Experimenting during the Pre-ferment.
Greetings!
I'm a newbie, consumed with bread baking . . .
Yesterday, I made Dan Leader's Whole Wheat Sourdough Miche. I got creative after preparing the pre-ferment; I wondered what would happen if I mixed the dough portion of the recipe (combined it with the water, less the remaining yeast) while waiting for the pre-ferment to do it's thing. Everything seemed to combine normally. I got a good first rise, but not much on the second rise after forming the loaf. I did not get a huge oven spring. The taste and texture were very good, not too dense, but not much in the way of an open crumb.
Has anyone got thoughts on the merits/advisability of doing this? Waste of time, or potential flavor enhancer?
BTW- I am in AWE of the amazing breads you all create!
Phxdog.