Baking with Myhrvold's "Modernist Bread: The Art and Science"

[Chris Hennes]

Yeah, I didn't read that instruction (in either place... honestly it didn't occur to me to read the instructions for a loaf pan!), I've got the same pans, and I definitely don't have any release problems (or at least I haven't so far).

[Anna N]

 

 The sandwich bread crumb.  I think this will be my sandwich bread recipe going forward.  There is nothing fancy about it. It is exactly what a  sandwich bread should be in my not very humble opinion. 

[Modernist Cuisine Team]

On 11/19/2017 at 9:46 AM, Anna N said:

Much better.  Far from perfect. I would say it compares favourably with the illustration on page 4-311 of MB even though their’s has a better swirl!   They had lots more time to practice. 

 

 Edited to add: I can skip the electron microscope but I sure would like x-ray eyes to see inside some of these breads without cutting into them!  

 

 @Anna N This bread looks delicious! If you're still looking to create a bigger swirl, we recommend rolling the dough out so that it's thinner and longer as well as spreading the cinnamon mixture more thinly.  

[Modernist Cuisine Team]

On 11/20/2017 at 8:13 AM, Anna N said:

We had an opportunity to compare notes about our baking and discovered that we were both amused or perplexed by the method of dissolving the salt into some of the water that would be used for hydration. We both came to the same conclusion that the amount of salt and the amount of water was such that that salt would never dissolve.  We had both tried stirring, shaking, heating etc. but there is far too much salt compared to the water to allow a solution to form. The best you can get is a slurry. If anyone can tell me different I’m excited to know. 

 

We also reached the conclusion based on my appearance that a black chef’s coat even one with an eG type logo on it from an eG type workshop long ago (thanks @gfron1) was not the most practical wear if you were going to be baking bread. 

 

@Anna N We love seeing all of your bread! 

 

Try to mix and swirl the salt as best as possible, however the most important thing is that the salt disperses as efficiently and evenly as possible throughout the dough even if it does not dissolve completely in the water. You can also try grinding the salt very finely in a coffee grinder. This will make for a fine particle size that dissolves easily in water.

[rotuts]

Cheers

 

MCT

 

Cheers you are folioing this thead !

 

and yes I mean it !

 

now about that Index .....

 

[Modernist Cuisine Team]

On 11/12/2017 at 6:48 AM, Chris Hennes said:

I ignored the part about sealing the bag. I ran the vacuum cycle five times, then took the dough out of the bag. It was done.

 Thanks for weighing in on this @Chris Hennes. You're correct! You don't have to seal the bag for this technique to work. Most machines will automatically seal the bag just after the vacuum is pulled, but the sealing of the bag in and of itself is not important. What matters most is the vacuum. 

[Anna N]

14 minutes ago, Modernist Cuisine Team said:

We love seeing all of your bread! 

 

 Thank you! So glad you are chiming in and trying to answer our questions and puzzlements!  

[Chris Hennes]

Finally, an action shot of the buns (BBQ pork smoked and then sous vide with a Carolina-style mustard sauce):

[Anna N]

 I made up the dough for the A-Plus baguette/batard yesterday.  As the time apprached for me to shape it, I knew I was completely out of battery power!  I transferred it to a suitable container and threw it into the fridge, had a bite to eat and went off to bed. 

 

This morning I let the dough warm up for an hour or so on the counter before proceeding with the recipe. 

 

I baked the loaves sequentially. 

 

 

 Loaf number one emerged from the oven looking quite attractive but with a very soft crust. 

 

 

 Loaf number two was baked at least five minutes longer but more importantly it spent a final five minutes in the oven with the door propped open just a smidge. It has a nice crusty crust. 

 

 Both were baked in my regular (GE Profile) with two cups of ice tossed onto the floor of the oven. 

 

 

 

 

[Chris Hennes]

@Anna N -- have you tasted it yet? I've got the ingredients for that one, but haven't gotten around to making it. I was planning on making this a rye weekend, but maybe I can squeeze in a baguette or three  .

[Anna N]

Not yet.  Soon. 

 

 Here is the crumb. It’s perfectly good I’m just not detecting any toasted corn flour or anything different. That could well be my very poorly trained palate but nothing jumps out at me. 

Edited December 1, 2017 by Anna N (log)

[Chris Hennes]

2 hours ago, Anna N said:

It’s perfectly good I’m just not detecting any toasted corn flour or anything different. That could well be my very poorly trained palate but nothing jumps out at me.

I think that's OK, I'm not sure if you are really supposed to taste the corn directly, or if it just tweaks the base flavor a bit. The Modernist team is all about perfection, after all, even if that means tiny incremental changes over a baseline. Maybe I'll try to do a side-by-side this weekend. I certainly wouldn't mind having another boule of that basic French lean around to snack on while I'm baking all those ryes.

[Anna N]

Just now, Chris Hennes said:

I think that's OK, I'm not sure if you are really supposed to taste the corn directly, or if it just tweaks the base flavor a bit. The Modernist team is all about perfection, after all, even if that means tiny incremental changes over a baseline. Maybe I'll try to do a side-by-side this weekend. I certainly wouldn't mind having another boule of that basic French lean around to snack on while I'm baking all those ryes.

Go for it. Surprisingly both crusts are now flabby. 

[Chris Hennes]

2 minutes ago, Anna N said:

Surprisingly both crusts are now flabby.

That just means you need to eat it faster  

[Anna N]

38 minutes ago, Chris Hennes said:

That just means you need to eat it faster  

Grand child just hauled one home.  I explained about the crust, “That’s OK Nana. I love soft bread “.   Child would sell her soul for a crust of  bread -  soft or otherwise.  

[Anna N]

 

500 g sourdough with a long cold proof.  Baked in the Cuisinart steam oven, CSO, on a kiln shelf. Oven was initially  preheated on the convection bake function at 450° for a little over 30 minutes. Infrared reading of kiln shelf was 464°F. Bread was baked on bread cycle for 30 minutes with the last five minutes done with the door cracked just a little. 

The crust right now is wonderfully crunchy. However the loaf seems  to me to be puny and heavy.  I am anxious to see the crust. 

There is another 500 g of dough still in the refrigerator and I’m debating whether I will cook it in the CSO or in the big oven.

 

 

 The second loaf is now out of the oven (GE Profile).  Apparently my brain had gone back to bed. Forgot to throw any ice into the oven so no steam. 

 

 Sooner or later I will get all the steps right.  Still all things considered the one from the big oven still seems to have more volume than the one from the CSO despite the lack of any steam. 

 

 

Edited December 2, 2017 by Anna N
Added a photo of second loaf and some additional text (log)

[Anna N]

On 11/30/2017 at 11:47 AM, Chris Hennes said:

Yeah, I didn't read that instruction (in either place... honestly it didn't occur to me to read the instructions for a loaf pan!), I've got the same pans, and I definitely don't have any release problems (or at least I haven't so far).

So. On page 77 of the kitchen manual:

 

“If your pan is non-stick, we recommend using a light layer of cooking spray but no flour coating or parchment paper”. 

 

 Makes more sense!  

[Anna N]

 

The sourdough crumb from the loaf that was baked in the Cuisinart steam oven (CSO). I am eating the heel now and I do believe woman can live on bread alone!   It has yet to develop any real sourness but the crust is the texture that I dream of and the crumb is nothing to sneeze at.  Must package the rest of it up else I will eat the whole loaf. 

[Kerry Beal]

5 hours ago, Anna N said:

 

500 g sourdough with a long cold proof.  Baked in the Cuisinart steam oven, CSO, on a kiln shelf. Oven was initially  preheated on the convection bake function at 450° for a little over 30 minutes. Infrared reading of kiln shelf was 464°F. Bread was baked on bread cycle for 30 minutes with the last five minutes done with the door cracked just a little. 

The crust right now is wonderfully crunchy. However the loaf seems  to me to be puny and heavy.  I am anxious to see the crust. 

There is another 500 g of dough still in the refrigerator and I’m debating whether I will cook it in the CSO or in the big oven.

 

 

 The second loaf is now out of the oven (GE Profile).  Apparently my brain had gone back to bed. Forgot to throw any ice into the oven so no steam. 

 

 Sooner or later I will get all the steps right.  Still all things considered the one from the big oven still seems to have more volume than the one from the CSO despite the lack of any steam. 

 

 

 

Got a picture of the bottom from the kiln shelf version? Interested in comparing to the metal shelf.

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, Kerry Beal said:

Got a picture of the bottom from the kiln shelf version? Interested in comparing to the metal shelf.

 

 Nothing really remarkable about the bottom.  It was in a well floured couche. 

[Kerry Beal]

1 hour ago, Anna N said:

 

 Nothing really remarkable about the bottom.  It was in a well floured couche. 

I find the metal is inclined to make it too dark - so this is a good thing.

 

 

[Anna N]

I have a question for you people who have read the books from cover to cover. You have right?

 

Have you come across an explanation of what constitutes “medium gluten development”?

 

 For my own purposes I have determined that it is when the dough has attained some extensibility but will not pass the window pane test. Anyone?

Edited December 2, 2017 by Anna N
To fix some grammar and other stuff (log)

[Chris Hennes]

1 minute ago, Anna N said:

For my own purposes I have determined that it is when the dough has attained some extensibility but will not pass the window pane test. Anyone?

That's the standard I'm using, too.

[Chris Hennes]

Today's projects have kicked off:

 

From left to right: 100% High Rye (Modernist Variant), French lean bread, A+ French lean bread, and Farmer's Bread (Modernist Variant)

 

The High Rye is a 100% rye bread leavened with both a rye levain and commercial yeast. The A+ French bread is similar to the standard French lean but includes a small amount of mature levain as well as a bit of corn flour, half toasted and half untoasted. The Farmer's bread is a rye-flavored wheat bread that includes both a wheat and a rye levain with 80% wheat and 20% dark rye flours (no commercial yeast). 

[Smithy]

The few sourdough recipes I've seen discussed have included commercial yeast.  Do they explain why?  I thought that was considered cheating.