Hi there, Jeanette! We're sorry to hear that you're having a bit of trouble with your bread! While a Dutch oven that is on the smaller side, about 4 quarts and 9 1/2" in diameter, does help to encourage the loaf to rise upwards, shaping the loaf tightly can also encourage the dough to rise upwards rather than spread outwards. After the first rise, you don't want to quite knead the dough but rather lightly deflate it and then shape it into a boule. For tips on shaping a boule check out our Shaping a boule blog article as well as our Martin Bakes at Home, Shaping Dough video. We hope this helps!

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