Oven spring

[lindag]

Since I've moved a couple of states farther East from my former place I've lost the oven spring I used to get and I can't figure out why.  The climate here is much drier than the last and it's the only difference I can figure.

My new oven is also electric so that's not different.  

Anyone here have experience with this?  I've been chasing the issue for ten years now.

[Smithy]

Might altitude be a factor?

[lindag]

Hadn't thought of that.  Big difference in altitude....about 3300 feet here as opposed to sea level there..  Didn't know that was a factor.

Edited August 17, 2017 by lindag (log)

[MelissaH]

Altitude definitely affects oven spring, and other yeasty issues. I'm assuming that your new home is higher than where you used to live.

What I've found, based on baking at my parents' home (altitude about 8600 feet, compared to where I used to live at "only" 5000 feet, or where I live now at about 300 feet):

*The lower air pressure at altitude means that things rise much faster. I got better flavor development letting bread dough rise till doubled, and then deflating and letting them double again. The extra rise took about the same amount of time at my folks' house as an ordinary rise-once at low altitude.

*Keep an eye on your dough. More than once, I've gotten carried away and had the dough rise to the point where it collapsed, in a shorter amount of time than I'd thought possible.

*Consider underproofing slightly.

*Be super super careful to keep dough covered. If it dries out and gets a skin, rise is inhibited. If it dries out quickly in the oven, your oven spring will be inhibited. With bread dough, I'd sometimes brush water directly on the surface of the dough just before I stuck it in the oven, to keep it from drying out too fast.

*The best source I've seen anywhere for other high-altitude baking tips is Nancy Purdy's book Pie in the Sky.

[Nancy in Pátzcuaro]

High altitude baking requires adjustments in several categories. First, leavening (yeast, baking powder/soda) should be reduced. I have lived (and currently do live) at 7200 feet for most of my adult life. A recipe may call for 1 tsp. baking soda, but when you adjust for altitude (at 7200) this becomes 1/4 tsp, a pretty significant difference. Same thing with yeast--cut back by 25% and see how your bread turns out. Salt inhibits yeast, so I've doubled the amount for my bread. The reason you want to do this is exactly what MelissaH said--lower air pressure lets the bread rise faster, so you need less yeast. Also, because higher altitude usually translate to dry conditions, you may need extra water or other liquid.

 

I'm mostly  a bread baker, but when I make banana bread, for instance, I've learned to read the chart for how much to cut back on leavening. I haven't made a cake in about a century, but I often do quick breads or pies. Obviously you can disregard all of this if you're making a pie.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Nancy in Pátzcuaro