I promised:

> I'm going to bake mixed-starter rolls early that morning. They're amazing,
> easily the best bread I've ever tasted. The recipe is from _Baking With
> Julia_; I'll post it when I get home from work.

Well, I'm home from work, and here's the recipe:

MIXED-STARTER BREAD (from Baking with Julia)

THE FIRST-STAGE, OR OLD-DOUGH, STARTER

a walnut-sized piece of fully-risen dough (pizza dough or white bread dough)
1/4 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1. You can make the starter easily by hand, but you can use a mixer, with a
dough hook or paddle if you prefer. No matter which method you use, cut the
dough into small bits, drop them into a bowl with the warm water, and let
them soften for about 5 minutes.

2. Using a sturdy wooden spoon, gradually mix in the flour. You’ll be
producing a very stiff dough, one that will soon become too stiff to mix
with the spoon, so reach into the bowl and mix the dough with your hands;
if that becomes too difficult, and it may, turn the dough out onto a counter
and knead. You’re not looking to develop the gluten in the dough, just to
get the ingredients well incorporated. (Working by machine, just mix in the
flour and beat on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes.)

First Rise: Put the dough in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow the
dough to rise in a warm place (between 80°F and 85°F) for about 8 hours,
after which it will be soft and sticky, bubbly, and springy.

THE SECOND-STAGE STARTER

the first-stage starter (above)
1/4 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

This second-stage starter, or sponge, is made like the first. Again, it is
made easily by hand or can be made in a mixer fitted with the dough hook.
To work by hand, scrape the fully developed first-stage starter onto a
cutting board and cut it into 4 pieces. Put the pieces into a bowl, add the
water, and allow the dough to soften for about 5 minutes. Working with a
wooden spoon, and then your hands if you need to, mix in the flour and stir
until the dough comes together. This second-stage starter will be softer
than the first. (Working by machine, just mix in the flour and beat on low
speed for 2 to 3 minutes.)

Second Rise and Chilling: Transfer the sponge to a large bowl, cover with
plastic wrap, and let it rest in a warm place (between 80°F and 85°F) for 4
hours, during which time it will more than double.

After this rise, the sponge, when stretched, will show long, lacy strands of
gluten and smell sweet and yeasty (even though you haven’t added yeast
yet--the aroma’s the result of the starter’s natural fermentation). Chill
the risen sponge for at least 1 hour, but no more than 8 hours, before
proceeding.

THE FINAL DOUGH
1 1/4 cups cool water (about 78°F)
1/2 teaspoon SAF instant yeast or 3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
the second-stage starter
3 1/3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon kosher salt


1. The final dough is worked in a mixer with the dough hook. Put the water
into the bowl of the mixer, sprinkle in the yeast, and stir by hand to mix.
Deflate the second-stage starter, break it into pieces, add it to the bowl,
and allow it to soften for 5 minutes.

2. Add the flour and pulse the machine on and off a few times to start
mixing in the flour without having it fly out of the bowl. Mix on low speed
only until the flour is incorporated, then let the dough rest in the bowl
for 10 minutes--this gives the flour time to absorb the water.

Kneading the dough With the machine running at low speed, sprinkle the salt
onto the dough; increase the mixer speed to medium-high and mix and knead
the dough for 5 to 8 minutes. The dough will be very soft and moist and may
ride up the dough hook. If you are working in the kind of mixer that allows
you to lower the bowl, here’s a neat trick: Lower the bowl and at the same
time speed up the mixer--the dough will be thrown off the hook. If you’re
working with another kind of mixer, push the dough down with a rubber
spatula as necessary.

Third Rise: Transfer the dough to a clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap,
and allow to rest in a warm place (between 80°F and 85°F) for about 1 1/2
hours. The dough will probably double in bulk and it should have at network
of bubbles visible under the surface.

Fourth Rise Fold the risen dough down on itself a few times in order to
deflate it and to redistribute the yeast, then cover again and let rise for
45 minutes. (Don’t punch the dough down; you don’t want to lose the open,
bubbly structure that’s been developed.)

After this rise, you must shape and bake the dough. If you refrigerate the
dough now, or do anything else to retard it, you will have a sourdough
bread, which is not what this dough is meant to be.

Shaping and Final Rise: Cover a baking sheet with a linen or cotton kitchen
towel, rub the towel with some rice flour, and set the sheet aside. (This
will be the dough’s final resting place.) Divide the dough into the number
of pieces you need, and, being careful not to mash the dough, pat each piece
into a rough rectangle. Working with one piece at a time, starting at the
top of the rectangle, fold down about a third of the dough and press it
gently into the middle of the dough with your fingertips. If the rectangle
is really ragged, fold in the sides to even them, then fold everything down
to the bottom and, once again, gingerly press the dough into place, creating
a seam where the dough meets. Not pressing down too hard, roll the dough,
seam side up, back and forth under your palms to form a short sausage.
Cover the dough with a towel and let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Shape the
dough as desired, cover the loaves with another towel, and let rise at room
temperature for 1 1/2 hours. The loaves are properly risen when the dough
is soft all the way through (if you squeeze a small piece, it will be
spongy) and a depression made with your finger does not spring back quickly.

Baking the Bread
1. Position a rack with the baking stone on the lower third of the oven. If
it’s a gas oven, put a cast-iron or other very heavy skillet on the floor of
the oven; put it directly on the heating element if it’s an electric oven.
Preheat the oven to 450°F. Rub a peel with rice flour.

2. Pour about 1 cup of warm water into a long-necked bottle, preferably
plastic. About 2 minutes before you’re ready to put the loaves into the
oven, open the oven door, stand back, and pour the water into the hot
skillet. Immediately close the oven door to trap the steam.

3. Flip the loaves onto the peel, seam side down. Baguettes need to be
slashed; wheat stalk cuts are made now.

4. Slide the loaves onto the stone. Try to do this quickly so that you lose
neither the oven’s heat nor its humidity. Bake the loaves for about 20
minutes, or until deeply and beautifully brown. Plunge an instant-read
thermometer into the center of the bread--it should read 200°F. Transfer
the breads to a rack to cool completely before cutting.


Bob