crackly-crisp crust. How I transferred the dough onto my baking stone: Place a baking sheet, upside down, right next to the pan of proofed and shaped dough. I don't own a "transfer board" so I used a flexible cutting mat. I gently rolled one piece of dough onto the flexible mat and then guided it onto the inverted baking sheet with a sheet of parchment paper. This technique worked, and prevented my dropping the dough and causing it to deflate too much. Bake the baguettes until they're a very deep golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove them from the oven and cool on a rack. Or, for the very crispiest baguettes, turn off the oven, crack it open about 2inches, and allow the baguettes to cool in the oven. Yield: Three 16-inch baguettes. *Advanced baker version: Place the shaped baguettes, seam-side down, in the folds of a heavily floured cotton dish towel. Allow them to rise as directed. When fully risen, gently roll them onto a parchment-lined or lightly greased baking sheet, floured side down. Bake as directed. Or roll them onto a baker's peel, and then onto a heated pizza stone in the oven. Bake as directed above. Variation: Make six stuffed sandwiches, perfect for picnics or lunchboxes. Stuffed Baguettes: Divide the baguette dough into six pieces instead of three, and shape each into a 5"-long rectangle. Layer with your favorite filling; we like mustard, ham, and Swiss cheese. Don't use too much filling, as it'll make the baguettes soggy. Also, use a dry filling (e.g., sliced deli meat, cheese) rather than something wet like meatballs in sauce. Roll up like a jelly roll, sealing the long seam and pinching the ends closed. Place on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Slash each baguette twice lengthwise, if desired. The cheese will ooze out. Some people like this look; some don't. Your choice. Bake until golden brown, as directed above. You may need shorten the baking time a bit from the original recipe.