Brother Juniper's Slow-rise French Bread+ Recipe

MIXING & KNEADING: Mix all the ingredients except the polenta in a
bowl (reserving a little water for adjustments) until mixture is
formed into a ball. sprinkle a little flour on the counter, turn out
the dough and knead it for about 10 to 12 minutes or until the dough
is tacky but not sticky and has a nice elasticity.

Clean the bowl and return the dough to it. cover with either a damp
towel, a plate or plastic wrap.

FORMING THE LOAVES: Cut the dough into 2 pieces if you are making
flutes or rounds or 4 pieces if you want baguettes. Roll each piece
of dough into a long rectangle. Fold it in thirds, from the top to
the bottom, and roll it out again, keeping the seam on the bottom.
Fold the rectangle into thirds again, crimping the seam with your
fingers so that it will not open up. The goal is to create a firm
surface tension that allows the bread to rise without spreading out
sideways. If the dough becomes too tough to roll out, allow it to
rest, covered, for about 3 to 5 minutes. This lets the gluten relax a
bit. If it begins to dry out, spray it with water. Sprinkle a baking
pan or french bread molds with polenta to prevent the dough from
stickng and to give a nice crackle to the bottom of the loaf. do not
oil the pan as this will brown the bottom of the loaf prematurely.
place the baguette or flute, seam side down, on the pan.

The slow rise is the trick for the crustiness and flavor of this
bread. I quote “you take flour, salt, yeast, and water, mix them
together in proper proportions, and form the dough into a ball. You
then put it out of the way for an hour and a half. You don’t rush it
by warming it up. The slow rise lets the bread go at it’s own pace.
Developing character and flavor as it goes. When it has doubled in
size, knock it down and let it rise again-in a quiet spot.” (covered
witha plate or towel) You let it rise 3, even 4 times-there is a
limit to the risings. Brother Juniper says it is important to learn
how many rises a bread can endure before it becomes alcoholic, which
will cause it to taste yeasty and musty and weaken the gluten. I
haven’t found that spot yet. The multiple slow rise is specifically
for bread without milk, sugar or other added sweeteners. Complex
doughs are suited only for 2 rises, one in the bowl and one in the
pan. But getting back to the number of rises. Too many can make a
great deal of lactic acid develop which can cause the dough to fall
or the crust to split apart. simple French bread can sustain up to 5
rises but 3 is usual. This is how you create a bread with character!

THE SOUND OF CRUST: You know the sound. It’s when you bite into it
and it crackles. It’s the sound of perfection. You can also get this
sound after you pull this bread from the oven. It just sits there and
crackles as the crust develops little cracks all about the top of it.

Fermentation of the dough is the chief character builder in all
breads. Each time the dough rises, more sugar is digested, creating
carbon dioxide and alcohol. The trapped carbon dioxide stretches the
dough, working or developing the gluten until a new creature is
formed. As you go along and punch it down a few times it is
rebuilding from a new level of quality. The dough is stronger, it
contains less sugar and starch and has more protein, and the flavors
of fermentation are adding a distinctive character trait.

BAKING TILE (OR TILES): You can ap[proximate the effect of hearth
baking by preheating the tile for 30 minutes, sprinkling on the
polenta at the last second, and sliding the dough onto the bricks
with a wooden oven peel or a long nosed metal spatula. Bake as
indicated, rememberring the sprays (see below.) Round loaves, because
of their bulk will need 5 to 10 minutes longer to bake and to cool
down then will baguettes.

When the bread is ready to be baked, a few well placed slash marks
are made with a razor blade or serrated knife. This controls the
rising and prevents the dough from tearing as the bread bakes.

To get the crackle, the oven must be hot. 425 degrees in a
conventional oven. The heat sets the crust and quickly evaporizes the
surface moisture, crisping the crust. At the moment the dough is to
be put into the oven, spritz the loaves with a spray bottle. You’ll
be busy for the next 8 minutes as every 2 minutes you quickly open
the oven and spritz the dough again (a total of 4 itmes.) This
spraying is most exciting because a dramatic tranformation usually
occurs just before the oven is opened. At the last spray you may want
to turn the bread if the loaves seem to be rising unevenly. The bread
will have made a substantial oven spring, increasing size by as much
as 10 to 15%, rising to its fullness as the yeast cells complete
their final feeding frenzy in the increasing oven warmth until the
heat kills them, martyrs to their (and our) cause.

Approximately 10 minutes after the 4th spray, the bread should turn a
light golden color. When it does, give it a final spray and turn off
the oven, for a 10 minute (or longer, depending on the size of the
loaves) final cooking time. Total cooking time is 26 to 30 minutes
for baguettes and up to 40 minutes for larger loaves. The bread
continues to bake during this time, with much of the interior
moisture evaporating. After this, the bread is removed from the oven
but it’s still drying out.The crust will be quite hard but it will
soften somewhat as the moisture works it way out. You should allow at
least 45 minutes for the loaf to cool down before cutting into it.
Your patience will be rewarded by the sound of the crust and the
taste that comes with it.

Mary Riemerman (gleaned from Brother Juniper’s Bread Book)