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I have recently been experimenting with tin loaves -- they just work better for sandwiches and the toaster. We like a partt wholemeal/wholegrain malted seeded recipe -- but here's the challenge.

My wife wants to see a 'proper' loaf that looks as tall the ones bought in the bakery or farmer's market where they sell them as farmhouse loaves.

Mine taste fine. Really good, actually. But they look square, a bit squat rather than tall.

I have a farmhouse size tin which is a size bigger than the usual 8 x 4 in (to get the width) and I go for about 1250 g dough from 750 g flour. Typically about half strong white bread flour and the rest stoneground white (cream coloured, contains the wheatgerm) and about 15% stoneground wholemeal, with 25 g brown malt and a handful of malted grains.

Size isn't everything -- but perception is. I just need mine to look more like the farmhouse loaves sold commercially to satisfy my picky 'customer'!

So, I'm continuing to use the same recipe to hone my skills with sourdough baking. I've had problems with proving the dough at too warm a temperature and for too long, and then the development of excessively large holes (See this post for one of my previous attempts).

I think I'm now making progress! My loaves have more oven spring, were fully cooked (hollow when bases tapped) and the score marks, while not perfect, are much wider than previously.

What have I learned so far from the previous bakes and so many helpful comments from members of this forum, for which I am deeply grateful:

• European flours seem to produce much wetter doughs than the American flours for which many are written suggest;
• Lowering my proving temperature has helped (I'm now using 23°C / 75°F);
• Be much more careful with proving times;
• Use the "poke test" rather than the clock to avoid over-proving - this post by RoundhayBake was particularly helpful;
• Shaping and creating tension takes practice, and YouTube videos are very helpful for understanding the techniques;
• Linen-lined bannetons sprinkled with rice flour really are much easier to prove in than unlined cane containers;
• Retarding overnight is especially helpful for my schedule (I'm starting on a Friday evening and baking on Saturday morning);
• Slashing dough with a baker's lame really is easier when it is cold, but I still need a lot more practice, and still find a very sharp serrated bread knife easier.

I'm following a modified version of a 1-2-3 Sourdough, posted previously by KathyF. Here's my calculations for two loaves, using 1kg total weight of flour:

Total formula:

• Allinson strong bread flour: 959g (96%)
• Stoneground wholemeal flour: 41g (4%)
• Water: 655g (65%)
• Salt: 23g (2%)
• Diastatic malt: 9g (1%)
• Seed starter: 69g (7%)
• Total: 1,756g (175%)

Preferment:

• Allinson strong bread flour: 97g (70%)
• Stoneground wholemeal flour: 41g (30%)
• Water: 80g (58%)
• Seed starter: 69g (50%)
• Total: 287g (208%)

Final dough:

• Allinson strong bread flour: 862g
• Water: 575g
• Salt: 23g
• Diastatic malt: 9g
• Pre-ferment: 287g
• Total: 1,756g

Method

1. Mix flour and water and autolyze 30 minutes.
2. Combine all ingredients and knead just until you start to get a window pane.
3. Bulk rise 23°C (75°F) for 3 to 4 hours, with 5 sets of sets of stretch and folds every 20 minutes.
4. Pre-shape and bench rest for 15 minutes.
5. Complete final shaping and place in a rice- floured banneton.
6. Leave to rise at room temperature for about an hour.
7. Retard at 4°C for 8 hours, return to room temperature for 45 minutes.
8. Transfer to a pre-heated "La Cloche", score and cover.
9. Bake for 5 minutes at 245°C (475°F).
10. Turn the oven down to 230°C (450°F) and cook for 20 minutes.
11. Uncover and bake for 20-25 minutes at 220°C (425°F), or until fully cooked.

I'm much happier with these loaves than previous ones, though I did mess up the scoring of one of them, and it spread more in the oven because I knocked some gas out of it.  Things are definitely going in the right direction :-)

The first loaf went beautifully with some home-made butternut squash and tomato soup this evening.

Comment and suggestions, as ever, welcome.

Happy baking! Colin.

My wife and I are traveling to Southern Italy and Sicily. I am hoping to have an opportunity to share some bread baking ideas with the locals we meet. Has anyone been to an agriturismo or bakery there that they can suggest? Or other ideas to meet bakers there? I speak only some Italian and maybe less baking technical Italian. Thanks, Dohn