Tom, you can cover it with greased plastic wrap, tenting it lightly. Grease it with vegetable oil spray - olive oil spray is a good choice. But what I do is take a big cheap plastic cover from a supermarket bakery cake - or a "party platter" - and simply put it on top of the bread. You need a big one, but once you find one, hang onto it! It's a great "proof cover". If you're baking on a stone, yes, leave the bread right on the parchment, and slide it, parchment and all, onto the stone. The parchment won't negate the effects of the hot stone. And you'll never deflate your bread when you use parchment.
April 16, 2008 at 6:01am