Blue Moon Bread Recipe
This recipe uses Blue Moon beer in both a preferment (poolish) and the final dough, creating a noticeable depth of flavor. The process requires some planning because of the poolish, but the hands-on time is minimal.
Ingredients
For the Poolish (Preferment)
- 100g bread flour
- 100g Blue Moon witbier, lukewarm (~90F)
- 1 1/2 tsp instant dry yeast
For the Dough
- All of the poolish from above
- 375g bread flour
- 50g whole wheat flour
- 175g Blue Moon witbier, lukewarm (~90F)
- 75g water, lukewarm (~90F)
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tbsp honey
- 2 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tsp instant dry yeast
Make the Poolish
In a medium bowl, mix the 100g bread flour, 100g lukewarm Blue Moon, and 1 1/2 tsp instant yeast. Stir until no dry flour remains. It will be a thick, paste-like mixture.
Cover the bowl and let it ferment at room temperature for at least 5 hours, or overnight in the fridge. After fermenting, the poolish will be bubbly, expanded, and smell distinctly like beer and yeast. This step develops a significant amount of the bread’s final flavor.
Build the Final Dough
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the finished poolish with all the remaining dough ingredients: bread flour, whole wheat flour, lukewarm Blue Moon and water, melted butter, honey, salt, and the second measure of yeast.
Mix on low speed until a shaggy dough forms, then increase the speed to medium and knead for 6-8 minutes. The dough should be smooth, elastic, and pull away cleanly from the sides of the bowl.
First Rise
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl, cover it, and let it rise in a warm spot for about 1 hour, or until it has doubled in size.
Shape and Final Proof
Gently punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Shape it into a round loaf (boule) or an oval (bâtard).
Place the shaped loaf on a piece of parchment paper. Cover it loosely and let it proof for another hour, until it has visibly puffed up.
Prepare Oven and Bake
About 30 minutes into the final proof, place a Dutch oven in your oven and preheat to 450F.
Once the loaf has finished proofing, use a sharp knife or razor blade to score the top. This allows the bread to expand predictably.
Carefully remove the hot Dutch oven from the oven. Using the parchment paper as a sling, lower the loaf into the Dutch oven. Cover with the lid and return to the oven.
Bake covered for 25 minutes. The lid traps steam, which keeps the crust soft for the initial “oven spring.”
Remove the lid and continue to bake for another 15-20 minutes, until the crust is a deep golden-brown and the internal temperature reads at least 200F.
Let it cool on a wire rack for at least an hour before slicing.
Blue Moon Bread
Ingredients
For the Poolish (Preferment)
- 100g bread flour
- 100g Blue Moon witbier ~90F, lukewarm
- 1 1/2 tsp instant dry yeast
For the Dough
- All of the poolish from above
- 375g bread flour
- 50g whole wheat flour
- 175g Blue Moon witbier ~90F, lukewarm
- 75g water ~90F, lukewarm
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter melted
- 1 tbsp honey
- 2 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tsp instant dry yeast
Method
- Mix 100g bread flour, 100g lukewarm Blue Moon beer, and 1.5 tsp yeast to make poolish. Let ferment 5 hours at room temp or overnight in fridge until bubbly.
- Combine poolish with remaining flours, beer, water, butter, honey, salt, and yeast in stand mixer with dough hook.
- Mix on low until shaggy, then medium speed 6-8 minutes until smooth and elastic.
- Transfer to oiled bowl. Rise 1 hour until doubled.
- Shape into round or oval loaf on parchment. Proof 1 hour until puffy.
- Place Dutch oven in oven; preheat to 450F.
- Score loaf, transfer to hot Dutch oven using parchment.
- Bake covered 25 minutes.
- Remove lid, bake 15-20 minutes until deep golden and internal temp reaches 200F.
- Cool on wire rack 1 hour before slicing.
Notes
Parchment acts as a sling for safe transfer to hot Dutch oven.
