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dtremit

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Everything posted by dtremit

  1. Latest round of experiments. Apologies for not taking pictures outside of the bread! First up -- beans! I figured that if super steam was good for rice, it would probably be good for beans. I've been accustomed to making beans in the "Parsons Method" -- bring to boil on stovetop and finish in a low oven -- but found that it was sometimes a little tricky to calibrate the water level properly to account for both evaporation and absorption. Too little, and the beans on top got exposed and leathery; too much, and they were absolutely swimming in liquid. So I tried baking some nice @rancho_gordo Christmas limas (which admittedly were about a year past their "best by" date, I have a backlog) *un*covered @ 300F Super Steam -- and they came out just about perfectly. I had to add boiling water about halfway through (they took 90min to cook, which I suspect is on the long side due to size and age), but ended up with a nice broth coming only about halfway up the beans. As this is only a slight modification to my usual method, and with better results, I suspect I'll be using it frequently in the future. Dinner was a lovely chunk of hake loin cooked @ 300F super steam. I made a "rack" out of green beans and surrounded it with cherry tomatoes and onions, which became the sauce. 20min was a little too long, but it was still quite tasty; my partner who's not always crazy about fish really liked it. For sides, I tried the halved eggplant, which I did @ 400F super steam for 20min, alongside some batons from a large zucchini that needed using up. The latter I finished for 10min on convection bake, and tossed with a handful of Thai basil; the eggplant went under the Breville broiler for a few minutes just before serving. I made a quick tahini-garlic sauce for the eggplant. Also did some ears of corn according to the in-husk spreadsheet method (400F S-S for 30min), which worked well; very easy shucking when cut at the stalk end. Sounds like a lot, but we had a lot of veg to cook! Now, the bread. Glamour shots of the loaf are in the bread topic, here. This is the same dough as my first loaf, held in the fridge for a few days. I preheated @ 450F along with the 8" cast iron skillet (only one I have that fits!), did 15min super steam @ 400F, and then finished on convection bake @ 450F for another 15min. Except for the burnt top, I'm thrilled with how it came out -- but that burned top is really frustrating! You can't really tell from the picture, but it's a tiny loaf, only about 4" tall to the highest point. I don't think there's any way I'm going to get the color I want on the crust in just the CSO; I expect I'll be starting loaves on steam in the CSO and then transferring them to the Breville to finish. It's still an improvement, as I can't get anything close to these results out of the Breville by itself, and I'd rather leave my main oven off in the summertime. I don't actually think the height of the oven is the major factor here. I made some cinnamon swirl bread in the Breville the other day, and it got close enough to the top elements that I was worried it'd get stuck between them. But no charring on that loaf. The Breville has small metal guards over its top elements, though, which shield the bread from direct heat. I think either the lack of those on the CSO -- or some difference in programming which favors the top element more -- is the root of the issue.
  2. Second loaf from Sunday's dough, baked yesterday in the CSO. This time I dropped it (on parchment) into a preheated 8" cast iron skillet. 15min Super Steam @ 400F, followed by 20min convection bake @ 450F. CSO-specific discussion on that thread, but other than the blackened top, I'm pretty thrilled with this. May need to start in CSO and finish in the Breville as @ElsieD is doing.
  3. We did some wing flats last night @ 400F S-B and they came out well, though only crisp on one side. They were done enough (skin brown, and meat pulling away from the bone) after 25min that I pulled them. Was worried they were overdone but the meat and skin (on one side) were great. Think I may indeed try the next round at a lower temp. Also, I did these on a rack; that allowed for great drainage, but there was no crisping on the underside. Wonder if doing them in a pan would provide better results due to the contact.
  4. That looks great! Out of curiosity, what did you use for a pan/stone/etc?
  5. Thanks! It was straight down, but the pan is the 12.5’’x10’’x1’’ pan that was recommended...somewhere upthread. Smaller than a quarter sheet but otherwise pretty similar. I bought two a while back to have something dishwashable for the Breville.
  6. Got a nice surprise from FedEx on Saturday -- despite my refurb being scheduled for delivery on Tuesday, it managed to trek up from NJ in less than 24h. Put it to work pretty quickly: Started with some single ingredient wonders. First, toast (no picture, sorry!) -- and I can see why people like the toasting function, though it's not someplace where I'm picky. I was worried the edges wouldn't be crisp but they were, despite a moister center. Wasn't using my usual bread, though, so will have to investigate further. Second up -- oven fries, since we needed a quick snack. Two russets, peeled, cut, and tossed with oil: Tried these on steam bake @ 400F for 20min, and they weren't quite done; flipped them and went for 10min more. The interior was amazing, though I didn't think the exterior was as good as ones I've done with the BSO convection setting. Also tried a couple of beets per @weinoo 's method which came out nicely. Not hugely different than my Instant Pot results, but way less hassle -- no foil wrapping is a huge plus. Sunday morning I needed to make bacon for breakfast, and decided to do a literal bakeoff: Same bacon, same pan (TeamFar), same time. 400F convection in the BSO and 400F steam bake in the CSO. Both very good, and *very* similar. The BSO bacon was crisper, but the CSO had better flavor and rendering. I'd take either any day, though. Final test -- bread. I won't duplicate my pics from the baking forum, but I'm very pleased at the results from a first effort. Frankly, I wasn't really sure my dough would even come out, so I didn't put much care into the process; I preheated the (empty) oven to 450F and then switched to the Bread cycle, also at 450F. (As an aside, the steam cycle was also really helpful for coaxing my very reluctant naturally leavened sourdough to rise in our over-airconditioned apartment.) I'm definitely going to need a stone or skillet to get the results I want, and will need to play with the cycles / timing; I pulled it a little early due to the browning on the top, and didn't get much color on the bottom. Fantastic oven spring, though. I think I've seen others here post about preferring the Steam Bake cycle to the Bread cycle for bread baking. I'll probably review those posts and try that next. I'm curious, though, if anyone has played with Super Steam in their bread-baking process? Since that only uses the bottom element, I would think that starting on Super Steam and then switching to Convection Bake might prevent over-browning on the top rack.
  7. First loaf baked in the CSO for me. No real diversion from my previous recipe -- still working off the KAF naturally leavened sourdough recipe as a base. 50% bread flour, 45% whole wheat flour, and 5% rye. Definitely have some tinkering to do with the CSO itself (will leave that discussion for the CSO thread). My dough was also pretty sluggish yesterday -- I'm guessing I didn't let the starter sit long enough after I fed it. Took a lot longer than usual to rise, and despite the bubbles, the crumb is a little denser than I usually like. A bit of shine in the holes, though. Have another loaf that I stuck in the fridge after initial kneading; we'll see if a few days of rest will do it some good.
  8. That's fairly accurate, though they're a bit softer. Have not made them myself, but they are common to find at Brazilian restaurants and bakeries here in Boston. If nothing else, ATK should have had access to good examples!
  9. dtremit

    Breakfast 2019

    This was in the Breville (BSO) -- my CSO is on the truck for delivery as we speak! That said, I just checked it against one of these TeamFar pans that @JoNorvelleWalker recommended for the CSO, and it fits entirely inside that pan. So it should fit in the CSO. Sadly it's an oldie -- unmarked WagnerWare, I think, that my dad bought in college. So hard to source.
  10. dtremit

    Breakfast 2019

    Made a little extra effort this morning as last night the partner made dinner for our sort of anniversary. Pre-baked a hash brown crust (with butter and cheese) in my 8” cast iron, then lined it with a layer of prosciutto. To that I added mixed mushrooms sautéed with thyme, a basic quiche custard (5 eggs and a glug of heavy cream), and a bit more cheese. Garnished with some strips of the Fresno chilies (which I bought to try to clone Sriracha Panich). Came out very well, if I may say so myself. I think it was 20min @ 400F for the crust, and 20min @ 350F for the custard, both w/fan in the BSO. Leftovers should make a nice “light” lunch with a salad.
  11. I'm guessing no one ran to B. Altman to buy it based on that! A little searching suggests Tefal had steam toaster ovens until somewhat recently -- I found references to one called the "CROUSTY VAP" whose manual had a copyright date of 2005.
  12. Only one "renewed" oven left, after my order this morning! You are all a bunch of terrible enablers I did the same -- realistically, I think it's just going to get me my $125 back if it breaks, but I'm hopeful that if it lasts past 90 days it'll keep going for a while. And if it conks out, I think there may be other options that will work. There seem to be a lot of additional steam oven options coming onto the market -- just in the suggested items on the Amazon page I see this AEG, the smarty-pants Tovala (now in Gen2), and a few others. Sharp has been making countertop steam ovens for years; sadly the one they've brought us is the SSC0586DS, which seems like it's a great option if you never cook anything more than 2" tall. Hopefully they'll bring us one of the larger models they sell in Japan.
  13. Curious as well about @KennethT's question. I can't figure out *any* difference between the N and N1. Have been putting this off due to the size of my kitchen, but for $125 it's hard to argue with.
  14. dtremit

    Mandolines

    I've also had a Benriner for years, and love it, though I don't use it every day. Apparently they've just released a new version with a much improved hand guard (to call the old one an afterthought would be undue praise) and a few improved features. Wirecutter picked it as #1 in a recent comparison test; I have to say I'm tempted by the new design.
  15. I can't speak to small towns, but grocery chains have been abandoning inner cities for a long time. Detroit was without a single chain grocery from 2007 (when the single remaining store closed) until 2013 (when a Whole Foods opened, which I'm not sure helped all that much). And that's in one of the largest cities in the country by square mileage. I'm pretty sure there was another similar period in the early '90s.
  16. I think certain flavorings can amplify, rather than mask, the flavors of fruit. Ginger with stone fruit, for instance (or almonds, which aren't quite a spice). I also love a tiny, tiny, tiny hint of rose with strawberries. That said, too often any of these flavors are added too heavily. My pet peeve is actually over-mixing of fruits -- I know folks love strawberry and rhubarb together, but to me the flavors of each get lost. Ditto for a lot of "mixed berry" concoctions that aren't as good as a single berry.
  17. My father has had to be on a low salt diet for the past year, and in helping him navigate that, I've found that Swiss is almost always the lowest-salt cheese option -- lower in many cases than "reduced sodium" cheeses of other types. That may be a useful guide.
  18. Finally back to baking sourdough bread after a few months -- my KitchenAid finally died, and as I dithered about what to about it, I neglected my starter in the back of the fridge. These are the first loaves from my new setup -- an older Bosch Universal from eBay and a starter from the lovely Elmendorf Baking in Cambridge. These were made with what has been my standard recipe -- about half whole grain flour (~45% whole wheat, 5% rye) and half bread flour, and 68% hydration. Folded some seeds, nuts, and grains into the smaller loaf for some variety. Still would like a more open crumb, but I'm getting much better oven spring now, great flavor, and the crumb is quite pleasant. I do wish I'd left these in a bit longer to get some more color; I was afraid of burning the bottom, but I had more margin than I realized.
  19. dtremit

    Coleslaw

    One dressing I've stumbled on for slaw is a za'atar ranch -- a classic buttermilk Ranch base, with a few tablespoons of good za'atar mixed in. It works particularly well on a slaw with a lot of scallions and some jalapeño for a bit of kick.
  20. Thanks, Isabelle! I had gotten as far as figuring out that the KAF stuff was "high heat," but most dry milk seems to be sold as "instant" or "non-instant." The only stuff I can find explicitly listed as "high heat" (or low heat, for that matter!) is in 50 pound bags. I have seen people say that "non-instant" dry milk is produced via a high-heat process. I mostly use it for one specific bread, though, so I think I'm just going to try a pound of "non-instant" and see how it comes out.
  21. I understand shipping is a significant cost for retailers, especially small ones -- but KAF charges a premium for nearly everything already, which makes the high shipping charges hard to stomach. For things I can't easily source elsewhere, I tend to wait for one of their free shipping specials. Currently trying to find another source for their "Bakers Special Dry Milk" -- have seen suggestions that any non-instant dry milk would be the same thing. Probably going to try some from Barry Farm (via Amazon) and see if I get the same results.
  22. Matfer makes some pans with a 3" x 3.5" cross section, but the longest seems to be ~10": https://www.matferbourgeatusa.com/exopan-bread-mold-with-lid-6 https://www.matferbourgeatusa.com/exoglass-bread-mold-with-stainless-steel-lid-7
  23. I didn't mean that 11.7% was a high protein flour -- just that it was higher than usual for an all purpose flour. 13% is more unusual still. Going back to your original post, you were saying people ask you whether you need to use bread flour. Obviously not -- your bread is stunning. I'm just saying someone who buys a bag of Gold Medal isn't likely to get the same results -- let alone one of the lower protein "AP" flours like White Lily.
  24. Sadly Nutrition Facts labels are rounded to the nearest gram (except for some values <1g). So "4g" could be anywhere from 3.5g (11.66%) to 4.49g (14.96%). There probably is some difference between those two flours, just not a big enough one to survive the rounding process. Since no one eats flour by the tablespoon, I wish they'd just change the "serving size" to 100g and be done with it. That would reduce the margin of uncertainty a bit.
  25. First -- what beautiful loaves! I think being marked as "bread flour" is a lot less reliable an indicator of protein percentage than we'd like it to be. Really wish producers would just put the percentage on the bag. I can't find the Silver Star specifically, and the 30g serving size makes it kind of imprecise, but the Rogers website claims both the AP and "bread flour" have 4g of protein per 30g serving. I assume that means they both have a minimum of 3.5g/30g = 11.66%, as anything under 3.5g/30g would be rounded down. King Arthur bread flour is 12.7%, with their AP notably high at 11.7%; plenty of KAF's bread recipes call for AP. Gold Medal AP is lower at 10.5%. An old Chowhound thread here speculates that Canadian flour is higher protein across the board. All a long-winded way of saying that your AP flour may well be higher protein than the bread flour others can find.
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