You will need: Firebricks/spacer grate
Top heat: approx. 250-280°C
Preheating: approx. 30 minutes
Working hours: 45 minutes
Baking: ca. 30-35 minutes

Ingredients (for 4 loaves)

The evening before:

For the starter dough:

• 300 g wheat flour type 550
• 300 ml water (27°C)
• 3 g yeast (room temperature)

On baking day:

For the main dough:

• 300 ml milk (room temperature)
• 5 g yeast (room temperature)
• Pre-dough
• 700 g wheat flour type 550
• 25 g melted butter 
• 20 g salt

In addition:

• 200 g mountain cheese, diced
• 200 g cooked ham or bacon, diced
• some sunflower or rapeseed oil
• coarse salt
• some starch for the trays

For the lye:

• 1.5 l water
• 150 g baking soda

The evening before:
For the starter dough:

Place the flour, water and yeast in a large bowl and mix well with a whisk. Cover and leave to stand at room temperature for 12-18 hours.

On baking day:
For the main dough:

Pour the milk into the mixing bowl of the food processor and dissolve the yeast in it.

Add the starter dough, flour, melted butter and salt and knead into a smooth dough. Add the mountain cheese and bacon and knead in briefly.

Place the dough in an oiled bowl or dough pan, cover and leave to rise at room temperature for 2.5-3 hours.

Then transfer to the floured work surface. Roughly stretch the dough into a rectangle and divide into 4 equal strips. Make sure that the loaves are large enough to fit into the pan for baking later.

Turn the dough strips 2-3 times around their own axis to form a "root bread" and place on baking trays sprinkled with starch. (The trays should fit in the fridge!)
Place these in the fridge for approx. 2 hours, or alternatively in the freezer for approx. 45 minutes.
 
During this time, heat the Merklinger to approx. 250-280 °C.

For the Lye Bring the water to the boil in a large pan or roasting pan, remove from the heat and slowly add the baking soda powder. Attention: The baking soda powder foams up!
Put the pan back on the hob when it is switched off but still warm.

Now place each "Seppi" individually, preferably on two skimmers or spatulas, and soak for approx. 20-25 seconds. Carefully dip the loaves in again and again. Drain well and carefully place on baking trays lined with baking foil.
Brush the root loaves again with the lye, sprinkle with salt and immediately place the trays on the spacer rack in the hot Merklinger.

Bake at 250-280°C for approx. 30-35 minutes.

Remove the loaves and leave to cool on a wire rack.

Attention:

• Work with gloves when lyeing!
• Protect sensitive work surfaces and sheet metal!
• Only lye the dough pieces directly before baking!
• Bakers use a 4% sodium hydroxide solution (NaOH). This may sound quite similar, but chemically it is completely different. In addition, it is not easy to get hold of caustic soda and handling it is also difficult. not harmless. That's why I use an alkaline solution made from household soda (NaHCO3), e.g. Kaiser Natron, baking soda...