Help - how to transfer from basket to peel?

Put the parchment over the dough in the basket. Put the peel over the basket and invert directly onto the peel. Next time, just remember to place the dough seam side up. It's quite likely that the dough in the basket will be higher than the basket sides--invert anyway, just be gentle and quick. The inversion will work better if you don't try to bring the loaves to room temperature before baking(not necessary anyway). On the other hand, don't try to bring the loaves to room temperature once you have inverted them onto the peel. You only need about 1/2 hour out of the fridge before baking. Janet

I don't know the best way, but a few days ago I inverted my rye sourdough from it's brotform right onto the stone in the oven. Seemed safer to me than trying to move it from there to the peel and then to the oven.

FWIW, Hamelman says in his book that he doesn't feel that you need to bring cold bread dough (from the frig) up to temperature. In the scheme of things, when you're putting something into a 400F or higher oven, the difference between 40F and 60F probably doesn't make a big difference.

If you do a lot of baking, or would like to, do get a real peel - it makes life SO much easier for me for moving pizzas and bread into the very hot oven!

I'm curious how you define "real peel", and where i can get one.

Most of the peels for sale at popular stores appear to me to be novelty devices. Great big hunks of coarse grained plywood near 3/4" thick with a crude taper on the curved end. I've used them and don't care for them.

Most of the metal ones are fairly small, and frequently have very loose handles.

What I'm currently using is an aluminum monstrosity the size of a half sheet pan. I kinda like it.

Mary Beth, do you sometimes do this yourself - take your product from the refrigerator to a hot oven/stone and find it successful and not making a big difference? I'm thinking of my previous bread, Siciliano (which is still on my mind) which comes from overnight refrigeration and sits on the table for

1 hour while the stone/oven is heating. My refrigerator is probably most of the time around 42F.

Mary Beth, I WANT a metal pizza peel, instead of the wooden pizza peel I use, since I've recently slid my bread from a metal baking sheet onto the stone. A baking sheet is so cumbersome for me to use. Have you or has anyone used the metal pizza peel and do you recommend it?

Thanks, Dee

I'm using a wooden one and I like it a lot for both bread and pizza. I don't see a particular advantage to a metal one since the dough slides off the surface of the peel (lubricated with cornmeal) onto the cooking surface.

Re the temperature, I can only say that the bread I've made with a long refrigeration period turned out great. It rose substantially in the frig and had quite a bit of ovenspring when it went into the oven. I did what the author recommended and since it's really the easiest path and turned out well I'll continue on!

Have you considered the Superpeel? John, on abr has long recommended this. I will probably buy one soon for myself as it solves the problem of handling the transfer of high hydration doughs to the oven.

Graham

Quite interesting, Graham, thanks. I have my heart set on a metal one because I like the way dough slips off metal baking sheets, but baking sheets are too cumbersome for me. I just had a pizza for breakfast (couldn't wait for it tonight) which had olive oil on the top of the crust (which I spilled onto the wooden peel); it also had italian sausages that had a lot of juice left on them (which dripped onto the wooden peel) and at other times, I have spilled tomato sauce onto the wooden peel. I do not like cleaning off a wooden peel with soap and water - that's my reason for wanting a metal peel. I guess they make them for sloppy people like me -- tee hee. Dee