Hi, everyone.
I have been using bannetons or bread baskets made out of wood pulp. I love the way the bread looks but the challenge is always to flip it to the cast iron when it is ready to be baked. The dough deflates immediately as I flip sides. Even though it does rise again in the oven, but the shape is completely compromised.
Any hints on how to avoid? I do not thing it is a matter of not enough proofing time and neither of too harsh S&F or shaping. My dough proofs for 4 hours in the first rise, and for another 4 hours in the second.
Any hints on how to solve this?
Caroline
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Easy, I won’t be the first to ask you to try proofing loaf in basket covered with parchment paper. Two bits of advice, crumple your paper in a wad and straighten a wad to place in basket, helps fit, and be sure to make the paper very long so you can use edges as handles and just lift into the baker and put lid on top, with 10 min to go take paper out and remove lid.
I have no problem with my banneton but I only proof for one hour and they come out great. It might seem you are over proofing.
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Caroline
I think you may be over proofing your dough in the second rise. Hence, the yeasty boys are pretty much spent and don’t have enough energy to hold shape and/or give you any oven spring.
I have been very successful with a hour final proofing.
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Definitely overproofing on the second rise. One hour is plenty. Also, because your flipping your dough into a deep pot, it’s a long drop. Take a piece of parchment paper, lay on top of your bannetton and then flip it. Then lower the parchment paper with dough into the pot.
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One technique I use for minimum deflation during the transfer: I put the preheated base on top of the banneton, then flip gently. This is less disturbance than flopping the dough from the container. It does require care with the hot bottom and I only leave it touching for a few seconds which requires practice.
On the other hand, even when I sometimes flop from a distance and there’s some deflation, there’s still a good oven spring, sometimes to the top of my Dutch oven. My proof time in the summer is 1 hour. Winter a bit longer depending on house temp. Sounds like it’s time to experiment. With time. 
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I had that problem until I started dusting my baskets and bannetons with rice flour so there’s no sticking of any kind. My proofed dough comes right out with out any hesitation that would deflate it.
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Because you want the bannetton impressions to show on the top of your fiished loaf, using parchment to cover your dough, holding it securely to flip the dough onto the parchment over the vessel you will use to bake in and lowering it parchment and all works to keep deflation at a minimum and makes it easier to put dough into very hot pot.
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I use a cloche. What I do is place the inverted base of the cloche directly over the proofing basket, hold on to the base of the cloche and edges of the basket and do a quick flip. (Like unmolding a creme caramel on a plate if you have ever done that).
You can put a piece of parchment paper over the bread before you place the base of the cloche in which case the loaf will sit on parchment paper in the cloche. If you have preheated the cloche you do this with oven mitts.
It seems to me you can do this with the base of your cast iron bread baker just as easily
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I think proofing it the second time for 4 hours is to much. I would cut the time in half and try it that way . Good luck.
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Thank you!
I’m thinking don’t completely punch the dough down flat before the last proof, then less proof time on the last proof before the flop into the cast iron. During proof, as the gases trapped in the dough expand, the pockets become more vulnerable to burst from a physical disturbance. When More stay in tact post flop, then the oven spring is even more effective. You may then find you don’t need to let it rise as much to get the final baked loaf shape you’re after.
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