The Bread Topic (2016–)

[JoNorvelleWalker]

As not a fan of whole wheat bread, white whole wheat flour did not do it for me.  Your mileage may vary.

 

[PatrickT]

Paul Hollywood's Bloomer. This recipe was one of my very first bakes a few months back (before I joined here), but did NOT turn out well. This time, I minded my water temperature and kneading time, thanks to your suggestions from the Malt Loaf bake I posted recently. HUGE difference! Absolutely delicious, with a paper thin, crackly crust. Very pleased with this. Thank you again for your tips!

 

 

[Dave R]

11 hours ago, ElsieD said:

 

Thank you.  I'm going to make these but will use all bread flour.  Someone I live with does not like whole wheat flour in anything.  The instructions are cleat except for "turning at 30 minutes".  Do you mean "fold"?

 

Yes, sorry. It's an older term I sometimes use. Now you can see what my wife was talking about!

 

With all bread flour you may need a bit less liquid. Just  hold back a little water during the mix. You want a soft dough but not sticky.

 

Dave

[Ann_T]

By reducing the hydration in my regular baguette recipe from 70/72% down to 65%,

I can use the same batch to bake four baguettes and a couple of pizzas.

Dough made Tuesday, Pizzas baked Wednesday and baguettes baked Thursday night

and sliced this morning for breakfast.

[Dave R]

1 hour ago, Ann_T said:

By reducing the hydration in my regular baguette recipe from 70/72% down to 65%,

I can use the same batch to bake four baguettes and a couple of pizzas.

 

@Ann_T Beautiful! You've obviously got your process down. They look just perfect!

 

I found that perfecting a  baguette is like trying to perfect a croissant, which I had to stop when my wife had to start taking cholesterol meds.

 

Dave

[Ann_T]

On 4/22/2022 at 7:57 AM, Dave R said:

@Ann_T Beautiful! You've obviously got your process down. They look just perfect!

Thanks @Dave R

[Dave R]

Even though I have favorite bread baking authors, (Jjeffrey Hamelman, Maggie Glezer and Ciril Hitz) I rarely use a recipe from their books. I just stick with my own formulas. But last winter I picked up a used copy of "The Best Bread Ever" by Charles Van Over, in which he uses a food processor to make the dough. I've used a small processor for pizza dough but that's about the extent of it. I finally worked up my nerve to try someone else's recipe. " New York Chewy Bagels Food Processor Mixing Method" by Priscilla Martel (wife of Charles Van Over).

 

I actually used the recipe from the book because it has a cinnamon raisin version, but the recipe link is much the same. The only things different are 2 teaspoons of cinnamon and 1/2 cup of raisins. The only thing I changed was using 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. The one thing I should have changed was to up the instant yeast a bit to counter the negative action cinnamon has on yeast. I didn't get quite the oven spring I expected. They are still very tasty, even though they don't look perfect!

 

Dave

[rotuts]

@Dave R 

 

""   "The Best Bread Ever" by Charles Van Over ""

 

the best Bread Book Ever !

 

45 sec knead 

 

use any temp flour  ( my kitchen is very chilly in the winter )

 

the water temp   ( the variable )  gets you to 70 F ( or so , forgot the exact number )

 

and very little oxygen is added to the dough  

 

thus extends the ' life ' of the bread 

 

I used this book for quite so0me time

 

a long time ago .

 

 

[Dave R]

@rotuts the lack of oxidizing that first interested me, since I try to use my mixer only to incorporate ingredients and rely of stretch and fold to develop the dough. 

 

I've got a Breville 16 cup processor that will power thru just about anything, and did in this case, but I don't think it will replace my normal process. Still, an interesting book to have.

 

Dave

[rotuts]

A long long time ago , I got a new Cuisinart

 

as my previous model was stolen   I got the Cuisinart Prep-11-Plus

 

there was a 14 cup , but it was significantly more expensive.

 

these models were relatively new .

 

there was a DVD that came with the Cuisi.  

 

I watch it on a Tube-TV   ( 27 " ! )   as I was a bit bored one evening .

 

first part was slice and dice , w a French-like person , can't recall

\

the second segment , and the third segment was Van Over  demonstrating his

 

technique.   as Ive said , w a wood stove in the main room , in the fall winter my kitchen

 

was  '' chilly ''   and this technique offered a solution  

 

I baked 6 loafs every Saturday , and mixed up the dough for 6 more

 

that would retard in the refrigerator , after a first rising.

 

here they ( were ) 

 

based on my lack of feel for the final rise , the crumb was not ' air-ey '

 

but the flavor , toasted for  cut thinly for a sandwich was devine.  these had added 

 

home made and maintained sourdough starter.

 

I kept 3 loaves , and gave three away .  I left the bread @ room temp 

 

and the cut bread was placed on top of one sheet of plastic wrap

 

just the cut dside down , and then in a paper grocery bag.

 

my three loafs stayed fresh until the end of the week.

[lindag]

57 minutes ago, Dave R said:

Even though I have favorite bread baking authors, (Jjeffrey Hamelman, Maggie Glezer and Ciril Hitz) I rarely use a recipe from their books. I just stick with my own formulas. But last winter I picked up a used copy of "The Best Bread Ever" by Charles Van Over, in which he uses a food processor to make the dough. I've used a small processor for pizza dough but that's about the extent of it. I finally worked up my nerve to try someone else's recipe. " New York Chewy Bagels Food Processor Mixing Method" by Priscilla Martel (wife of Charles Van Over).

 

I actually used the recipe from the book because it has a cinnamon raisin version, but the recipe link is much the same. The only things different are 2 teaspoons of cinnamon and 1/2 cup of raisins. The only thing I changed was using 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. The one thing I should have changed was to up the instant yeast a bit to counter the negative action cinnamon has on yeast. I didn't get quite the oven spring I expected. They are still very tasty, even though they don't look perfect!

 

Dave

 

Thanks for the recommendation, I just ordered my own copy.

And, thanks to @blue_dolphinfor the Thriftboopks recommendation too!

[Dave R]

@rotuts that's really interesting that Van Over was doing the demo. I some how missed the entire food processor bread baking phase. I guess lack of internet may have caused it. And now I find I've also missed baking in Dutch ovens. Might be time to trade in my flip phone!

 

Those loaves look great, even though they've been eaten long ago!

 

Dave

 

[rotuts]

@Dave R  

 

I think V.O. contribution was both the food processor 

 

and the combining of temps ( flour + water = a constant , foods processor based )

 

different food processors had a different total temp 

 

but the ease of use , simple clean up etc

 

very very nice.

 

[ElsieD]

2 hours ago, rotuts said:

@Dave R  

 

I think V.O. contribution was both the food processor 

 

and the combining of temps ( flour + water = a constant , foods processor based )

 

different food processors had a different total temp 

 

but the ease of use , simple clean up etc

 

very very nice.

 

 

So do you just put everything in a food processor, turn it on for 45 seconds and, voila!  your dough is ready?

[Dave R]

@ElsieD Basically, yes. They use a boiled down version of calculating your friction factor. The book goes into more detail but in the recipe link it's made pretty simple. " adjust the water temperature so that the combined temperature of the flour and the water is the base temperature for your food processor, between 130°F and 150°F. (We have found that 145°F works well for most machines.) With the machine running, pour all the water through the feed tube. Process for a total of 45 seconds."

 

Dave

Edited April 23, 2022 by Dave R
@ (log)

[blue_dolphin]

4 hours ago, Dave R said:

Even though I have favorite bread baking authors, (Jjeffrey Hamelman, Maggie Glezer and Ciril Hitz) I rarely use a recipe from their books. I just stick with my own formulas. But last winter I picked up a used copy of "The Best Bread Ever" by Charles Van Over, in which he uses a food processor to make the dough. I've used a small processor for pizza dough but that's about the extent of it. I finally worked up my nerve to try someone else's recipe. " New York Chewy Bagels Food Processor Mixing Method" by Priscilla Martel (wife of Charles Van Over).

 

I actually used the recipe from the book because it has a cinnamon raisin version, but the recipe link is much the same. The only things different are 2 teaspoons of cinnamon and 1/2 cup of raisins. The only thing I changed was using 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. The one thing I should have changed was to up the instant yeast a bit to counter the negative action cinnamon has on yeast. I didn't get quite the oven spring I expected. They are still very tasty, even though they don't look perfect!

 

Dave

Great looking bagels, @Dave R!  I know Stella Parks (aka Brave Tart) has a food processor bagel recipe over on Serious Eats. I was interested in trying that mixing method but not her exact recipe so it's good to know that you had good results with it.  I've been using my KitchenAid mixer but with the smallish (6 bagel) recipes in Cathy Barrow's bagel book, the dough hook doesn't really engage the dough as well as I think it should.  It kind of nudges it around the bowl and only really flings it about every now and again.  I'll try the processor next  batch!

 

[Dave R]

@blue_dolphin thanks for that link. I've got it up on my computer now.

 

The food processor really is a good way to make the smaller batches of low hydration doughs. Bagel dough was what killed the last KitchenAid I owned in the late'90s.

 

I'm going to give that recipe you linked a serious read. I've never done a dough using pregelatinizing of the flour. Many years ago I made lots of Choux pastry but that's the extent of my flour cooking. Thanks!

 

Dave

 

[JoNorvelleWalker]

1 hour ago, Dave R said:

@blue_dolphin thanks for that link. I've got it up on my computer now.

 

The food processor really is a good way to make the smaller batches of low hydration doughs. Bagel dough was what killed the last KitchenAid I owned in the late'90s.

 

I'm going to give that recipe you linked a serious read. I've never done a dough using pregelatinizing of the flour. Many years ago I made lots of Choux pastry but that's the extent of my flour cooking. Thanks!

 

Dave

 

 

If you have one, you might try a chamber vacuum sealer for mixing small batches of bread.

 

Not quite the same as bread dough, granted, but I do use my Cuisinart for making dough for egg pasta.

 

[Dave R]

When I first started out with this rye bread recipe I wanted it to be 50/50 bread flour and dark rye. It's a yeasted loaf, so to get the right acidity for our tastes I added a whole wheat poolish/starter which is cold fermented overnight. The finished dough is also bulk cold fermented overnight. It's a nice heavy rye, with some caraway to fit family tastes. The final percentages ended up being bread flour 52.17%, dark rye 34.78% and whole wheat 13.4%. A little screwy but just how it worked out.

 

Dave

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 24, 2022 by Dave R
picture (log)

[PatrickT]

First sourdough loaf - basil coriander. A bit disappointed in the crumb structure, but I'll keep working on it. Forgot how much I love that sourdough tang!

 

 

[Ann_T]

@Dave R, I haven't made rye bread recently.  Yours looks amazing.   I like that you baked it in a pan.  I usually just bake on a stone.  I'll do a pan version next time.

@rotuts, I love the look of your loaves.  

 

Started a biga on Saturday morning before leaving for work and made the dough that night.  Left in the fridge until yesterday afternoon.

Divided into dough for pizza and enough leftover to make four baguettes.

Sliced this morning for breakfast.

Makes great toast. 

 

Really liking the 65% hydration for both the pizza and the baguettes.

 

 

[Dave R]

@Ann_T another bake well done! You obviously have your shaping perfected.

 

The rye pan loaf was what started me baking in pans at the end of last year. Prior to that all my daily loaves were baked on my stone. I baked without steam, just a light spritz before going into the oven. The crust was nice and crisp, something the pan loaves don't quite achieve, although they do have a crackle of their own.

 

Here's a picture from last year of one of my basic loaves baked on a stone. I will be resizing this formula for my next pan loaves. A mix of bread, ww and rye flour with some added wheat germ.

 

Dave

[lindag]

8 minutes ago, Dave R said:

@Ann_T another bake well done! You obviously have your shaping perfected.

 

The rye pan loaf was what started me baking in pans at the end of last year. Prior to that all my daily loaves were baked on my stone. I baked without steam, just a light spritz before going into the oven. The crust was nice and crisp, something the pan loaves don't quite achieve, although they do have a crackle of their own.

 

Here's a picture from last year of one of my basic loaves baked on a stone. I will be resizing this formula for my next pan loaves. A mix of bread, ww and rye flour with some added wheat germ.

 

Dave

Nice rise.

[Ann_T]

Last night's bread was made from a biga that I started on Monday and the dough Tuesday morning.

It was left it in the fridge until Thursday and then divided into a number of balls and back into the fridge.

Moe and I had pizza on Friday night and Matt made himself a pizza.

Last night I used one of the balls to make two "pita" baked in the Ooni

and I had one slightly large ball that I shaped into a small boule and baked last night in the CSO.

Sliced this morning. I love this  dough. Even after being in the fridge since Tuesday, it still makes wonderful bread.

 

[Dave R]

I know we've all probably bought something on impulse that we weren't sure what we needed it for. This was just for fun. I bought a USA Pullman pan because it was priced under $30 and I couldn't resist. I've had no experience with this kind of pan.

 

I was going to try King Arthur's Icelandic Rye Bread but no milk, other than powdered was on hand (I'll get some later). So I decided to wing it with my go to bun/roll recipe that I used on the previous page just to try the pan. All I added was about a tablespoon and a half of powdered milk. This is about a 60% bread flour and 40% whole wheat recipe with a crispy crust, so it couldn't really be called a Pain de Mie. Total flour is 16oz and I could have probably adjusted it up a little to get a completely square loaf. It did turn out to be pretty tasty though. Pre-sliced cheese would probably be perfect for it!

 

Dave