Experiment

This bread was baked undercover for the whole bake. 15 minutes at 475.
30 minutes at 400. The bread looks and tastes good. Maybe there's no need to remove the cover until the loaf is done baking.

Woodpecker Takes A Break

From the book, Bread In Time

For the Birds

Take some bread into the mountains and share it.

Need Help

As much as I enjoy the breads I bake undercover, there are times when my crust is too thick. I prefer a thin, crisp crust. Any suggestions on how to achieve this on a consistent basis.?

Experiments

Changing temperatures and the duration of the bake will certainly affect the loaf that's in the oven. Normally I preheat the oven for 20 minutes at 475. I bake under a cover for the first 15 minutes at 475, take the cover off and lower the temperature to 425 and bake for 30 minutes.

This time I have preheated the oven for 30 minutes at 475, baked under a cover for 15 minutes. Then I removed the cover and baked at 400 for 30 minutes. The loaf looks great.

Baking Undercover

Here's a photo of various covers that I use when baking sourdough bread. To bake the best bread in a conventional oven, you need to bake with a cover for the first 15 minutes of the bake. All the covers shown, work. Experiment to see which one works best for you.
From my book,
BREAD UNDERCOVER

Energy Efficient Wood-Burning Stove

Happy Maya woman stands by her new stove built by Joe and a couple of others. These stoves cut down on indoor air pollution, help to slow the deforestation process and provide a hot cooking surface for making tortillas and soups.

Sourdough Bread

It's true, until you get the hang of it, sourdough bread is more difficult to make than conventional breads. However, once you acquire the necessary skills, everything seems to fall into place, and you'll be making the most aesthetically pleasing and best tasting breads in the neighborhood.

No Oven Needed

You really don't need an oven to make pita breads, but you do need a lot of heat. You can make them right on your stove top using your standard pita recipe. The bottom of the pita can burn quickly so flip it over before it starts to burn. Watch them carefully.

Mason At Work

Pat Manley makes exquisite wood-fired bake ovens throughout the United States and Guatemala.
Each winter he goes to Guatemala to do humanitarian work with the group he founded, Masons On A Mission. He can be reached at: jpmanley@midcoast.com.
You can see an oven he built for the Sunnyfield Bakery in New Hampshire. http://sunnyfield.us/bakery.htm



Here's a photo of Pat building an oven in Guatemala