Begin with a very active recently fed starter. It should pass the float test.

Set a large bowl on a digital food scale set to grams and press the tare button. The scale should read zero.

Pour in the water to weight of 650 g. Press tare.

Pour in 300 grams of starter. Press tare. The starter should form a floating mass on the water.

Add the oil. Press tare

Add the honey. Press tare.

Whisk together the starter, oil, honey and water until they are mixed.

Add the 1000 grams of flour.

Mix the flour into the water/starter with a dough hook, spatula and your wet hands until you have a shaggy ball of dough.

 

Autolyse the dough for 1 hour, covered, at room temperature. Then, sprinkle salt across dough. Wet your hands and work the salt in by hand, then rest the dough for 30 more minutes. 

 

Begin Stretch and Folds. You need 4 rounds of stretch and folds 30 mins apart. See video for technique.

 

Refrigerate, covered, overnight or longer, depending on when you want to bake it. 

 

Remove from fridge and warm to room temperature. Divide the dough into two 1000 grams dough balls by weight (or just in half if you don’t have a scale) and rest the dough on the counter for 30-45 minutes until it’s warmed up and elastic. 

 

Choose one dough ball. Set the other aside to be next.

Flatten the ball on a floured board with your rolling pin to degass–to pop the large air bubbles. This may take several passes. (You will notice my bread does still have a few small holes. It needed more degassing)

Shape the degassed dough into a rectangle and spritz with water.

Bring the long edges into the center and form a closed seam.

Fold the two front corners to the middle seam as shown below.

Roll the dough tightly. tucking it as you roll to avoid air pockets.

Pinch the ends of the loaf and flatten the seam.

Place the dough loaf into your OILED loaf pan.

REPEAT for second loaf. 

Let sit on counter 2 to 4 hours until the dough reaches to the top of the bread pans.

 

Preheat oven and water bath(any pan half full of water. Set it on the shelf UNDER THE BREAD) to 400° F.

Bake the loaves 15 minutes at 400.

Reduce the oven temp to 375.

Bake an additional 25 to 30 minutes.

Using a digital thermometer check internal Temp of loaf. It is done at 200°. If you don’t have a thermometer pop loaves out to test for hollow on bottom. Or thump the loaf. Does is have a hollow sound?

Remove from oven and cool on racks to room temperature before cutting the bread.