Pain Couronne Française

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You'll find many recipes for seasonal Couronne that are iced and have inclusions that may well include fruit, spices and nuts.

However, the traditional Pain Couronne hails from the Bordeaux region of France and is, traditionally, a sourdough ring made up of individual balls of sourdough. 

Up until the 18th century, the Couronne was quite a thin bread. However, over time it thickened into something substantial. The Couronne Bordelaise or Bordeaux Crown is designed to separate quite easily. Variations include the Couronne Gascon and the Couronne Margarite, sometimes known as the Daisy Crown. 

The Couronne formula is reminiscent of the Pain de Campagne and produces a soft but closed crumb sourdough base. 

Traditionally, the bread would be baked in a wicker Couronne basket. Still, you can quickly adapt what you have to hand using a tumbler to create the middle section and some cheesecloth, linen or pan release to help the bread avoid adhesion. 

I'm choosing between a bundt pan or a large banneton with a central tumbler. 

FORMULA

My working temperature: 22⁰C 

140 gms of active starter

12 gms crushed sea salt

625 gms strong white bread flour

60 gms wholemeal/wholewheat flour

420 gms tepid water 

METHOD

1. Add the tepid water to a large bowl. Mix the flours together and then add to the water. Mix to a clump. Cover and place at between 22⁰C and 24⁰C for two hours. 

2. Stir in the starter and mix thoroughly. Cover and return to the warm place for a further 90 minutes. 

3. Add the salt and mix thoroughly. Cover and return to the warm place for a further 90 minutes. 

4. Gently stretch and fold. (Emphasis on the 'gently'). Cover and return to the warm place for a further 90 minutes. 

5. Gently stretch and fold. (Emphasis on the 'gently'). Cover and return to the warm place for a further 60 minutes. 

6. Gently tip the dough out onto a lightly floured board. Weigh the dough and divide it into SEVEN portions. 

7. Gently roll out one of the portions into as large a circle as possible. Place in the centre of the Couronne basket so it covers the centrepiece and also provides a base for the other rolls which are to follow. Oil the surface of the dough. 

8. Taking each of the remaining seven rolls in turn, roll them into balls to develop tension and place them in the bottom of the Couronne basket so that they sit on the circle of dough from Stage 7. 

9. Snip the top of the dough from Stage 7 into a star and pull the pieces over the top of the dough balls. 

10. Cover with a cloth and return to a warm place for THREE hours. 

11. Preheat the oven to 240⁰C. 

12. When you're ready to bake, invert the Couronne onto a piece of parchment paper

13. Stencil or dust the Couronne as you wish. Mist the inside of the oven with water and add water to a small tray to develop steam. 

14. Bake the bread for 15 minutes with steam and then remove the steam, drop the temperature to 220⁰C continue to bake for a further 25 minutes or until the dough has an internal temperature of 98⁰C. 

15. Leave for at least two hours on a cooling tray for the crumb to set. 

Click on the image below to print out as a shortened form

Happy baking...