April 30, 2022 - 9:13am
Oven temp for a Hensperger recipe
I enjoy making Beth Hensperger's White Mountain bread from her book, "The Bread Bible." But I would like to use my Dutch oven or Challenger vessel instead of a standard loaf pan.
The book recipe for a loaf pan is 375 degrees. Should I stick to that temp with another vessel? I typically use the others at a higher temp. Thank you.
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Hi Eddie,
I bake it in a Dutch oven or in a cast iron frying pan covered with an inverted bowl for 45 min at 350F, the first 15 min covered, aka with steam, then I remove the cover.
This is how my round White Mountain bread looks
As you can see the crust is not burned and not too thick. Even 375F would be too much for it. I bake it at 350F, convection setting.
It is not really a hearth bread, even if it looks like one, so it can't be baked at typical for hearth breads temperatures (400 F and higher). But you can try, why not.
Very nice loaf. Thank you.