Hi there! I just made the classic baguettes a couple of days ago, and am trying again - this time with the épi de blé. The baguettes came out pretty well...taste and smell were spot on reminiscent of classic French bread. But the crust didn't quite get crusty enough!

I preheated to 450, added the steam with the cast iron pan, took the baguettes out after about 30 minutes, and ended up putting them back in for another 5-10 min on a wire rack instead of the rectangular sheet they were on before, as well as moving them closer to the heat source. This helped me get some color on the bottom and sides of the loaves as well as some of that great puckering that forms on the crust. But the crust was still too soft, squishy, and not that beautiful brown. The insides were pillow soft.

Should I have just baked it longer and hotter, or is there something I might have missed in the proofing or shaping? I should note that my kitchen and house are very warm these days, so I'm often proofing according to how much the dough has risen, rather than how long it's been rising.

Thanks for any help you can provide!

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