Pugliese Bread

This is the Bread bakers laboratory of ireproducible results.

I made three loaves of Pugliese bread using the big oven.com recipe http://www.bigoven.com/9353-Pugliese-Bread-recipe.html referenced to:

Geminis MASSIVE MealMaster collection at www.synapse.com/~gemini

After having used the recipe for at least 3 months now, I am still a little baffled. what does it mean by:

Roll each part into long strand. Roll up along length, stretching slightly. Turn dough sideways and roll to long string again. Roll up into tight ball, tucking to ends under. Let rise 1 hour, covered with towel. Pre-heat oven to 450, with pan of water in the oven, about 20 minutes before baking.

Does it mean manipulating the dough wet? Or on a floured surface with a rolling stick/pin?

I used 2 1/3 cups biga (http://www.bigoven.com/38243-Biga-(Italian-Bread-Starter)-recipe.html) though the recipe calls for 13/16 cup biga. I don't know how anybody measures 13/16 cups, that's really stupid. I added an extra cup of water to the bread recipe--7.5 cups would have left the dough too dry, weighing a total of 2600 grams. I stirred it all together by hand with a wooden spoon, which is for me the best considering I don't want to own a stand mixer for just one task. I let the dough rise for 3-4 hours then, I made two 650 gm loaves to rise in 4x8 glass loaf pans, & one 1300 gm loaf to proof in a pyrex casserole 8.5" x 3.5" high.. I rolled one small loaf wet, the other on a floured surface. The big loaf went on a floured board where I used the stretch and fold method, per instructions for Ciabatta bread in Baking Artisan Bread by Ciril Hitz.

9.15 p.m. the loaves have risen just past the tops of the bread pans and the large casserole dish. they'll go into the oven which is steamy from the water in pans on the bottom elements.

10 p.m. I baked the bread loaves at ~425 deg F for 35 min., spraying the bread w water every 3 min during the first 15 min. Just looking at them, I cannot tell the difference between the two little loaves--they are almost exactly the same height. I'll have a chance to see in about 30 minutes. And tomorrow I shall bring one to Westport for lunch during the fiberglassing of the splashguards on Vern's big canoe--the large loaf, I think I'll share with Lydia.

Oh ya, saw some bread making videos, um you didn't know people video every thing but to me this takes the loaf!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZt552aGox8&NR=1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LaODcYSRXU&NR=1&feature=fvwp

Italian breads

Got started with hand made breads during Hawaii trip in Feb 2010 when my hosts railed at the price of grocery store breads. (cheapo white bread was $4/loaf) Amazingly, flour cost about the same as in the lower 48. So we got some flour, yeast etc and made French bread using library book "Beard on Bread". first 2 loaves made on a baking sheet, good bread but a little flat, only 1.5" tall. Then used a couple or round pans to bake the next 2 loaves, very nice loaves 3" tall. Great recipe that req little labor beyond kneading for 15 min.

Then got home and made Pugliese after the recipe from www.Bigoven.com
Did it again while in Vegas visiting family. Great recipe. low amount of work required. mix the starter. let it work. mix the dough, let it rise. form the loaves. let them rise, bake. voila! 4 loaves, easy work.

Made Ciabatta also, though not sure how it really differs from Pugiese. I don't have enough ovens to compare.

Baked four loaves from instructions in Tassajara Bread Book, written by cook at the tassajara retreat in california--very time/labor intensive. kneading 4 loaves is work. Life is too short to spend that much time making a few loaves of bread. Far better to make the Italians.