Pre-Shaping a Round Loaf or Batard

Lightly flour your work surface. Tap a portion of dough gently onto the floured surface. Hold the dough in both hands. With your right hand, stretch about a sixth of the dough away from you and tuck it under the rest of the dough. This tucked section should be facing away from you. Rotate the loaf 60 degrees and repeat the tucking motion. Continue to slightly rotate and tuck the dough until you have completed a full revolution or a bit more. At this point, place the piece of dough into the palm of your left hand with all of the tucks facing up. With the fingers of your right hand, gently press and seal all of the tuck sections together while continuing to rotate the round piece of dough. You can imagine allowing these tucked sections to take on a cone shape as you gather them together. When sufficiently sealed, place the dough on the work surface to rest with the tucked section facing down. The top of the round should be smooth and unblemished. Cover it with plastic and allow it to relax for the prescribed amount of time.