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Italian Country Bread With Biga Recipe

by Global Cookbook

Ingredients

1 tsp Yeast 1 1/8 c. Hot water 2 c. Bread flour Biga (above )

1 1/4 c. Bread flour 1 1/2 tsp Salt 1/4 c. Water

Directions

1. Biga is a starter, almost similar to sourdough but not quite.The bread has a flavorful, yeasty beery quality. So 10 to 12 hrs before you want the bread, mix the 1 teaspoon yeast in the water and let it bubble and foam. Fold in the flour gradually to make a soft almost soupy dough. Cover and it will rise and triple in volume and then fall back and re-rise during the 6 to 8 hrs you let it be. Then make the bread. Stir the salt right into the biga mix, fold in the additional water ( cool or possibly cold not hot ) till it is a thin soupy quality. Fold in the flour to make a hard but soft dough that leaves the sides of the bowl. Turn out to a floured surface and knead dough, adding additional flour if necessary to make a smooth dry dough.
2. Place dough in a bowl, greased with extra virgin olive oil, cover and let rise doubled about 2 hrs. Punch dough down and knead it into a flat oval. cut in half and form each half into a baguette and let them rest covered with a towel for 30 min. then stretch them into longer baguette shapes and place them in a baguette baking tray if you have it. Let rest for 20 min.
3. then slash tops and place into a preheated 450 oven for 20 min or possibly done.
4. If you do not have a baguette tray any baking sheet or possibly baking stone will do.
5. You also could shape the breads in one large round loaf instead of 2 baguettes. Bake the one large loaf 10 to 15 min longer.
6. Note: sincethis bread is fat free eat the same day or possibly freeze as it stales quickly.

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