boulak

But first a few notes. I went to Paris with the intention of tasting as much bread as possible in an eight day span. Of course, some pastry and chocolate would be enjoyed, but the focus of the trip was bread; not museums, not shopping, no fancy dinners, no monument ascensions, just bread. One great thing is that bread prices are regulated in France. A baguette weighing 220 grams after baking is .95 to 1 Euro. Even with a weak dollar, a baguette is more affordable in Paris than it is in most artisanal bakeries in the U.S. I have always felt that bread is more democratic than pastry as almost anyone can plunk down a buck or two and enjoy world class bread. World class pastry is enjoyed by a much smaller percentage of the population. This is part of bread’s appeal. As exciting and titillating as pastry is, only bread and bread making can soothe the soul. Another point of interest is that in France, bread is baked throughout the day as opposed to the overnight baking done in many of the bakeries stateside. One deck of the oven might contain baguettes, another, pain au levain, another, rye or pain Viennois. This cycle is repeated throughout the day. When you request a baguette, the clerk reaches into a basket where baguettes are stored vertically and hands you a warm or even hot baguette. They are not stored warm, they are that fresh. I prefer not to bag hot bread, but when in…………. Armed with "Cherchez le Pain" by Steven Kaplan, an incredible spreadsheet from eGullet member rgural, "Paris Boulangerie Patisserie" by Linda Dannenberg and suggestions from the eGullet community, my wife and I spent the week of Thanksgiving walking through Paris tasting bread. We would make a purchase, take it outside, she would hold one end of the baguette, and I would hold the other. Then we sliced off about 25% of the baguette. The remainder of the baguette was sliced lengthwise to evaluate the crumb or mie and photographed... Then we would smell and taste. If we really liked the baguette we would continue to eat it. If it was rather pedestrian, we gave it to the nearest homeless or needy person. We gave all leftover bread away whenever possible. Now, the observations. These are the boulangeries I appreciated the most: It’s incredible, but the first two boulangeries we visited produced baguettes that we enjoyed as much as any. To see if they stood the test of time, we returned to them at the end of the trip to taste again. They were both excellent on the return trip. The shops are: Jean-Noel Julien 75, rue St. Honore Philippe Gosselin 125 rue, St. Honore The baguettes at both of these shops were rather ordinary looking, but the crumb was very open and creamy with a clean chew. The crust was thin and crispy. What a way to start. The flavors of the grain and fermentation were complex and made me swoon. Both boulangeries have won the prestigious ‘best baguette in Paris’ award. We had high hopes for Au Levain du Marais 32, rue de Tureenne, unfortunately it was closed on Monday. Our advance information indicated that is was only closed on Sunday. I will definitely make it there next trip. They have an excellent reputation among people whose opinions I respect. We visited Maison Kayser 9 & 14, rue Monge. Yes, that’s correct, two store fronts in the same block with lines out the door and down the block. I visited Kayser in 1999 during Europain was able to spend some time in the back of the house observing production. Although the bread was very good, I enjoyed it more in ’99 than I did this trip, but I think that the Viennoiserie remains excellent. A second visit confirmed our initial evaluation. The shop is nice and the products are displayed well. With all the bakeries available in Paris, a line of patrons out the door is quite an endorsement. Kayser has been at the forefront of the organic bread movement as well as driving the return of great bread in France for a number of years. Poilane 8, rue du Cherche Midi: Baguettes were the main focus of the trip, but no bread trip to Paris would be complete (or relevant) without visiting Poilane. The bread was even better than I remembered it. I have had it when shipped to the states many times, but nothing compares with purchasing it there. I ate this bread all day, everyday. It was my snack between baguette tastings. I love baguettes, but if I were on a dessert island……………. This is absolutely one of my favorite breads. The shop is small and perfect. None of this bread was discarded. We visited the shop three times. Le Boulanger Monge 123, rue Monge: Another very nice shop with lines around the corner. Very good baguettes, rye, and pain au levain. We visited this shop twice as well. In addition, there are a lot of nice market stalls and shops in the neighborhood with excellent cheeses, produce, charcouterie, etc. Poujauran 20, rue Jean Nicot: This was a bit of a disappointment for me. I had heard so many good things about Poujauran. I made a second and third purchase to be sure that I was not missing something. The products were not bad, just not to my liking. I did get a cool photo of the bakery with the car in front though. I have since read that the ownership has changed hands. The pastry was good. Du pain et des idees 34, rue Yves Toudic: The bread was not exciting, but good. The shop is an homage to bread with many antiques and artifacts of bread making. Worth visiting for this alone. Moisan, Le pain au Nauturel 5, place d’Aligre; 7 rue Bouladoue: We were unable to find the first location, but the second location was accessible. There are three other locations. Moisan is producing excellent organic pain au leavain. I enjoyed it very much and did not discard any. Le Grenier a Pain 52, Avenue Italie: The baguette was very good. They had the large versions (Parisian) as well. The shop is nice and they have a cool bicycle out front. Le Quatier du Pain 74, rue Saint-Charles: A nice bakery operated by Frederic Lalos M.O.F. The bread was good but not great. Le Grenier a Pain 64, Avenue Felix Faure: This shop is not affiliated with the one above. I had an excellent baguette in this pleasant shop with very courteous and super friendly staff. The appearance, taste, aroma, and crumb were excellent. Au Leavain du Marais 48, rue Caulaincourt. The baguette here was excellent. I ate the entire baguette on the street. I returned and tried to speak with the boulanger, but the clerk did not speak English, and apparently I wasn’t speaking French. La Polka 59, rue d’Orsel: The baguette was good and the multi-grain (pain au cereals) was excellent. A few more observations: Retrodor: Various locations. This is a “system” that the boulanger buys. If he follows the system (flour blend, directions, times, etc.) a very nice baguette can be made. I had one excellent Retrodor baguette. The rest were pretty not too bad. La Flute Gana 226, rue des Pyrenees: This is the original shop owned by Valerie and Isabelle Ganachaud. The shop is beautiful and the staff well trained and responsive. A flute gana is a “system” or licensing arrangement similar to Retrodor. The boulanger purchases a bag of specially milled grains and follows the program. I have had many excellent flutes not only at the original bakery, but at many others. It is a very reliable product. The last visit to the bakery was met with a sub standard flute. I am including this information not to disparage the shop, but to illustrate the fact that anything can happen and that to properly evaluate any shop, more than one visit must be made. We went to many more boulangeries than I have listed here and many of them were good, they just didn’t make my baker’s dozen. These are merely the highlights. I apologize for not including photos. I have many to share, but I cannot figure out how to post them. If someone can point me in the right direction, I will be glad to post them either inserting them into this thread or creating another one of just photos. After I catch my breath, I have photos and comments on pastry, especially Pierre Herme’s shop. What an extraordinary experience that was. Until then, eat bread, speak the truth. Mitch

Greetings artisanbaker, I will make a detailed posting this weekend after I have unpacked the materials and notes from this trip. I also have over 140 digital photos. If I can figure out how to post them, I will include some of the better ones. It was a great trip and I am excited to share it here.

Maybe I haven't made myself very clear. I am and was a very good bread baker. I am just having a hard time adjusting to the flour combined with the weather and the lack of central heating/air conditioning here in Israel. I also go by feel and add more flour and/or liquid when necessary or add less of both. The dough is not too moist, it just spreads out during the final rise, after I braid the dough. I am going to make some bread (not Challah) tomorrow, trying Seth's advice. I am also going to make a honey starter and try Boulak's suggestion, but that will have to wait until next week. I will post my results. The results will not be as scientific as Jackal's because I do not have a chemistry background nor do I have a scale, but I will do my best. ← You're problem is quite perplexing, but I do have a few more thoughts. If you are using quite a bit of fat in the recipe, you could try developing the dough before the addition of the fat and then adding the fat gradually as in a brioche dough. This would supply sufficient strength to the dough without altering your recipe. After reading your latest post, I wonder if your dough temperature after mixing might be too high. Have you taken the temperatue of the dough after mixing? 75 to 78 degrees is a good range for fermenting and proofing Challah. This can be achieved by regulating your liquid temperature. If you are using dry active yeast and heating it in 110 water and mixing directly, it could be a factor. If you use dry active, heat only a portion of the water then add the remainder after the yeast is activated. Upthread you said you have used dry and fresh and had similar results, but I am trying to eliminate possibilities. If you use dry yeast BTW, instant active is the best as noted on another thread. Jackal refers to a final proof in the refrigerator -- I have used the refrigerator for overnight bulk fermentation for Challah and then shaped and proofed it in the proper environment and obtained satisfactory results, but for Challah, I prefer a more direct method. I can sense your determination and due to that if nothing else, I imagine that you will be able to resolve your problem with Challah. One other note, always maintain the same amount of flour and adjust the liquid components to that. When you tinker with the flour content, you throw the balance of the formula off -- all other ingredients work in relationship (ratio or percentage) to the flour. If you start with water and add flour, the dough may "feel right," but the leavening, and salt could end up out of balance and cause inconsistent results. Good luck and keep us posted.

Brioche pre-dates mechanized mixing, so it stands to reason that it was mixed by hand for a number of years. With mechanized mixing, brioche (which Larousse refers to as a cake) most likely evolved just as breads did and now we have variations on the variations. So, yes, you can mix by hand as nightscotsman has stated, and once you understand hand mixing you are prepared to understand mechanical mixing. I agree with learning by hand first for more than just a few reasons. I have not found it necessary to preferment brioche due to the long overnight fermentation in the refrigerator. I have made it both ways with the same formula without much discernable difference.

Ditto everything Sinclair wrote. One variation: When producing spun sugar, I have had great success cooking a mixture of 50% glucose and 50% sugar. It works beautifully and the sugar is a little more flexible as well.

You could try pre-fermenting a portion of the flour to strengthen the dough. A good starting point would be 25% of the total flour in the recipe. Hydrate it at 60% (remember to subtract this flour and water from the final dough) and use up to 1% yeast based on flour, depending on the length of fermentation. 1% yeast will hold at 50 to 60 degrees for 15 to 18 hours (variable depending on conditions). This should strenghten your dough without altering the flavor (which in Challah is provided more by sugars, fats, eggs, etc. than fermentation). If you maintain a natural starter, you could incorporate up to 10% of the flour weight in your final dough. Make the appropriate adjustments to maintain the same level of salt. And don't forget to sacrifice a piece of dough to the oven. You never know..........

Try pouring the cooked caramel into a glass bowl and microwave it as necessary to keep it appropriately fluid without further caramelizing the sugar.

Jackal, The book sounds/looks great. Are the recipes in the weight/percentage format such as Cresci or are they volumetric. Is there any cultural, historical, annecdotal perspective?

Potato and turnip soup with a ratio of 2:1. Finish with cream. Yum.

I'm with chefpeon as far as using chocolate and cream only when ganache is used as a glaze. Depending on the type of ganache, the season, and the chocolate, I add up to 10% glucose which aids in the flexibility chefpeon addresses and inhibits the cracking addressed in other posts. The shine is really nice as well.

Sinclair, Thank you for coming clean on using a cake mix to make your clientele happy. While PCing in a resort, I often did the same, and it was always on wedding cakes. We used a cream cake mix for such purposes, and in the tastings the bride almost always picked the mix over a natural, scratch product. At first, I was embarrased and too ashamed to admit it to my colleagues. After a while, I realized that a certain segment of the population has had products made with mixes and artificial ingredients and flavors for so long that they are unable to discern or even appreciate the complexities and subleties of a clean product. After this realization, I was able to reconcile the fact that I was doing whatever it took to make the customer happy, and I was able to go home a happy baker.

I think most of the bases have been covered, but there could be one more potential problem. If you are warming the yolks over a bain marie, the bottom of the bowl will be wet. Are you wiping the bottom of the bowl dry before adding the yolk mixture? If not, water could drip into the chocolatre when you hold and/or tilt the yolk bowl over it causing it to sieze. Signed, Someone who learned the hard way.

Chefpeon, You are one of the reasons I am a bread baker and not a pastry chef any longer. Your work is breath taking and inspiring. Genuflection would be appropriate in your presence.

Boulak: The primary intent of my remark re salted butter in breads, is that there is no overwhelming reason not to use the salted type, particularly as the fresh butter is, for many budgets, fairly more expensive. As you have reiterated, it is important to remember to adjust the salt called for in a recipe should one be using salted butter for another unsalted fat, or vice versa. For many bread recipes, bakers may be amenable to using less costly fats; concomitantly, they may be satisfied that vegetable oil, for example, works just as well as butter. However, I think it is inarguable that there are some very special rich and festive breads (such as brioche, Danish, Stollen, and certain Holiday loaves) where only high-quality butter will make the standard. Fat coats gluten molecules, so they can't amalgamate as easily, contributing to the baked bread's tenderness. Fat added to bread dough has the effect of making the gluten in the flour more supple, while simultaneously hindering its development. This means that the richer dough must be kneaded for a longer time and the finished product will be very smooth & soft. If an excessive amount of fat is to be used (as in a brioche), the dough will be so limp & sticky at the outset that the ordinary method of kneading cannot be used to develop the gluten sufficiently. The action of the yeast is also inhibited by the fat: A small amount of fat in a bread recipe will produce a slower rising dough and the texture of the baked bread will be finer & closer. Moreover, salt acts as a control for the yeast action in breads – specifically, it helps to control the rate of fermentation. During periods of hot, humid weather, additional salt can retard a faster-than-usual rising phase. ← Thanks for responding Redsugar. To continue the discussion rather than dispute your comments and hopefully to avoid stating the obvious, I would like to add some comments more as dialogue rather than rebuttal. What I had difficulty following was the fact that although your science was accurate, your statement that you could see no reason not to use salted butter seemed the antithesis of your previous statements . Fat does inhibit the development of gluten as it can coat or encapsulate the flour particles which then impedes their ability to absorb liquids. For gluten to develop, flour and liquid must be combined by some type of mixing. Only then can the proteins untangle and align as gluten. And yes, when making brioche et al, an intensive mix is required. However, much of the mixing process is done while adding the butter gradually(which allows for full gluten development). Any product undergoing an intensive mix is likely to have a close crumb, but definitely, fat does lubricate gluten strands which results in closer grained crumb. Salt does indeed control fermentation, but no baker I know adds salt to a dough to control fermentation in warmer weather. Possibly to a preferment, but not a dough. This is done by controlling the dough temperature and the environment. Maybe, maybe by reducing yeast, but not by increasing salt. It might be done in some shops, but remember salt has many more functions than controlling fermentation. Redsugar, again, I would like to thank you for responding and I enjoy reading your well informend posts. Please do not mistake my response for being argumentative.

Redsugar: I can't quite grasp your comment about using salted butter in yeasted doughs. I prefer to control the amount of salt in a yeasted dough just as I would in a non-yeasted product. Salt content is generally 1.8% to 2% (with some exceptions of course) of the flour weight. If there is no salt in the butter, then I know exactly how much to include in order to control fermentation as well as influence the other factors that hinge on the correct percentage of salt. Am I missing the point? Could you explain it in a little more depth? Thanks

Many bakeries are willing to sell small amounts of cake circles, boxes, etc. to members of the community. They buy them by the 100's. When I owned a bakery, I was glad to help in such a way. We fielded calls like this all the time and realized that it was an easy way to build relationships and create friends of the bakery. We even sold starter, buttercream, etc. We never viewed it as cannabilizing sales, but more of a good neighbor policy. It's usually just a matter of speaking with the right person.

OK, I guess it is just me. But I will say this; I have worked in the business for many years, and believe in generous tipping for professional, courteous service. I would much rather leave a restaurant feeling good about the experience and compensate the server accordingly. I empathize with many of the comments from owners and servers, but every diner is not out to beat the system. As far as patronizing establishments that do not charge for a refill, I feel that that is the crux of the thread. How would I know? I guess I could ask, but remember that a proprietor is a host and in the hospitality business. Food Tutor: I will admit that I never considered the difference in the tip on four glasses of tea as you illustrated. That is a good point, I am glad that you made it,and I concede that point. But again, it seems as if the first concern is the tip and not the service. What about extra butter, sour cream, salsa, etc. that I never ask for? I am just looking for consistency. There are a lot of great comments here and I appreciate hearing the other side. Thanks.

If the dialogue is going to turn to tips, I would say that quite often it seems that a server initially sizes up the patron and determines what percentage said patron is going to tip. The service then reflects that pre-determination. If you would worry about the service instead of the tip, the tips would flow. I realize that this is a generality and that there are exceptions. But retailers have an expression called "income averaging." Maybe servers should too. When servers view their jobs as a profession rather than a job, patrons take notice and tip accordingly. Tip jars are a real can of worms. I saw one in an employee cafeteria in a resort where I worked. Workers asking co-workers for a tip for doing their job. Or the one that I saw that said "For colledge" (sic) at an ice cream counter. A tip on a $3 scoop of ice cream? Do the people working in these positions tip when they line up for small ticket items? It seems to be a part of our culture now that we are not only expected to tip, but we are glad to do so simply for manners, a friendly smile, and a thank you. Oh, Bob Dylan, you were right in more ways than I knew. I'll say it again. I want my iced tea. And I want a refill. And it is no more trouble than pouring another glass of water for the server. And with all of the money I am spending in restaurants, it is not a drain on the proprietor's profits. I have never seen anyone charged when more bread has been delivered to the table whether requested or not. How is iced tea so radically different?

Oops, I just came across the thread for hidden restaurant extras and want to apologize for starting an identical thread. Rookie mistake.

Sir , methinks you are mocking me. ← Not at all .. just pointing out that in the South, we know people are thirsty and don't charge them for natural bodily functions! Not a sir but, may God forgive me for this, a Madam ... not that kind either!! ← Actually, not only are we thirsty, but we need the free refills to take our expensive prescription drugs down here. Gifted Gourmet: I am convinced that you are a true southern lady, but as I look at your email address, I would have to say that you are also a goodman melissa. Seriously, there a lot of fair minded patrons who enjoy going to restaurants and paying a fair price comparable to value and who appreciate good service and reward the server accordingly, but...............$2 for a REFILL of iced tea that does not require any of the extra work that you mentioned nwyles? And I'm talking US dollars>

OK, it's a small thing, but it really irritates me to pay for refills on iced tea, especially when coffee drinkers are getting all the coffee they can handle. Granted, I grew up in the South where pitchers of tea are placed on the table, but at $2 a glass, I expect refills when I am paying bistro prices and beyond. Most establishments seem to understand this, but I have been gouged for refills twice in the past few weeks without an announcement or a posted policy. Over the past few years, soft drinks and coffee have become a big ticket item. A family of four with four iced teas or other soft drinks and one refill each is $16. I appreciate the fact that these are businesses in business to make a profit, but the margin on soft drinks must be 90% or more. Gimme a break. The restaurant we went to tonight allowed patrons to bring their own wine for a corkage fee of $1. Can I take my thermos of iced tea in for $1? Whew! glad I got that off my chest.

Pastrymama is right. Springform pans are a waste of money. They are flimsy, they break, they get lost, they lose their shape............ You can warm the bottoms of cake pans in a steamtable as well. Lining the insides of the 3 inch cake pans with plastic wrap also aids in removing cheesecakes and the like. Just make sure that if you are using a fan forced oven to wet or spray the outsides of the pans so that the overlap of plastic will stick to the outside of the pan and not get blown into the batter.

Am I the only person who puts toasted coconut pastry cream in a baguette? When that isn't available, there is always chocolate for the original pain au chocolat.

Andiesenji, Yes, it is the Wihlfahrt book. I regard it as an historical document in American baking. And yes, it was cold there. When I attended, the program had been reduced to ten months. artisanbaker, I attended three sessions at the NBC and it was a fantastic experience. You are very fortunate to have experienced and internship there. I remain close with several former interns and they benefited immensely. Dunwoody and NBC...............what a time, what a place..............

Andiesenji: I too went to Dunwoody although much later. Do you have a copy of "A Treatise on Baking?" Mine is worn out and falling apart, but I love it. I also have a copy of "Breads, Rolls, and Sweet Doughs" published by Paul Richards in 1932 that we used as a resource. The approach and insight from previous eras can foster an appreciation of what we are doing now and how we got here.