Semolina Sesame Sourdough

I recently found some fresh semolina flour at a local market so I decided to try out the semolina formula in Tartine Bread. This was my first time baking with semolina and I found it to be very pleasant -- the dough smelled almost buttery and was very easy to handle despite the relatively high hydration (~80%).

I stayed fairly true to the recipe, with the following changes:

• Lowered the levain percentage from 20% to 15%
• Swapped out about 10% total flour for spelt / WW
• Autolysed the flours and water for about 2 hours before adding the levain
• Omitted the fennel (just used sesame seeds in the dough, and poppy/sesame to coat the exterior)
• Scaled the recipe to make 1 600-gram batard and 1 850-gram sandwich loaf in a pullman pan

Bulk went for about 4 hours with 5 S&F. The dough was quite strong so it just got a quick 10 minute bench rest before shaping and an overnight (~12 hour) cold proof.

I also played around with a new steaming method -- I used a large foil roasting pan to cover the batard for the first 20 minutes (15 min at 500F, 5 at 450F), then continued baking uncovered for about 25 minutes at 450F on my pizza stone. It seemed to work well, so I think I'll continue to try this. I like this option because it'll accommodate batards and I can bake directly on my stone (I find the bottom crust gets too thick when I use a dutch oven, though I haven't experimented as much with those as I'd like). For the sandwich loaf I baked for the first 20 minutes with the lid on, 20 lid off, and finished directly on the stone for about 10 minutes (all at 450F).

I loved the flavor of this loaf. The sesame isn't too overpowering but provides a nice nutty flavor. I will certainly return to this formula again. I'd like to try....

• Upping the whole grain percentage (I'm thinking 15-20% spelt)
• Playing around with the right dough size for my pullman pan. I don't care too much about getting a "pullman" shape -- more interested in using the cover as a steam method. Pretty sure I can push the loaf size another 100 grams or so without danger of the top getting thrown off