Bread with biga

This bread is inspired by Semolinabread. But, I made it from 100% flour. I made it several times, with 100% flour, and/or mixed with 7-granes, or with a bit of buckwheat and/or some rye. It is an easy bread and delicious one.

It is bread with a thick crunchy crust and soft dough. It needs a biga, which needs 14 – 16 hours to mature.

Biga:
• 250 gram flour
• 150 gram lukewarm water
• 1 gram dry yeast
Dough:
• 250 gram flour
• 150 gram lukewarm water
• 2.5 gram dry yeast
• 10 gram salt
Biga: Put flour, water and yeast in the bowl of the mixer and knead it for 5 minutes till firm dough. Put it in a light oily greased bowl and cover it up. Leave it for 14 - 16 uur to mature at roomtemperature.

Dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the water and the yeast. Add the biga in chunks. Add the flour. Knead the dough for 5 minutes. Let it rest for 5 minutes (autolyse). Add the salt. Knead another 5 minutes till it is smooth dough.
Transfer the dough to light oiled bowl and cover it up with plastic wrap. Leave it to rise till it doubles in size, about for 1.5 hours.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly oiled counter. Gently deflate the dough. Cover it up and leave it for 10 minutes. Shape into round ball. Slip into a floured couche or linnenlined banneton.

Cover it up with plastic wrap and leave it proof at room temperature for about 60 minutes.
Pre-heat the oven, with a baking stone, to 230ºC. Place your steaming apparatus at this time. I use a old cake form with black stones with hot water to create steam. Turn the proofed loaf onto a floured (preferably with semolina flour) parchment.
Slash the surface of the dough with a cross. Slip the loaf onto the preheated baking stone.
Pour hot water on the hot stones for steam. I use a glass bottle with a long neck filled with hot water. Quickly close the ovendoor.
Bake the bead for 20 minutes on 230ºC. Remove the parchment and the stem apparatus. After 20 minutes lower the temperature to 200ºC and bake another 15 – 20 minutes till the bread is done (93 ºC in the center of the bread). Take the bread out of the oven and place it on a rack to cool completely.

Inspired by: Arden