8.00 am In a large bowl, whisk the leaven with the water, honey and grated potato.1 Add the flour and salt,
and stir together with your hands until you have a soft, sticky maß. The dough temperature should be
about 21 °C. Scrape any remaining! dough from your hands, cover, and leave for 10 minutes.
8.10 am Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a lightly oiled (with olive oil I or flour-dusted work-
surface. Knead for 10-15
seconds. Clean the bowl, give ita I light rub with oil or butter, return the dough to the bowl and leave for 10
minutes.! 8.20 am Knead for 10-15 seconds, shape into a ball, then place the
dough back in I the bowl. Cover and leave at room temperature (about 20°C) for 10 minutes.
8.30 am Knead the dough for 10-15 seconds, shape into a ball, and then
place the dough back in the bowl. Cover and leave for 30 minutes.
9.00 am Knead the dough for 10-15 seconds, shape into a ball, and then
place the dough back in the bowl. Cover and leave for 1 hour.
10.00 am Knead the dough for 10-15 seconds, shape into a ball, and
then place the j dough back in the bowl. Cover and leave for 1 hour.
11.am Knead the dough for 10-15 seconds, shape into a ball, and then
place the dough back in the bowl. Cover and leave for 1 hour.
12. midday Divide the dough into two pieces, each roughly 550-600g.
Shape each piece into a ball, cover, and leave for 15 minutes. Rub a tea-towel with flour, then lay it on a
large tray, or use a
flourdusted, linen-lined basket.
12.15 pm Sit a ball of dough seam-side-upwards on the floured
worksurface (seepage 20). Pat it flat with your hands, then take the left and right sides furthest from you,
and fold them towards the centre by 2cm, making a triangular point. Take that point and fold it inwards to
the centre, pressing it down to seal. Rotate the dough 180°, then repeat with the other side. Rotate the
dough, back to the start position. If you are right-handed, fold the dough in half
toward you starting at the right-hand end, sealing the dough with the
heel of your right hand while holding and folding it with your left.
Roll the shaped loaf with both hands around it, pressing slightly more with the heel of each hand to give the
ends a point. Place the dough seam-sideup on the cloth. Fold and pull the cloth up the sides
of the loaf (if using a linenlined basket, just place the dough seam-side-up inside). Repeat with the
remaining dough and sit this
next to the first, separated by the cloth. Cover with a cloth, and leave at room temperature (20"C) until
almost doubled in height about 4 1/2 -5 hours.
17:00-17:30 pm Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/gas mark 7. Dust an
oven tray, or peel if you're using an oven stone, with semolina.
Upturn one loaf on to the tray, and make a cut along the loaf's length. Spray the top of the loaf with water,
and bake for 50-70
minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Bake the remaining loaf using the same technique.
This is a strongly flavoured crusty loaf that keeps moist with the grated potato and fragrant with the hint of
honey. The sourness of the leaven base combines well with the two, making this a rather fine naturally
leavened loaf.