Pain de Campagne XX

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 120 g wheat flour, type 550
• 30 g wheat flour, type 1050
• 75 g water
• 4 ½ g salt
• 22 ½ g starter (levain)
• 280 g wheat flour, type 550
• 70 g wheat flour, type 1050
• 265 g water
• 6 ½ g salt

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 1 day 8 hours 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 45 minutes; Total time approx. 1 day 10 hours 15 minutes

slightly sour, French country bread with levain (wheat sourdough)

If available, you can and should use French T65 wheat flour instead of the flour combination. This has a higher gluten content, but adding the 1050 will achieve a similar effect. Knead the first five ingredients into a firm dough and let it rest, covered, at room temperature for about 18 hours. If you don’t have levain available and are using a “regular”, rather liquid sourdough starter, you should increase the starter to 30 g and reduce the amount of water to 70 g. The next day, knead the remaining ingredients WITHOUT the levain into a soft dough and let it rest, covered, for 30 minutes. Then add the levain in small pieces to the dough and knead with the food processor until the dough starts to pull away from the bowl. Then let the dough rest for 2 hours, folding it 3 times every 40 minutes. Now shape it into an oblong loaf and place it in a floured proving basket. Cover the loaf with a cloth and place it in a sealed plastic bag in the refrigerator for 10-14 hours to rise. On the day of baking, preheat the oven to 250°C. When the oven is hot, remove the loaf from the refrigerator, turn it out onto a baking sheet, and cut it lengthwise. This is best done on a preheated baking stone, but a baking sheet lined with baking paper will also work. Steam thoroughly, bake at 250°C for 5 minutes, and then reduce the oven temperature to 210°C. Finish baking for another 40 minutes. The biggest problem with this bread is the timing. A suggestion would be: 22:00 make the sourdough 16:00 knead the main dough 19:00 the loaf is in the basket and in the fridge 08:30 preheat the oven 09:00 put the bread in the oven If you start on Friday evening, you will have fresh, French country bread for brunch on Sunday.