Levain Nature and Pain au Levain Nature

I've dabbled in the area of bread baking. But, I've never fully appreciated the artistry that is involved until recently. I grew up hearing stories of my Nonna baking bread. Saturday was baking day and she would bake enough for the week. I have no idea what kind of bread she baked. My mother did not bake, save a few holiday items. Bread was purchased from the bakery for special occasions and (gasp) the supermarket. (Yes, the horror or wonderbread was part of my childhood.) I can't blame my mother, though. Hardships such as the Depression and WWII made pre-baked bread a luxury to a woman who didn't like to bake and had five children to feed.

I have a book by Pascal Rigo called The American Boulangerie. When I first looked through the book I was overwhelmed. Eventually, I tried his recipe for pate feuilletee because I had already made pate feuilletee. I tried a couple other items that I was more familiar with such as pate brisee and brioche. Yes, I've been quite cowardly. I decided it was time to take the plunge.

I made levain nature using Pascal Rigo's recipe and steps. I was amazed with the result! Levain from organic grapes or as my husband calls my levain "the science project pet" as I have to feed the levain once a week. Making the levain was the easy part. (It took me about 4 days to make it so while it was easy, it needed time.)

Making the pain au levain nature is a whole different story. This is where the "art" in artisian bread comes to play. There is a certain knowlege, a certain touch that comes with trial and error as well as practice. I was excited to be making bread using my own homemade levain and despite it's utter lack of perfection, I am proud of my first loaf, but I am in awe of the artisan baker.

My loaf of pain au levain nature came out a bit dense and the crust cracked a little. However, the flavor was nice. I think I should have opened the oven door a little earlier and I should have let the loaf rise a bit longer before baking, but I was worried about over proofing, as Pascal Rigo warns not to do. In the end I am hooked on bread baking and I foresee more types coming out of my kitchen. Plus, I really like my "pet" levain in the fridge. Now if I could get away with feeding my kids once a week think of the vacation I could take!