"Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day" Zoe Francois (2008–2009)

[Rich In Bunly Goodness]

The way I typically do buns at home is to proof them on a silpat or parchment, then slide it onto an upside-down sheet pan, then slide the parchment or silpat with buns on top into the oven onto the stone. That way you can get them in a lot quicker than one at a time, which keeps the oven temps high, and you also don't need to use much if any flour or other substance to keep them from sticking.

[Heartsurgeon]

I going to try my standard formula with 50% semolina flour..i got a rather large sack of the semolina, and i need to use it up! Anyone have any experience with semolina based baked goods?

[Desiderio]

I got the book, I cant wait to try everything in it! But I really need to gear up my workout though!!

Anyway I have been keeping the fist ( actually second ) dough I made and refreshing it everytime is getting low ( about one loaf left worth) the first time I refresh it I add the ingredients and only 6 gr of yeast, today I didnt add any yeast but just the ingredients and it raised like crazy!!! It smells wonderfully as well. I baked a loaf today and is crusty and light, I am keeping the dough wetter, I was reading that in high altitude the flour absorb more water, and I have noticed everytime I made bread but didnt know, I thought was just the flour, so using more liquid make more sense now.

[TitoM]

Wonderful book, it makes me want to continue learning more about baking "the old fashioned way". Here's my first loaf ever (have zero baking experience before this)--

Edited June 22, 2009 by TitoM (log)

[onehsancare]

I got malt powder at the home brewing supply store.

[saluki]

I going to try my standard formula with 50% semolina flour..i got a rather large sack of the semolina, and i need to use it up! Anyone have any experience with semolina based baked goods?

←

Check out the minimalist no knead thread. Abra has been experimenting with semolina to improve the texture of her loaf. I think she settled on using 20% semolina in her formula. One of the other posters commented that when he used 30% his loaf didn't rise as high but they were pleased with the flavor.

I've used Abra's proportions on occasion and enjoyed the results.

[Heartsurgeon]

i usually try several differetn percentages to find out how the ingredient effects the bread.

i'll definitely try 20%.

once i've run several different batches, i'll comment on the results.

i will check out Abra's posts, thanks.

[rickster]

My recollection is that there are different grinds of semolina, which may behave differently. I've made some loaves (not from this book) with 100% fine grind semolina and been very happy with the results.

[Heartsurgeon]

i think the semolina i have must be a fine grind. it's no different that wheat flour in texture.

[ElsieD]

I finally tracked down a source for malt powder. My problem now is, they have four kinds. They are light, wheat, amber and dark. Can anyone tell me which one I should get? It is available at a store that sells beer brewing supplies. TIA.

[Jmahl]

Just baked up a batch that has been in the frig for four weeks. It has been over 100 degrees here every day in Texas for weeks and I could not bring myself to turn on the oven until today. The dough looked a little funky but turned out fine. Enjoying a hot chunk broken off a corner of a loaf right now with home make grapefruit marmalade. Great stuff.

[adiamant]

Just made my first batch, and baked my first boule ever last night after 24 hours in the fridge. It came out great - especially considering the minimal amount of effort required. I love it.

The bread was a little dense (which I like), probably due to only 40 mins rest time before baking it. It came out a bit salty too (I'm using the master formula and morton kosher salt). I will try to reduce the amount of salt a bit for next time, but there's still plenty of dough left.

I'm going to try for a larger loaf next time (tonight). This little one only kept till morning when the kids asked for it for their lunch sandwiches.

I wanted to bake bread for a while, but always figured it was more time and effort than I could spare. Using the book's method, it doesn't take much at all and the results are great. Thanks Zoe.

P.S. Sorry for no pictures, I was too excited by the bread to think about that, and it was gone by the time I did

Edited July 22, 2009 by adiamant (log)

[adiamant]

Second bread baked yesterday, and came out beautiful. I used the rest of the dough, so had about a double size loaf (scale is on order, so don't have exact measurements yet). I left it to rest for 1 1/2 hours or so, and baked it for 35 minutes, removing the water after 13 minutes.

The crust came out a bit thicker and more crunchy than the first one, and the taste is better too (not as salty, surprisingly. Not sure why another day of fridge storage would change that, but my wife agreed with the observation too).

Mixed another batch, reducing the salt to 1 1/4 T, and swapping 1/2 a cup of AP flour for whole wheat and adding 1/4 cup of water to compensate. We'll see how that works.

I did remember to get some photos this time:

Crust...

and crumb...

A better view of the crumb

Edited July 23, 2009 by adiamant (log)

[foodie3]

i made the chocolate bread this morning, and, even though the taste is pleasing, i. e. intense chocolate flavor (used 72%), i am not entirely happy with the crumbly, slightly sticky texture of the baked loaf.

any comments as to what may have caused this to occur?

[Jmahl]

Second bread baked yesterday, and came out beautiful. I used the rest of the dough, so had about a double size loaf (scale is on order, so don't have exact measurements yet). I left it to rest for 1 1/2 hours or so, and baked it for 35 minutes, removing the water after 13 minutes.

The crust came out a bit thicker and more crunchy than the first one, and the taste is better too (not as salty, surprisingly. Not sure why another day of fridge storage would change that, but my wife agreed with the observation too).

Mixed another batch, reducing the salt to 1 1/4 T, and swapping 1/2 a cup of AP flour for whole wheat and adding 1/4 cup of water to compensate. We'll see how that works.

I did remember to get some photos this time:

Crust...

and crumb...

A better view of the crumb

←

Beautiful. Looks like we have another convert.

Jmahl

[melissafitz]

i know i'm late to this party, but i am LOVING this book! my first boule recipe turned out a bit too wet -- it didn't hold the slashes -- but it still was delicious!

i made the brioche this weekend and just put together some sticky buns. i'm thinking they're going to turn out great. the dough was super easy to handle this time -- nice and supple and firm.

thanks to zoe and jeff!!!

[Jmahl]

Made my weekly bread batch adopting Heartsurgeons formula but upped the whole wheat to 20% and baked a little longer for a really hard crunch in crust. We are very happy with the results.

Here is the formula. 800 gms KA white flour, 200 gms whole wheat flour, 750 gms water heated to 100 degrees f., 20 gms salt, 12 gms granulated yeast, 2 Tbs. honey and 2 Tbs. caraway seeds.

Enjoy.

[Heartsurgeon]

the wife wanted foccacia bread, so here's the recipe i used:

1000 gms KA all purpose flour

12 gms yeast

20 gms salt

20 gms malt powder

20 gms semolina flour

700 gms water

50 grams rosemary/garlic infused olive oil

1 tbsp of minced fresh rosemary

(rosemary/garlic infused olive oil made by adding strippings off 10 sprigs of rosemary, and 6 peeled cloves of garlic to 1/2 cup of olive oil and pulsing into a mash using an immersion (stick) blender. the result was strained through sieve, yielding the olive oil and minced rosemary, which was also added to the dough. the remaining olive oil and rosemary was recombined, and later drizzled over the foccacia just prior to baking.

The dough was allowed to rise for about 3-4 hours.

lightly dusted with flour, cut in half, laid out on a oiled siplat/baking tray (using some of the left over rosemary oil)

the dough was pressed out with my fingers until it was about 1/2 inch in thickness, and allowed to rest for about 40 minutes.

dimples in the foccacia where made with my fingers, and rosemary/garlic/olive oil was drizzled over the foccacia. a very light sprinkle of Kosher salt over the focaccia, then into a pre-heated oven at 400 for about 30 minutes. The obligatory 1 cup of water into the broiler pan added when the bread went in the oven.

FANTASTIC result.

way easier than making boules, as i only make one big loaf, and since it's all done on the silpat, minimal cleanup, no transfer issues. no need to wait for the flavor to mature, as the rosemary provides plenty of flavor.

[Jmahl]

the wife wanted foccacia bread, so here's the recipe i used:

1000 gms KA all purpose flour

12 gms yeast

20 gms salt

20 gms malt powder

20 gms semolina flour

700 gms water

50 grams rosemary/garlic infused olive oil

1 tbsp of minced fresh rosemary

(rosemary/garlic infused olive oil made by adding strippings off 10 sprigs of rosemary, and 6 peeled cloves of garlic to 1/2 cup of olive oil and pulsing into a mash using an immersion (stick) blender. the result was strained through sieve, yielding the olive oil and minced rosemary, which was also added to the dough. the remaining olive oil and rosemary was recombined, and later drizzled over the foccacia just prior to baking.

The dough was allowed to rise for about 3-4 hours.

lightly dusted with flour, cut in half, laid out on a oiled siplat/baking tray (using some of the left over rosemary oil)

the dough was pressed out with my fingers until it was about 1/2 inch in thickness, and allowed to rest for about 40 minutes.

dimples in the foccacia where made with my fingers, and rosemary/garlic/olive oil was drizzled over the foccacia. a very light sprinkle of Kosher salt over the focaccia, then into a pre-heated oven at 400 for about 30 minutes. The obligatory 1 cup of water into the broiler pan added when the bread went in the oven.

FANTASTIC result.

way easier than making boules, as i only make one big loaf, and since it's all done on the silpat, minimal cleanup, no transfer issues. no need to wait for the flavor to mature, as the rosemary provides plenty of flavor.

Sounds great - we will give your recipe a try. P.S. after seeing some of your work I have no doubts.

Jmahl

[CKatCook]

When I read the book it said that the "master recipe" which can be left in the refrigerator for two weeks and still be good. I left mine in for about a week and half after I made the first loaf and it was kind of grey and icky...

What did I do wrong? Did anyone else experience this? I didn't stir it any during that time, I put it in a plastic container that I poked holes in the top of the container.

[baroness]

Perhaps the holes let in something undesirable? I lay the lid on top of my container but don't press it down to seal.

[Jmahl]

We seal our container and a batch has lasted for several weeks.

[lesliec]

Same. I use a Tupperware-type container and my dough very happily lasts two weeks (unless I make bread from it, in which case it lasts no time at all ...).

I would even recommend leaving some dough behind (a cup or so - whatever's left) from Batch A when making Batch B, and so on (this is an extension of the book's suggestion not to wash the container). Over the next few weeks I get a lovely sourdough effect - smells wonderful. Dough from the Deli Rye variant smells kind of like beer if treated the same way.

[CKatCook]

Well, I punched the holes in the top because I thought the gases from the yeast had to have some place to "escape" to.

I will try it with a ocmpletely sealed bowl and see what happens.

Thanks!

[lesliec]

Tried the brioche recipe this weekend.

Put the water, yeast, salt, butter and honey in a container as specified, the mixed in the flour. THEN noticed the beaten eggs sitting waiting to be put in BEFORE the flour ...

I managed to recover, but I got a really wet dough which absolutely refused to be shaped in any way, even after a rest in the fridge. I cooked it anyway (much longer than the recipe said) and it tasted more or less OK, but I'm sure it should be better. It gets one more try, this time with the ingredients added in the right order.

But I do so love the results of the master recipe. <Sigh> - it's lunchtime.