Note: This recipe requires the use of a levain starter.
Ingredients
Levain starter 125g
Water 350g
Unbleached bread flour 350g
Whole wheat 120g
Rye flour 30g
Salt 10g
Mix the dough. Pour the water into a large bowl, add all the flours, then stir just until all the water is absorbed, and a ragged looking dough forms. Cover and leave it to stand for 20mins to allow the dough to hydrate and form gluten.
Add levain and salt. Add the levain piece into the dough, sprinkle the salt, and mix it all in with a few firm strokes of the spatula.
Knead the dough. Use the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 8-9mins. Give the dough the windowpane test to see if it's ready. If it tears, keep kneading for another 1-2mins then test again.
Ferment the dough. Place the dough in a lightly oiled container and cover. Leave it to rise at room temperature for an hour.
Turn the dough. Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured counter. Pat it into a rectangle about 15 x 20cm and fold it like a letter: lift the far edge of the dough with both hands and pull towards you, placing it at the centre of the rectangle. Lift the near end, and pull it away from you, overlapping it with the far edge by about 3cm. Quickly slide both hands under the dough and flip it over so that the folds are underneath. Place it back in the container, cover and leave for 2-3 hours more. Pain au levain is much less gassy than your regular dough which uses packaged yeast, and so doesn't rise so dramatically.
Divide and shape. Cover your tray with baking paper. Cut the dough into 2 equal pieces (approx. 493g), then shape each piece of dough into a bâtard about 30cm long. It should be plump in the centre with gently tapered ends. Here's a link to a video on how to shape a bâtard.
Form the couche. Dust the baking paper and place the bâtards on the paper, seam side down, about 9cm apart. Lift the paper between the loaves to make a pleat. This provides support for the loaves while they proof. Lightly dust the bâtards with flour and cover with plastic wrap.
Proof the bâtards. Let the loaves rise at room temperature until they spread and inflate 1-1.5x the size, about 1-1.5hrs.
Prepare the oven. About an hour before baking, place a baking stone on the middle rack of the oven and a small baking tin on the bottom. Heat the oven to 230 Celsius.
Score the bâtards. Uncover the loaves and stretch the baking paper back out. Score each bâtard with a knife. Make four 45 degree slashes, about 9cm long, 1.5cm deep starting from the tip of the loaf. Dip the blade in water and use a quick, fluid motion so that it doesn't snag on the dough.
Bake the bâtards. Slide the loaves, still on the baking paper, onto the baking stone. Place 1/2 cup of ice cubes into the baking tin to produce steam. Bake for 15mins, lower the heat to 200 Celsius, and continue to bake until the bâtards are evenly browned with a deep chocolate tone along the edges of the score marks, 20-25mins more.
Cool and store the bâtards. Place the loaves onto a wire rack to cool for about an hour before slicing. The loaves will stay fresh for up to five days if stored in a paper bag.
Variations:
Pain au levain au tournesol
Soak 100g raw sunflower seeds for 8-12 hours in 175g of water. Strain off excess water.
Mixing the dough - Reduce the amount of water to 300g, and add the seeds in when you mix the flour.
Pain au levain au sesamé
Mixing the dough - Reduce water to 300g, add seeds in when you mix the flour.
Pain au levain aux quatre céréales
Combine 25g of flax seeds, millet, rolled oats, coarse cornmeal, then soak in 175g of water. Let it sit for 8-12 hours. The grains will absorb all the water.
Mixing the dough - Reduce water to 235g, add seeds and grains when you mix the flour.
Pain au levain aux olives
Roughly chop up 140g of olives and mix them in to the dough when it's fairly smooth, otherwise you risk mashing the olives. Add during the last 2 mins of kneading. Press any stray olives back in by hand, after you've turned the machine off.
Pain au levain au lard
Chop seven strips of thick-cut bacon (approx 280g) into 1.5cm pieces. Fry until some of the fat renders (melts) and the pieces start to brown around the edges. Transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate, allow to cool completely.
Mixing the dough - mix the bacon in along with the salt and levain.
Pain au levain au fromage
Use bold flavoured cheese like cheddar. After you've mixed the dough, while it's resting before you add the levain and salt, cut 140g of hard cheese into cubes. Add during the last 2mins of kneading, pressing any stray bits of cheese back in.
Pain au levain aux noix et raisins
Before mixing dough, place 1cup of nuts (walnuts or pecans) onto a baking sheet and toast in a pre-heated 175 Celsius oven until fragrant. Allow to cool, then coarsely chop. Add nuts and raisins during the last 2mins of kneading, pressing any stray bits back in
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