Feed your starter 2-3x per day for 1-2 days prior to mixing. I use about a 2x build, each time, with the last feed about 9 hours before mixing. I think anywhere between 5-9 hours works. 11 oz of flour, 11 oz of 69 degree water. If you've been using the starter at least weekly, then feeding it twice before you use it will be fine.
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl for your stand mixer, putting the water and sourdough in the bowl before the...
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Feed your starter 2-3x per day for 1-2 days prior to mixing. I use about a 2x build, each time, with the last feed about 9 hours before mixing. I think anywhere between 5-9 hours works. 11 oz of flour, 11 oz of 69 degree water. If you've been using the starter at least weekly, then feeding it twice before you use it will be fine.
Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl for your stand mixer, putting the water and sourdough in the bowl before the flour-- otherwise some of the flour might get stuck on the bottom. With the paddle attachment, mix on low speed for 5 minutes. Rest for 20 minutes to allow glutens to relax and salt to dissolve. Mix for 10-15 minutes on medium speed with the paddle attachment-- and the dough should look very stretchy, and start to cling to the paddle. Keep mixing with the paddle until the dough really starts to cling to it, and starts climbing up the paddle, starting to reach the attachment to the mixer itself.
Then, switch to your dough hook-- use wet hands to get the dough off the paddle. With the dough hook, mix for 5 minutes on highest speed-- you'll probably need to hold the mixer to keep it from flying off the counter. Keep mixing until the dough has pulled away from the side of the bowl, and forms a loose balls around the dough hook.
Dough should be extremely stretchy and satiny. You should be able to pull it thin so you can just about see through it. Wet your hands while doing this, so the dough doesn't stick.
Pour the dough out onto your counter-- it should come out as one gooey, doughy lump. Do about 15-20 turns on your counter with your bench knife and wet hands. Your dough temperature should be about 70-75 degrees.
Put the dough into an oiled bowl or container. Cover and let rise for 3.5 to 4 hours, at about 75 degrees. Midway through the rise, turn the dough: fold the sides of the dough over onto its center, from all four sides. You may need an external heat source to keep the dough that warm. I use at heat lamp, covering the dough container with a towel, to diffuse the heat.
Dump the dough out onto counter, and divide in two. Roughly shape the dough with your bench knife. Use a little white flour to prevent sticking. Cover with couche for 15 minutes. Do the final shaping with a rocking motion of your two hands. Invert the boule into a floured banneton-- use whole wheat and semolina flour because of the coarse grains and low glutens.
Cover with plastic shower caps (the kind you get from a hotel) and place in 50-55 degree cooler or wine cellar overnight, or about 7 hours.
Heat oven to 500 degrees with two pizza stones side by side. Cast iron pans underneath for steaming water. Remove dough from your retarder just before baking. Invert baskets onto floured peel, cut with lame, and slide onto each stone. When both loaves are in oven, pour about 2 cups of boiling water onto one of the cast iron pans, wait 3-5 minutes, then do again in the other pan. Reduce oven temp to 450 degrees.
After 30 minutes more, turn the loaves 90-180 degrees to get more even cooking. Remove after about 45-50 minutes, when they are nice and dark, and sound hollow when tapped. Let cool on racks. Brush off the flour with some kind of firmly bristled brush. Slice and eat with some Irish butter.
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