PAIN à L'ANCIENNE RUSTIC BREAD

Steps:

• Do ahead
• Combine the flour, salt, yeast, and water in a mixing bowl. If using a mixer, use the paddle attachment and mix on the lowest speed for 1 minute. If mixing by hand, use a large spoon and stir for about 1 minute, until well blended. The dough should be coarse and sticky. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes to fully hydrate the flour.
• If making ciabatta, drizzle the olive oil over the dough; if making mini baguettes, omit the oil. Then mix on medium-low speed using the paddle attachment, or by hand using a large, wet spoon or wet hands, for 1 minute. The dough should become smoother but will still be very soft, sticky, and wet. Use a wet bowl scraper or spatula to transfer the dough to a clean, lightly oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest at room temperature for 10 minutes.
• Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled work surface. With wet or oiled hands, reach under the front end of the dough, stretch it out, then fold it back onto the top of the dough. Do this from the back end and then from each side, then flip the dough over and tuck it into a ball. The dough should be significantly firmer, though still very soft and fragile. Place the dough back in the bowl, cover, and let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes. Repeat this process three more times, completing all repetitions within 40 minutes. (You can also perform the stretch and folds in the bowl, as shown on page 17.)
• After the final stretch and fold, immediately cover the bowl tightly and refrigerate overnight or for up to 4 days. The dough will rise, possibly to double its original size, in the refrigerator. (If you plan to bake the dough in batches over different days, you can portion the dough and place it into two or more oiled bowls at this stage.)
• On baking day
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator about 1 hour before baking for mini baguettes, and 3 hours in advance for ciabatta (or an hour earlier if the dough hasn't increased to 1 1/2 times its original size in the refrigerator overnight).
• To make ciabatta, about 1 hour after taking the dough out of the refrigerator, line the back of a sheet pan with parchment paper and generously dust the entire surface with flour. Use a wet or oiled bowl scraper to transfer the dough to the work surface, taking care to handle the dough as little as possible to avoid degassing it.
• Dust the top surface of the dough with flour and also flour your hands. Using your hands or a metal pastry scraper, gently coax and pat the dough into a rough square measuring about 9 inches on each side, still taking care to degas it as little as possible.
• For small ciabatta, cut the dough into 3 even strips about 3 inches wide and 9 inches long (the pieces will each weigh about 12 ounces or 340 grams). For larger ciabatta, cut the dough in half. With floured hands, gently fold the dough in thirds, like folding a letter but without applying any pressure. Gently roll the folded dough in the dusting flour to coat it, then lift the dough and place it on the parchment paper, again rolling it in the dusting flour on the parchment. Rest the dough seam side down on the parchment and repeat with the other pieces of dough.
• Mist the tops of the dough pieces with spray oil and loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap or a clean, lint-free towel. After 1 hour, gently roll the pieces over so the seam side is up, lift and cradle each piece with floured hands, and, working from the underside, gently coax it to a length of 5 inches (for small ciabatta) to 7 inches (for large ciabatta). Lay the pieces back on the parchment seam side up. Straighten the sides of each piece with your hands or a pastry scraper so that they are more rectangular than oblong, mist with spray oil again, then cover loosely and proof for 1 hour more.
• About 45 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 550°F (288°C) or as high as it will go, and prepare the oven for hearth baking (see page 30).
• Slide the dough, parchment and all, onto the stone; if you aren't using a baking stone, simply put the whole pan into the oven. Pour 1 cup of hot water into the steam pan, then lower the oven temperature to 450°F (232°C).
• Bake for 12 minutes, then rotate the pan and bake for 15 to 20 minutes more, until the crust is a rich brown (streaked with the dusting flour). The bread should puff a little, and the crust should be hard when tapped (it'll soften as it cools). Cool on a wire rack for 45 minutes before slicing.
• To make mini baguettes, about 45 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 550°F (288°C), or as high as it will go, and prepare the oven for hearth baking (see page 30). After the dough has been out for 1 hour, generously dust the entire surface of a wooden peel with flour or line the back of a sheet pan with parchment paper (you can either dust the parchment with flour or mist it with spray oil so that you can slide and move the dough if need be). Use a wet or oiled bowl scraper to transfer the dough from the bowl to the work surface, taking care to handle the dough as little as possible to avoid degassing it.
• Dust the top surface of the dough with flour and also flour your hands. Using your hands or a metal pastry scraper, gently coax and pat the dough into a rough square about 8 inches on each side, still taking care to degas it as little as possible.
• Cut off a slice of dough about 1 1/2 inches wide and roll it into the dusting flour to lightly coat it and keep it from sticking to the remainder of the dough. Working with floured hands and tools, carefully transfer the slice to the prepared peel or parchment paper, cradling it with both hands to keep it from stretching too much. You can straighten it by spreading your hands underneath the dough as you lay it down; it should elongate slightly, to 9 to 10 inches.
• Repeat with the rest of the dough, placing the pieces 1 inch apart, until the peel or parchment is full. If you can't fit all of the pieces on the peel or parchment, bake those that are ready before cutting the remainder. It's better to work in manageable batches than to try to cram all of them in the oven, especially if your stone or oven won't easily hold all of them. Scoring the dough is an option, but because it risks degassing the dough, I advise against it until you have made these a few times.
• Slide the mini baguettes onto the baking stone using short, quick back-and-forth motions with the peel, or by sliding the parchment paper onto the stone. Pour 1/2 cup of hot water into the steam pan, then lower the oven temperature to 475°F (246°C).
• Bake for 12 to 18 minutes total, rotating the pan as needed for even browning. The crust should be a rich brown, the loaves should puff a little, and the crust should be hard when tapped (the crust will soften slightly as the bread cools).
• Cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes.
• Variation
• For an interesting ciabatta texture and a nice design on the surface of the bread, mix a small amount of coarse rye flour or whole wheat flour in with the dusting flour.