Basic Bread Dough

By altschiller

Ingredients

• Makes 1 large loaf or 2 baguettes
• 1/2 oz fresh (cake) yeast or 1 teaspoon active dry yeast (from a 1/4-oz package) (10 grams)
• 41/4 cups bread flour (500 grams)
• 13/4 cups warm water (400 grams)
• 2 teaspoons salt (10 grams)
• Corn meal for dusting

Preparation

Step 1

Rub the yeast into the flour in a large bowl. Stir in the water and salt. Fold the dough together with the scraper, rotating bowl, until liquid is absorbed and a wet, sticky dough forms. (Dough will be wetter than most you've encountered.) Scrape dough out onto an unfloured surface. (Dough will be a sticky moss. Don't be tampted to add additional flour. By working dough through a process of repeatedly stretching and folding it over onto itself, trapping air, dough will become cohesive and supple.)

Side your fingers underneath both sides of the dough with you thumbs on top. Lift the dough up (to about chest level) with your thumbs toward you, letting the dough hang slightly. In a continuous motion, swing the dough down, slapping back end of the dough onto the surface, then stretch the dough up and back over itself in an arc to trap air. Repeat lifting, slapping, and stretching, scraping the work surface as needed, until the dough is supple, cohesive, and starts to bounce slightly off surface, about 8 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a floured clean surface. Form into a basil by folding each edge into the center of the dough and pressing down firmly with your thumb, rotating the ball as you go. Turn the basil over, then stretch and tuck edge under.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Let the dough rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled, about 11/2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F with rack in middle.

For 1 large loaf, transfer the dough to a floured clean surface. As before, form into a ball by folding each edge into the center of the dough and pressing down firmly with your thumb, rotating the ball as you go. Turn the ball over, then stretch and tuck edge under.

Dust a baking sheet or 10-inch, well-seasoned cast iron pan with corn meal and additional flour. Place the round of dough, seam-side-down on the prepared pan. Dust the surface of the dough generously with flour and loosely drape with a kitchen towel. Let the dough rise for a second time in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled (and fills the pan it using a skillet), about 1 hour more.

Dust the surface of the dough with flour, then using a razor blade, make slashes in the top of the loaf. Place a small ice cube in the bottom of the oven, then bake the bread until it is dark golden brown and hollow-sounding when tapped, about 1 hour. Let the bread cool completely before slicing and serving.

For 2 baguettes, preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Transfer the dough to a floured clean surface. Form the dough into a rectangle, then fold one long edge into the center like a letter, pressing the