Pain a l'Ancienne Hydration & Mini-Baguette Photos
I've been making Gosselin/Reinhart's pain a l'ancienne since last fall, and until a few days ago, I was having a big problem scoring it consistently. My breakthrough? I stumbled upon Gosselin's website [1] and saw them scoring loaves that were MUCH less hydrated than Reinhart's recipe was leading me to create. Oh, Peter Reinhart! So I cut back on the water, and voila, the lame scores it perfectly (forgive the shallow angle of the scoring, but it's a mini-baguette). So right now I'm going with this formula: 128g KA French Style Flour, 2.65g salt, 0.95g instant yeast, and 92g water. I might cut back on the water by a couple of grams - to 89g or 90g; time will tell.
I've been making single loaves about 5 days a week for the last couple months; they make a great lunch with some butter and confiture. This loaf baked SO nicely. I noticed subtle hints of pistachio and framboise as I gave a quick sniff while it cooled on the counter.
PHOTO #1: Sliced/Crumb Shot
PHOTO #2: Grigne
PHOTO #3: Mini-Baguette
PHOTO #4: TIGHT CRUMB SHOT