"Mark Piper" <mpiper@fcb.com> writes:
>The bottom of my loaves do not get very brown as I start them on parchment
The parchment should not be the issue. I bake on parchment all the
time and get uniform color top and bottom. Be sure to give the stone
extra time (after the oven reaches bake temp) to get to uniform
temperature. If the bottoms are still pale, then turn the oven temp
down after the initial oven rise, say 5 minutes, to 475 F and bake
longer. If the tops and bottoms still aren't even color then go down
to 450 F (But start at 500 F). I usually drop about 50 F after the
initial rise. I bake on parchment the entire bake.
The crumb should not have "uniform" holes but neither should they be
graded from top to bottom. The intent is uneven sized random holes
to get a uniform average texture and density. Some folks here on the
list found that they did better with this bread if they divided the
dough into strips when it was cold, some waited until it warmed up
before dividing as the instructions say. If I found it easier to cut
the dough cold, then let it warm for 1/2 hour, then roll the strips
over before baking.
Werner