Before making this or any other yeast bread recipe
on this site may I suggest reading the
"Making Yeast Breads" section of this site.
Biga 2 Cup Freshly Ground Whole Wheat Flour 260 grams
1/4 tsp Instant Yeast -
3/4 Cup Cool Water 180 grams
Mix biga ingredients together and knead until incorporated, about 1 minute. Allow the dough to rest for five minutes. Knead for one additonal minute. Cover dough in an air tight container and refrigerate 8 - 12 hours. Use anytime within the next 72 hours. I make mine up before I go to bed. It does its thing while I'm sleeping. Make sure that you allow the biga to warm to room temperature before using.
Soaker 1 3/4 Cup Whole Wheat Flour 227 grams
1/2 tsp salt -
1 Cup Coarsely Cracked Wheat 100 grams
3/4 Cup + 2 Tbsp Milk Scalded and Cooled 210 grams
Make the soaker while the biga is resting. Mix together the dry ingredients add the milk and knead until incorporated. Store the soaker in an air tight container. You can keep the soaker on the counter, but I keep mine in the fridge next to the biga. Just allow it to warm up to room temperature before using.
Final Dough All of Biga
All of Soaker
2 tsp Active Dry Yeast
1 tsp Salt
2 Tbsp Honey
2 Tbsp Butter Softened
Cut the Biga and the Soaker in to pieces and add to the bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the pre-doughs, add the honey, salt, and butter. Knead together to thoroughly incorporate, four to five minutes. Knead an additional 10 minutes, or until the dough begins to form into a ball and stick to itself rather than the counter top.
*Note- the dough will go through a series of changes. It will seem somewhat firm at first and very quickly turn wet and shaggy. DO NOT ADD MORE FLOUR. You are working with a hydrated dough, it will be wet and soft. Use a bowl scraper to lift the dough and bring it back to you. The dough will become more organized as the gluten becomes organized. Trust me on this.
Autolyse -Allow the dough to rest for no less than twenty minutes. The gluten will rest and the dough will soak in more moisture. You will notice an extreme difference in the texture of your dough after this resting period.
Knead the dough a second time. Although the dough will be sticky and shaggy it will not be as extreme as the first kneading cycle. Knead for about ten minutes. The dough will come together into a springy ball.
Do the window pane test to make sure the gluten is completely developed. If not knead for an additional three minutes and test again.
Fermentation - Allow the dough to rest and rise double as it ferments. This is an important step that helps flavor and gives the final loaf great texture.
Shape and proof.
I use my microwave as a proofing box, it works great. Bring a small bowl of water to a boil in the microwave. Place the shaped loaf of bread in the microwave with the door closed. The warm moist enviornment mimicks a proofing box found in a bakery.
Bake at 425 for five minutes with steam. Turn the oven down to 325 and bake an additional 30 minutes. The bread is done when the internal temperature is 195 degrees. You can also test the doneness of your loaf by tapping the top, it will sound hollow.
Allow the bread to cool in the pan three to five minutes. Turn out onto a cooling rack and cool to room temperature.