Sourdough French Baguettes

I wanted some crusty French bread for dinner tonight, so my mom and I made these baguettes.

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces sourdough starter (mine had been fed a week ago or more)
• 1 teaspoon yeast (you can skip the yeast if your starter is active and recently fed)
• 4.5 ounces warm water
• 8 ounces flour (I used 4 ounces bread flour, and 4 ounce white whole wheat)
• 5 grams (1 scant teaspoon) salt

Instructions:

1. Mix starter, water, yeast, and a couple of tablespoons of flour together in stand mixer bowl. (I used my small bowl.) Let the yeast rest for 5 - 10 minutes.
2. Add the rest of the flour, stir with a spatula for 1 mint or so to moisten everything - the dough may look a bit shaggy. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes.
3. Using a bread hook, knead dough for 5 - 7 minutes, adding in the salt. The dough should be smooth and a bit tacky.
4. Scoop out the dough, coat the bowl with cooking spray, and return dough to bowl. Spray top of dough and sides of pan with more spray.
5. Let the dough rise for 45 - 60 minutes so that the dough doubles.
6. Gently scoop risen dough onto lightly greased surface. (I used cooking spray on a large plastic place mat.)
7. Divide dough into two pieces. Form each piece into a long log. (I sort followed this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdNRogR10nM)
8. Place each log on a lightly greased baguette pan. (I sprinkled semolina flour on one side for a test.)
9. Let dough rise another 45 minutes or so, until the dough looks puffy. (I am not sure if it doubled or not.)
10. About 15 minutes into the rising period, pre-heat oven to 550, with either a pizza stone or baking steel on the top rack (2nd rung from bottom of oven floor), and the second rack on the bottom rung.)
11. At about 5 minutes before you are ready to bake, noil 1.5 cups of water and place a rimmed cookie sheet on the very bottom rack.
12. Slash the baguettes diagonally across loaf at a 45 degree angle 3 or 4 times with a sharp knife or lame. (We did not do the 45 degree angle, and may not have slashed deep enough.)
13. Place baguette pan on top of the backing steel, wearing oven mats, pour the boiling water into the hot cookie sheet. (It will steam!)
14. Close door, reduce heat to 450, and bake for 15 minutes (you can check at 10 minutes, and rotate pan if you want).
15. Check bread temperature - after 15 minutes the baguettes were golden brown, and over 200 degrees on an instant read thermometer.
16. Cool baguettes on a wire rack (Some recipes suggest letting them  cool in the oven with the door ajar.)

Carole's Notes:

I liked this! I was aiming for a skinny baguette, and that's what we got - about 15" long and 2" wide.
I used more sourdough starter than the original recipe for flavor, and added yeast since I wanted a 3 hour process.

The recipe is adapted mostly from https://cnz.to/recipes/bread-brioche/sourdough-starter-baguettes-recipe/