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Gérard Rubaud Miche and an inadvertent experiment

dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

Gérard Rubaud Miche and an inadvertent experiment

This weekend I made a miche with Gérard Rubaud's flour mix for the first time. It's nowhere near as beautiful as the ones with which Shiao-Ping introduced Rubaud's formula to TFL, but it is delicious. The miche does seem to have a more mellow flavor than the other breads I've made with this flour mix, but then I didn't slice and taste it for a good 15 hours after it was baked.

The flour mix and formula I used was ...

Gérard Rubaud Pain au Levain

Ingredients

Baker's %

Total Dough

Flour 1 – AP

70

583.33

Flour 2 – WW

18

150

Flour 3 – Spelt

9

75

Flour 4 – Rye

3

25

 

Total Dough: 

Baker's %

Weight

Flour

100

833.33

Water

78

650

Salt

2

16.67

Conversion factor

8.33

1500

 

Pre-Ferment:

Baker's %

Weight

Flour

100

183.33

Water

56

102.67

Starter

47

86.17

Total

372.17

 

Final Dough: 

Baker's %

Weight

Flour

100

650

Water

84.21

547.33

Salt

2

16.67

Pre-Ferment

44

286

Total

1500

 

 

I also made a couple 1 lb boules of the San Francisco Sourdough from "Advanced Bread & Pastry" by Michel Suas. It was an extremely extensible dough, made this time with WFM AP Flour (non-organic. They were out of the organic). I retarded the loaves overnight but wanted to give them an early start, so I took them out of the fridge and turned on my oven when I first got to the kitchen this morning.

 

I trust you correctly inferred this was done before my first cup of coffee. Always risky. 

 

Well, I did have my baking stone in the oven when I turned it on but not my steaming setup. I discovered this when the loaves were ready to load, of course. I did give the oven a series of spritzes with a spray bottle, but my result was a nice illustration of why we bake with steam. So, for your interest ...

 

Note the dull crust and the modest bloom and spring.

 

I haven't cut it yet. I'm sure it's fine eating, but beautiful it ain't.

 

David

 

 

Comments

Sedlmaierin's picture
Sedlmaierin

It must have been a miche weekend-yours sure looks quite lovely. way better than my first try!

christina

dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

My first miche was actually quite a success, but it was with a less challenging formula than the one you used. I first made the miche in Reinhart's BBA. That recipe makes the bread most similar to Pain Poîlane, at least to my taste. But, I now prefer several other recipes for 1.5-2 kg loaves, including the one I made yesterday.

David

Sedlmaierin's picture
Sedlmaierin

I think I might have to "break down" and buy one of these often quoted bread books. And I will go off on a search for what Pain Poilane is. How would you define the texture of a miche? Or is "miche" not a specific enough term to have its own definition(like for example a french baguette) ? I hope my question makes sense.......to see why I ask-here's the link to my little miche story from this weekend(scroll all the way down to the bottom)

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/16663/newbie-question-preshaping-and-shaping

it definitely ended up being underproofed, but I also realized how I have no idea what it exactly is supposed to be like, once done, since I have never made or had a miche.

I swear, this website has turned into an obsession-all I can think about is BREAD BREAD BREAD! I love it and have learned so much due to all you great bakers!

Christina

dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

Hi, Christina.

I don't know that there is an official definition of a "miche." It generally refers to a large round loaf of mostly wheat bread. I don't think a bread under a kilo in weight would ever be called a miche. It is generally made with a high-extraction flour or a mix of white and whole grain flours. It is always a pain au levain (sourdough bread).

The crumb texture was traditionally pretty dense, I think. The more open crumb we often see these days is due to the relatively recent popularity of high hydration doughs. (I could be wrong about this. It's my impression, though.)

If you search TFL for "miche," you will find links to many examples.

David

pmccool's picture
pmccool

but I can't remember the source.  Anyway, the writer I have in mind said that miche was actually a slang term for cheeks, but not those on your face.

Paul

Sedlmaierin's picture
Sedlmaierin

hahahaaaa-awesome!

Christina

Sedlmaierin's picture
Sedlmaierin

Errr, duh, you obviously must have seen my miche try since you refer to the recipe I used. Sorry about the extra link posting- that's what happens when too eager to respond and coffee hasn't hit the brain yet.

Christina

LindyD's picture
LindyD

Nice cracks on the crust, David.

An amazing photo of the unsteamed boule.  What kind of steaming setup do you have that has to be turned on?

dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

These days, I pre-heat a cast iron skillet full of lava rocks on the shelf below my baking stone. I preheat for 45-60 minutes at a hotter temperature than my planned baking temperature. I pre-steam before loading and steam after loading by pouring hot water over the lava rocks.

David