Directions

1. To make the Poolish and Cracked Wheat: Stir together wheat flour, bread flour and yeast in a medium bowl. Stir in water until thoroughly blended. This dough will be like biscuit dough. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit overnight or up to 24 hours. The dough will become frothy and have lots of little bubbles. At the same time as starting Poolish, pour hot tap water over cracked wheat in a large bowl. Cover and let stand overnight or up to 24 hours at room temperature.
2. To make the Dough: Stir yeast and water into soaked cracked wheat. Stir in Poolish, honey and salt, mixing until thoroughly blended. (This will make it easier to incorporate the other ingredients.) Add 2 cups of bread flour and 2 tablespoons wheat germ. Stir until combined. Dough will be soft and slightly sticky like biscuit dough. Stir in additional bread flour, if necessary. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.
3. Turning Dough: With a slightly wet hand give the dough several turns by sliding the hand down the edge of the bowl, lifting and stretching the dough up and over the center. Give the bowl a quarter turn and repeat 7 times until you have gone around the bowl twice. Cover and let rest 30 minutes. Repeat turning and resting 3 more times for a total of 2 hours rising time.
4. Primary Shaping: Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. With floured hands gently press to deflate dough. If dough is too sticky, dust surface lightly with bread flour and use a dough scraper to pick up and fold over dough several times as for kneading. Pull an edge of the dough from the outside to the center gently stretching the side of the dough to the center. Give the dough a sixth turn and repeat going around the dough 2 or 3 times shaping it into a rough ball. Cover and let rest seam side up on a lightly floured surface for 20 minutes.
5. Final Shaping: Working with the seam side up, slightly flatten the dough. Repeat the edge pulling shaping as above going around the ball twice. Turn the ball over and cupping the side of the ball with one hand, work the other hand from top to bottom slightly pulling the dough around to the bottom as you spin the dough an eighth turn. Work until the ball is smooth. Place seam side up on a floured towel or parchment paper generously dusted with toasted wheat germ that has been placed on a flat baking sheet. Cover and let rise 1-1/2 to 2 hours or until double.
6. Place a heavy cast iron or enamel covered cast iron 4 to 6 quart Dutch oven with lid on the bottom oven rack. Preheat oven at 475°F for 20 to 30 minutes or until the pot is very hot.
7. Carefully remove pot from the oven using thick pot holders, placing both the pot and the lid on a heat proof surface. Generously dust the top of the dough with toasted wheat germ. Lift up off the towel or parchment paper and invert into the bottom of the hot Dutch oven. Carefully cut slits in the top of the dough. Replace cover and return to oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Carefully remove lid and continue baking 10 to 20 minutes to an internal temperature of 200°F. Remove the pot from the oven and using a wooden spoon as a wedge carefully remove the bread and let cool on a wire rack.