While certainly not a scientific validation, I can vouch for John's S&F
technique; although just how it works is still somewhat a mystery to me.

I spent a long time trying to get loaves that looked more like bread and
less like fat pancakes, using drier doughs, and all manner of bannetons,
pans, and other such aids--including voodoo incantations. But nothing has
been able to touch the light, airy, free-form breads I get using S&F!

As you get to the fourth & fifth cycle, the bread just starts "plumping" up
on the table. When handled for that final forming, it feels limp and
fallow, but one can see lots of sub-surface bubbles. Even after only a
short time of final rising, the loft has begun to develop. Since the dough
seems limp and slack when picked up, I'd have expected it to just lay there
and grow wider. But it doesn't. It puffs up to an amazing degree.

Then, when you hit it with heat, the darn thing doubles or more. I no
longer have loaves that are flat-bottomed, rising to a soft dome. My loaves
tend to come out more round (tubular) sans benefit of the typical metal
baguette form.

Given the seemingly inordinate oven spring, I recalled some time back that
one of the more experienced wizards posting here had pointed out that this
meant that the pre-bake rise hadn't been completed. To that end I keep on
drawing out that last rise in an effort to find out where this thing can go.
Only the need to satiate the greedy, grabby fingers at dinner time keeps me
from letting it rise even longer (we like to tear up the freshly baked loaf
and dip it in EVOO, chopped garlic, and a few drops of balsamic vinegar
before dinner time. Waiting longer would put the finish after dinner...and
that would never do around here. I'd have tearful grandkids and a mutiny on
my hands...(:-o)!

I've got a batch of HH Coccodrillo dough (see link below) at the very end of
"Sponge, step-2" using a new starter just graciously sent to me by a reader
in this forum. The darn thing's trying to crawl outta the tub and is
threatening to take over my kitchen. So I gotta run and finish that thing
off...
http://www.innerlodge.com/Recipes/Br...codrillo-2.htm


Later all,
Dusty
--
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"Wcsjohn" > wrote in message
...
> >
>>do cycles of stretch and fold
>>
>>"Stretch and fold" seems a common direction, and I would assume it means
>>that, even if you practically pour your dough out, stretch it when you
>>have
>>put it onto a flat surface (marble) to an even larger size and then fold
>>it
>>into half 'sort of' gently, and then decide how many times you wish to
>>stretch and fold it?
>>
>>Thanks, Dee
>>
>>
>
> Turn, or pour the dough onto a floured surface and, using your bench knife
> to
> slide underneath, roll the dough in the flour until it no longer sticks.
> Grasp
> both ends of the dough and stretch it to an oblong with sides in the ratio
> 3:1.
> Fold the dough in 3, like a letter, which will give you a rough square,
> turn
> through 90 degrees and leave to rest for 10 minutes or so, it varies with
> the
> hydration, temperature, flour, and, for all I know, the phases of the
> Moon<g> .
> Repeat as many times as necesssary times, leaving the dough to rise until
> doubled, after the last stretch and fold, before dividing into loaves. The
> dough will be very soft but astonishingly springy and quite easy to
> handle.
>
> HTH
>
> John
>
>
>
>