The Sunday Morning Loaf

This Sunday Morning Loaf is adapted from the recipe for Pain de Campagne in the Bread Baker's Apprentice by Peter Reinhart.  It's a fun introduction to the world of "pre-ferments" (a fancy way of saying that you make a little dough ahead of time).

This will make two loaves of bread. If you are good at math, you can divide or double the recipe depending upon how many loaves of bread you want.  The loaves will typically be good for one to two days. Stale bread can be toasted or turned into bread crumbs. Do not store your bread in a plastic bag, unless freezing for later. Parchment paper or butcher block paper works nicely.

Step One:  Make the Pre-Ferment (Friday or Saturday)

1.         In a 4 quart bowl stir together the following ingredients:

·         2 1/4 cups of unbleached all-purpose flour (10 ounces)

·         1/2 teaspoon of instant yeast

·         3/4 cup of room temperature water

·         A pinch of salt

Things should come together into a coarse ball, adjusting the water or flour so that the dough is not too sticky or too stiff (if you are going to mess up, mess up on the side of stickiness)

2.         Sprinkle some flour on the counter and put the dough ball on the counter. Knead for about 4 to 6 minutes or until the dough is soft and pliable. The dough should start to warm.  Then gently form it into a ball (don't be crazy here, just make it sort of round)

3.         Lightly oil a bowl, transfer the dough ball to bowl and roll it around so that it is coated in oil.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit at room termperature for about an hour or until it swells to about one and a half its original size.

4.         Remove the dough from the bowl, knead it lightly to press some of the built-up gas, and return it to the bowl.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and pop it in the refrigerator at least a night.  You can keep it in there for up to three days, but the longer you keep your pre-ferment in the refrigerator the more sour your loaf will taste.

Step Two: Make and Form The Final Loaf (Sunday morning)

1.         Remove your pre-ferment from the refrigerator about one hour before making the dough.  Cut it into about ten small pieces with a pizza cutter, pastry scraper or serrated knife. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap to take off the chill.

2.         Stir together the following ingredients in a four quart mixing bowl:

·         2 cups of pre ferment (16 ounces)

·         1/4 cup of whole wheat flour

·         1 1/4 cup of unbleached bread flour (5.3 ounces) or all-purpose flour if bread flour is unavailable

·         1 teaspoon of instant yeast

·         1/2 cup of lukewarm water (4 ounces)

·         Semolina flour or cornmeal for dusting

Add a few drops of water, if dough is too dry, or a little flour if the dough is too wet. The dough should be soft and pliable.

3.         Sprinkle flour on the counter and knead the dough for about 8 to 10 minutes. Add some more flour if the dough is sticky. It should be tacky not sticky.  After kneading, put the dough in a large oiled bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

4.         Let it rest at room temperature for about two hours or until doubled in size. If the dough doubles too quickly, turn the dough to get some of the air bubbles out and let it rise again. Then, bring it to church.

Step Three: Shaping The Loaf (Church Time)

1.         Before the church service, at about 9/9:30 a.m., sprinkle some flour on the counter and gently remove the dough from the bowl. Try hard to preserve all of those wonderful bubbles that worked so hard to form in your dough.  Divide the dough in half, and then shape the dough. Loosely cover the dough with plastic wrap, a food-grade plastic bag or a towel.

2.         Let the loaves proof for one to two hours (while you celebrate your awesomeness at our  church service).

3.         When worship is over, load the loaf onto a peel dusted with Semolina flour or cornmeal for dusting, score the top of the loaf with a lame (this will be your unique mark so that we can tell which loaf belongs to you).

4.         Put it in the oven.

REMEMBER:  This is bread. It is a living thing. It changes depending on the weather, the humidity, the age of the flour, and you.  Every time you make it, the loaves will be a little different. It is better to think about this recipe as a guide and not an instruction booklet.  Keep in mind that the worst homemade bread will always be better than the best bread in the supermarket.