a long cold proof

Sometimes, you just run out of time.

This was my second loaf with Community Grains flour. Like the first, a complet baked using more typical time and temperature, it came out great. In fact, its balance of wheat and sour flavors remains unique among my loaves. But it didn’t always seem that promising.

First, though the flour was great, I started late and ran into bed time. I improvised using my cold stairwell (this was baked in December, 2013). Due to faulty weatherstripping, it’s perfect for retarding fermentation overnight.

Second, after the long proof, peeling the loaf out of the banneton required a delicate touch, but luckily the outer sheath of the formed loaf held long enough to vent and place in a dutch oven for baking. The loaf yielded a nice bloom and a crust more finely textured than the typical open crumb of my country-style loaves.