Piccia Calabrese (calabrian Bread)

Recipe by: Carol Field – The Italian Baker Refrigerate the Biga until cold.
stir the yeast into the water in a small bowl; let stand until creamy,
about 10 minutes. Saute the mushrooms briefly in the oil and let cool.
Roughly chop the tomato, mushrooms, anchovy, capers, onions, artichoke,
pickles, and red peppers in a food processor fitted with the steel blade.
Remove to another bowl. Process the oregano, flour, salt, and pepper with 5
or 6 pulses to mix. Place the cold starter and the lard over the dry
ingredients. With the machine running pour the dissolved yeast through the
feed tube as quickly as the flour can absorb it. Add the vegetable mixture
and process just until combined. Finish kneading by hand on a well-floured
surface, sprinkling with 1/2 to 2/3 cup additional flour as needed, until
elastic, moist, and velvety.

First Rise: Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap,
and let rise until doubled, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Shaping and Second Rise: Shape the dough on a floured surface into 1 large
or 2 smaller round loaves by rolling the dough first into a taut log, then
shaping it into a round loaf. The dough will be slightly sticky; sprinkle
the dough and the work surface with flour while shaping it. Place each loaf
on a peel sprinkled with cornmeal, cover with a slightly dampened towel,
and let rise until doubled, about 50 minutes.

Baking: Thirty minutes before baking, heat the oven with baking stones in
it to 425F. Just before baking, cut an even slash around the shoulder of
the loaf or 3 slashes across the top with a razor. Sprinkle the stones with
cornmeal and slide the loaves onto the stones. bake, spraying 3 times with
water in the first 10 minutes, for 45 minutes. Cool on racks.