Hi, I recently started baking baguettes, and this is my third attempt. My first two tries were from Hamelman's book, but today I used the Classic Baguettes recipe from the King Arthur website. I prefer this one, likely because it uses all-purpose flour instead of bread flour and is mixed by hand, preventing overmixing. However, I've noticed a recurring issue in all my attempts—a light bottom. I bake at 235°C on a baking stone with parchment paper, allowing the stone to preheat for about 45 minutes.
Do you have any suggestions on how to improve this or any other issues you might notice? Thanks!
That's a good looking crumb there. If the bottom is lighter than the top, The stone needs to be hotter. If you don't want to bake at a higher temperature, then preheat hotter and turn down the setting when you put the loaves in.
TomP
Great job!