Whole spelt fig, hazelnut and fennel seed sourdough loaf, take 2

I really like the flavour combination of nuts, dried fig and fennel seeds. The last loaf I made was 100% whole spelt flour and it was accordingly dense-ish. This time, I added some bread flour and used the technique described in Ken Forkish's book 'Flour Water Salt Yeast' to create a lighter crumb. The bread turned out fantastically. It didn't even last 24h!

I didn't have any walnuts at home, so I replaced them with hazelnuts. To give the bread even more flavour, I toasted the hazelnuts as well as the fennel seeds. Toasting the nuts makes it easy to get rid of the skin as well which gives them a somewhat sweeter flavour in the end. Just pour the toasted nuts on a kitchen towel and gently rub them until almost all of the skin has come off. Let them cool before folding them into the dough during the first fold.

As for the dried figs, I cut them up in reasonably big junks and let them soak in hot water for 15 minutes before adding them to the dough, together with the nuts and seeds. Doing this ensures that they don't pull out any water from the dough to rehydrate.

I followed the schedule suggested by Ken Forkish in his book: Mix levain at 8am, start autolyse at 3:30pm, mix final dough around 4pm and bake the next morning at 8am straight from the fridge. As the lucky owner of a home proofing box, I can keep the dough at a constant temperature. If you don't own one, you might have to adjust times e.g. longer times in colder environments, shorter in warmer temperatures.

In the past I had problems with the loaf not holding it's shape when I moved it from the proofing basket onto a surface and then to the dutch oven for baking. I have since started to pour the shaped loaf directly from the proofing basket into the dutch oven. This technique works well for me, but feel free to transfer it to a floured countertop first, score it the way you want and move it from the countertop to the dutch oven.

Whole spelt fig, hazelnut and fennel seed sourdough loaf

makes one small loaf

for the levain
10g active sourdough starter, 100% hydration
10g whole grain flour (I used wholewheat)
45g bread flour
45g warm water, 29-32°C 

for the final dough
108g of the levain

200g whole spelt flour
40g strong white flour (sometimes called bread flour or high grade flour)
198g warm water, ca. 32-35°C
7g sea salt
1g active dry yeast (a generous dash)

filling
7g fennel seeds
30g hazelnuts
50g dried figs

Day 1

Prepare levain (around 8am): Mix flour, starter and water in a large jar or bowl until no dry spots remain. Cover and leave to mature at room temperature. Depending on the temperature in your house, this will take around 6-8 hours. To test if your levain is ready, drop a pea sized piece in a glass of water. It's ready if the piece floats.

Prepare the filling: While the levain is maturing, prepare the ingredients for the filling. Roughly chop the dried figs and soak in boiling water for about 15 minutes. Then drain the liquid and set aside to cool. Lightly toast the hazelnuts in a pan over low heat until the brown skin starts falling off.  Pour onto a kitchen towel and gently rub the nuts to remove any leftover skin. Leave to cool before chopping them up, just a little bit. You want chunky pieces of hazelnut in your bread. Clean the pan and toast the fennel seeds for a few minutes until fragrant. Pour into a small bowl and let cool.  

Autolyse (around 3:30pm for me): When the levain is ready, mix the flour and water for the final dough by hand or with a spatula until no dry spots remain. Cover and let sit for 20 to 30 minutes.

Mix the final dough: Sprinkle the salt and dry yeast evenly on top of the dough. Incorporate by pinching the dough. Transfer 108g of the levain to the dough bowl. With a wet hand distribute the levain evenly over the top of the dough. Drizzle the honey evenly over the levain and incorporate levain and honey again by pinching and folding the dough. When everything has come together cover the bowl again and leave at room temperature.

Bulk fermentation and folds: During bulk fermentation, I folded the dough three times. I performed the first fold after 10 minutes and incorporated the filling with the first fold. Sprinkle about a third of the filling ingredients over the dough. With a wet hand, reach under the dough and pull it out to the point of resistance and fold it over itself. Turn the bowl by 90°, sprinkle another third of the filling on top and perform another fold. Turn then bowl again and repeat the fold twice more. The filling should ideally not be sticking out too much. Cover and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
Perform another set of four folds after 30 minutes. Cover and let the dough rest for 30 minutes. Repeat folding one more time after the rest. (check out this explanatory video about folding here) 
After the last fold, cover the bowl and let the dough rest at room temperature until it has more than doubled in size, about 5 hours after mixing the final dough. 

Shaping: When the dough has risen enough, gently pour it out it onto a lightly floured countertop. Because of the high whole grain percentage, it is a rather sticky dough. Generously flour a proofing basket. With floured hands shape the dough into a medium tight ball (see here on how shape the dough). Put the shaped dough into the proofing baket, seam side up (you have to turn it upside down).  Put the basket in an unperforated plastic bag and put it in the fridge overnight (about 12 hours). 

Day 2

I use a cast iron dutch oven for bread baking. Preheat the oven and dutch oven to 250°C about an hour before baking (around 7am).

Baking (around 8am): Take proofing basket out of the fridge. Take the dutch oven out of the oven, open the lid and carefully ease the dough straight into the dutch oven. If you have a lame or sharp knife, score the dough. Be really careful not to burn yourself on the super hot dutch oven! 
Close the lid and put the pot back in the oven. After 27 minutes, remove the lid and bake for another 10 minutes until the top is a deep brown and has a lovely strong crust. 

Remove the dutch oven from the oven and take out the bread. Leave to cool completely on a wire rack before cutting. Enjoy with your favourite topping.