Landbrød (Country Bread)

Steps

1. Combine the yeast and the warm water in a large bowl. If using active dry yeast, add the sugar as well, then let the mixture sit for a bit (5-10 mins) until it starts to bubble up then move on to step 2. If using instant yeast, you can move on to the next step without waiting.
2. Add the sugar (unless you already added it to the active dry yeast), salt, whole wheat flour, and bread flour to the water and yeast mixture. Stir until you have a scraggly dough and have saturated most of the dry spots. Cover the bowl and let this rise somewhere warm for 30 minutes.
3. After 30 minutes, complete your first stretch and fold. Instead of kneading this bread, you are just going to do what is called a stretch and fold. Basically, with slightly damp hands (just run them under water briefly) you will pull up the sides of the dough in the bowl and fold them inwards, along four quadrants of the bowl. See this great blog post from The Clever Carrot for more help with this technique! Once you have completed this first stretch and fold, let the dough rise again for another 30 minutes.
4. After the second 30 minutes, complete the second stretch and fold. Let the dough rise again for 15 more minutes.
5. Now you are going to pre-shape the dough. Sprinkle some flour onto a countertop or work surface and tip out your dough onto the surface. First, divide it roughly in half for your two loaves. Then, take each ball of dough and pull the sides into the middle gently, pinching them together like you were shaping a bread roll.
6. Flip the whole loaf over so the seam is facing down. Repeat with the other loaf. Cover with a towel or cling film and let this rise for another 10 minutes.
7. After 10 minutes, you are going to complete the final shaping of the loaves. Flip each loaf over again so that the seam is facing you. Repeat what you did before - pulling in the sides and pinching them together - but this time, you can be a bit less gentle. You really want to make sure the loaf doesn't spread and you create the necessary surface tension on the dough's surface to get a good rise in the oven. Flip the loaf over again so the seam is facing down and transfer to a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet. Repeat this with the second loaf. Now, put the two loaves into the fridge to rise for 20 minutes (this makes them easier to score and helps prevent over proofing especially if you are baking two loaves after each other in a Dutch oven, but feel free to leave them at room temperature if you are baking them simultaneously, or if your fridge doesn't have space!).
8. Preheat your oven to 450 F (230 C) and place a metal or cast iron pan/tray on the bottom rack of the oven to heat up and start boiling some water (1-2 cups) on the stove. If you are using a Dutch oven, you don't need to do this, but put your Dutch oven into the oven to preheat!
9. After 20 minutes, remove the two loaves from the fridge (if using a Dutch oven, just remove one for now). Dust the tops with some extra flour, using your hands to spread it evenly on the surface of the dough. Using a very sharp knife or razor blade, score the bread. Try your best to score at a 45-degree angle or less about 1 inch into the loaves. Read more about scoring here.
10. If using a Dutch oven, simply drop the loaf (on the parchment paper) into the preheated (very hot!) Dutch oven and place into the oven. Bake for about 20 minutes with the lid on, then remove the lid for 5-10 minutes until the bread has formed a beautiful dark crust. You can then bake the second loaf (just repeat the flouring and scoring step)!
11. If using a baking sheet and a metal pan/tray at the bottom of the oven, follow these instructions! While wearing oven mitts and being very careful, pour about 1-2 cups of the boiling water into the pan in the bottom of the oven. Quickly place the baking sheet with the loaves into the oven on the rack above the metal tray and immediately close it. Bake for 25 minutes.
12. Once the bread has formed a lovely dark crust and sounds hollow when you tap it, remove from the oven and let it cool for about an hour before slicing. Enjoy!