Sourdough Friselle (Italian Rusk)

Step 1

Mix – 9:00 a.m.Place the water, flour, sourdough starter, salt, and optional malt in a large bowl. With wet hands, mix thoroughly until no dry bits remain. Next, strengthen the dough for a few minutes by grabbing the dough in the bowl with one hand, folding it over to the other side, rotating the bowl a bit, and repeating. For this dough, I kneaded for about 5 minutes until the dough smoothed and became elastic.

Step 2

Bulk Fermentation – 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. (2 hours 30 minutes)At a warm room temperature, 74-76°F (23-24°C), bulk fermentation should take about 2 hours and 30 minutes. Because this dough has lower hydration and is rather firm, it does not require any stretches and folds during bulk fermentation.

Step 3

Divide and Preshape – 12:00 p.m.Line a half baking sheet with parchment paper. Gently scrape the dough from the bulk fermentation container to a clean work surface. Divide the dough into eight 165g pieces. Preshape a piece of dough into a tight ball, similar to preshaping pizza dough or dinner rolls. Ensure the ball has a smooth, uniform surface on top with the seam on the bottom. Transfer the preshaped ball to the prepared baking sheet. Repeat for each piece of dough. Cover and let rest 30 minutes.

Step 4

Shape – 12:30 p.m.Gently transfer all of the preshaped balls to your work surface. Line another half baking sheet with parchment paper. Working with the first ball of dough in front of you on your work surface, use your index and middle fingers to punch a hole in the center down to the work surface. Pick up the piece of dough and use your thumbs to push through the other side, making a hole in the middle. Stretch the dough out to exaggerate the hole. Transfer the ring to one of the baking sheets and repeat with the remaining pieces of dough. You should have four rings on each baking sheet. Cover the baking sheets with plastic covers or reusable bags.

Step 5

Proof – 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.At room temperature, the friselle dough will need 2 to 3 hours to proof.

Step 6

Bake – 3:00 p.m.The dough is ready when it’s puffed up, and a gentle poke slowly, but not completely, springs back. Place one oven rack in the bottom of the oven and one in the top third, and preheat to 450°F (230°C). Uncover the baking sheets and slide them into the oven. Bake for 15 minutes, rotating the pans from back to front and switching racks halfway through, until friselle are lightly browned on top and begin forming a crust (see image below). Remove the baking sheets from the oven, reduce the temperature to 325°F (160°C), and let the friselle cool for 5 minutes. Using a fork, insert the tines into each friselle all around to split it, then gently pry it open. Place each half, open side up, back on the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining pieces of dough. Return the baking sheets to the oven and bake for 45 to 60 minutes. The friselle are done when the exterior edge and inner circle are colored a deep brown and have no give when poked.