Did I finally do it?! 😭🙏

After about 30+ “okay” loaves, I lifted the lid off of my Dutch oven today and about cried tears of joy. THE EAR ON THIS BABY!! I’m just hoping it’s not underproofed! Please let me know what y’all think!

Process:
– 405g bread flour
– 45g WW flour
– 85g starter (fed at a 1:3:3 ratio, 70% AP and 30% WW)
– 340g water
– 11g salt

Mix together the water and flour well (I did a few rounds of slap-and-folds). Let rest for ~30min. Dimple and fold the starter into this mixture, sprinkling in the salt little by little as you do. Let rest ~15min. Perform 4-6 coil folds every 15 minutes for 3 rounds, and then every 30 minutes for another 3 rounds.

Bulk ferment covered in a warm place (aka my stovetop w/ oven light), minding the temperature. I attached a guide that I used for the first time with this loaf; my dough stayed around 80 degrees, so after ~6 hours bulk ferment I called it good. Preshape: fold one side to middle, fold the other side over both, flip over and gently guide into a ball shape. Short bench rest, covered (~15min). Shaped (I used the “head, shoulders, knees, and toes” method, rolled up into a batard, push/pull to tighten). Then placed in the fridge for ~15hrs.

Preheat DO @500 for 1hr. I scored deep straight down the loaf toward me, and scored again at more of an angle in the leftmost side of the initial score. Baked @450 for 40min lid on, 5-10min lid off.

She was still a little warm when I cut into her, but I couldn’t wait 😅