>
>Thanks for the detailed instructions. I missed them the first time
>around and even failed with Google, and so I had been working off the
>assumption that S&F was just to stretch and fold and was so simple that
>you couldn't go wrong. So I have been holding the gooey dough in my
>hand, stretching it out like an accordian, then folding back in on
>itself, and doing that for about 5 minutes or until the dough feels
>developed.
>
>This method does not produce big holes (I've been doing it with
>hydrations betweeen 72 and 80), but it does do wonders and makes a
>light, springy loaf with even crumb. The hard part is separating the
>hands from the dough at the end. :-) But it's a lot of fun. A lot more
>fun than "traditional" kneading.
>
>

There wasn't a "first time around" on this list<g>. Most of the discussion
about Stretch 'n' Fold has been on alt.bread.recipes, that was the forum in
which I was most active when I decided that the technique was well worth
popularising.

It really does take the fear out of high-hydration.

The method you're using, interestingly, is the way Carol Field describes
Ciabatta dough being kneaded in Italian bakeries. Did you evolve the method
yourself or were you following Ms Field?

John