Not even one answer after seven and one half hours? I need to be patient.
Since I wrote these earlier emails, I tried a minimum batch of 200 g Bread
flour plus 75% water, 2% each of instant dry yeast and kosher salt. I
refrigerated it for about two hours while I went to Sam's Club but it's been
out at least double that. I'm thinking it's still too stiff. Maybe I'll
make another batch much thinner/wetter and incorporate this morning's "old
dough" into it.

At what hydration percentage does a dough become a batter? Would a very
stiff batter be a better solution for Boboli bread?

Rich

"Richard Hollenbeck" > wrote in message
news:kkvTg.12596$gF3.5551@trnddc02...
> This morning I downloaded one of the many copy cat recipes on the web for
> making Boboli bread. I had to convert it because it called for WAY too
> much flour. Here's what I eventually tried:
>
> 560 g Bread flour 100%
> 006 g Instant yeast 1%
> 004 g Kosher salt .71%
> 380 g Water 68%
>
> The flavor was okay, but not very interesting--I find focaccia a little
> boring too. The biggest problem was that the holes in the crumb were more
> bread-like in size and shape--not very Boboli-like. I'm thinking I will
> need to raise the hydration to something like 75% water and kick-up the
> salt and instant yeast to about 2% each.
>
> After an initial fermentation of about one hour, I formed the bread and
> punched down with my finger tips (like I would with focaccia) then let it
> proof for about another hour. Then I placed the whole thing directly on a
> pre-heated 550?F pizza stone for a few minutes until it reached an
> internal temperature of 200?F. Actually the finished product looked more
> like a round focaccia than it did like any kind of Boboli bread. I wonder
> if they throw a little baking powder in there in addition to the yeast.
> Maybe the extra water is all I need.
>
> Ideas?
>
> Thanks!
>
> Rich Hollenbeck
> Moreno Valley, CA
>