Pain de Pecan

This Pain de Pecan recipe is the June Bread of the Month for the Artisan Bread Bakers Facebook group. The recipe was contributed by David Wolfe of Hearth Baked Tunes, who was inspired by Richard Miscovich, the author of From the Wood-Fired Oven: New and Traditional Techniques for Cooking and Baking with Fire to adapt this recipe.

This bread is a combination of white and whole wheat flours, and is studded with toasted whole pecans. Get the biggest pecans you can find. I toasted my pecans on a hot cast iron skillet, but you can also toast them on a sheet pan in the oven. Just watch them closely and remove them from the heat when they are browned and fragrant, but not burned.

This bread is tasty with just butter, or toasted with butter. It also makes nice cinnamon toast or grilled cheese.

Pain de Pecan

Ingredients

250 g active levain, fed within the last 24 hours and bubbly

227 g water

228 g bread flour

114 whole wheat flour

9 g salt

90 g toasted pecans

Instructions

1. Combine the levain, water, and flour in a large bowl until mixed. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 40 minutes. 
2. Add the salt and knead the dough by hand for 8 to 10 minutes. At about the 6 to 7 minute mark, knead in the pecans. 
3. Place the dough in an oiled bowl or bucket, and let it rise for 2 hours and 30 minutes. Gently fold the dough every 30 minutes, four times. 
4. Pre-shape the dough into a boule, cover, and let it rest for 20 minutes.
5. Shape the final boule and place it into a floured basket or towel lined bowl, cover, and let it proof for two hours.
6. Place a Dutch oven into the oven and preheat it to 500 degrees F. 
7. Turn the dough into the Dutch oven, slash it with a sharp knife, cover it, and bake for 30 minutes. 
8. Uncover the loaf and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes.***

***Note: My loaf was already done at the 30 minute mark.