Baguettes with poolish
My husband has been asking for a baguette for forever. I found a recipe online about 2 years ago for french bread. That was okay it's what led me into sourdough and making a starter. I haven't gone back to the baguette since. I have made (one time) mini baguette style loafs with my starter. Except for cinnamon rolls I haven't used yeast for about 2 years. I decided to make Jeffrey Hamelman's Baguette's with poolish from his book Bread. Things went okay I guess. I made 4 baguettes and a loaf. The loaf is darker than I like and the crust is VERY soft?? I put 1 cup boiling water into a heated cast iron skillet that was on the bottom rack of the oven. I bake on a stone I had it in the center of my oven. I sprayed twice with water after 2 mins twice. I also cracked the door with a spoon the last 18 mins of the bake. The loaf was crackling and siging right out of the oven but still a soft crust. The baguettes I turned my oven down to 450 and then 440. They are not as soft as the loaf but still they have a softer crust? I added some pictures. Sorry some are a bit fuzzy I am learning my new camera. Practice Practice Practice...