The Fresh Loaf

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PY's blog

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PY

this is actually a test loaf to obtain some feedback on the possibility of a mikro bakery. Only 10% wholewheat freshly ground with 5% levain bulk fermented at 26c for 6.5 hours with just a little tang. Decided not to go for a bold bake to cater for the asian palate n also a softer crumb.

what do you guys think?

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PY

here's a 30% spelt SD bread, leavened with 2% spent rye starter. 70% hydratio. Bulked for 12 hours At RT 27c. Minimal S&F for 1 min then rest 20 mins with 5 folds each time for 3 times. Final proof for 1 hour at RT 30c. Baked in DO.

Feeling refreshed after a day of basic bread making with Dean Brettschneider recently and hopeful for many more times to come!

 

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PY

trying something new. Vietnamese baguette. No sourdough. Fun to make and taste like a baguette although they don't necessarily look it! 

Looking forward to some char siu, pickled carrots, pate and cilantro banh mi for dinner. 

 

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PY

Happy new year everyone! Haven't posted any bread in awhile as there was nothing worth posting...until my first 2017 bake, which is perhaps the biggest oven spring that I have gotten.

It's a honey spelt bread with 70% hydration, 30% freshly milled spelt, 70% BF, 1.8% sea salt, 8% rye starter (100% hydration) and 8% honey. It was mixed by hand in the morning about 9.30 a.m. with 3 folds in intervals of 30 minutes and the 4th fold after 1 hour. Then it was left at room temp to bulk ferment until 4.30pm and subsequently put into the fridge until 7pm (just so it doesnt over ferment while i was out). When I cam back, the dough had already tripled in size and almost overflowing it's container.

So I had immediately tipped it out, loosely shaped and bench rested it for 30 minutes (at the same time the oven was pre-heated with steam) and it proofed for another 30 minutes after being shaped and put into the banneton. Baked at 230C for 20 minutes with steam and 28 minutes without steam at 220C.

Crumb was fluffy and something different from crumbs of the loaves that are retarded overnight. Nice and easy bread.

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PY

This is a "do nothing" bread introduced from facebook's perfect sourdough group, where apart from mixing (could help myself from playing with wet dough so i did 2 folds at 1 hour interval) and 1 fold and loosely shaping, nothing else is needed. I was intrigued so i try tried a small batch of dough to make ciabatta. 90% hydration. 2 hours bulk at RT and 15 hours bulk in the fridge. loosely shaped n baked with steam for 15 mins.

Easy enough and i got a monsters inc ciabatta. Happy halloween!

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PY

Back to basics. No improvisation this time. 75% freshly home ground wheat was used. Retarded overnight for 12 hours and baked directly from the fridge in a DO.

didnt do a good job transferring the dough into the DO. Otherwise i think oven spring could be better but mind you this is 75% whole wheat, so no complaints. Happy with the crumb

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PY

it's been awhile. was busy moving to a new home and now that i have kinda settled down at a new place, it was time to try out the new oven.

this is a sundried tomato sourdough adapted from tartine bread no 1. 80% bf 20% spelt, sundried tomatoes which had been rehydrated, 1.8% salt, 20% sourdough. 4 hours bulk at room temperature with turns every half hour for the first 2 hours, then another at 45 mins and lastly after 1 hour. Bulk cold retard for 12 hours. Shaped and bench rested 40 mins, final proof 80 mins.

would have preferred a bolder bake but forgot to open the lid until it was 25 mins left of baking time as i had guests visiting.

expected a more sour loaf but surprisingly wasn't tangy...perhaps spelt ferments differently from wheat and rye?

crumb is soft and nice.

 

 

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PY

This bread is adapted from Hamelman's formula for 40% Rye Caraway Sourdough. Formula was exactly the same save that I omitted the yeast and method was different.

While the formula called for the levain to be prepared for 14 to 16 hours, I had done only 10 hours as I live in the tropics and the temperature in the house was probably around 34 degree centigrade. Bulk fermentation was 2.5 hours which happened at night, so temperature in the house was probably around 29 degree centigrade by then. In between the 2.5 hours, I did 3 (or was it 4) folds. The formula did not call for an overnight retardation but I decided to do it anyway because I was going to stay up until past midnight to bake. So shaped the dough, put it in a banneton and in it went to the fridge for 10 hours.

The next morning, the dough went straight from the fridge to the oven with steam for the first 12 minutes and the rest of the bake time without steam. 

The result was better than I had hope for as with the longer bulk fermentation (2.5 hours instead of 1.5 hours the formula called for and in a hotter environment) and the overnight retard, it was expecting a loaf with alot of tang. But surprisingly, it wasn't overly tangy and I think it is just nice for my palate. Couldn't be happier.

Crumb shot below.

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PY

My misadventure in shaping my dough which was based on Hamelman's Vermont Sourdough with increased whole grain turned out looking like a bit of Ken Forkish's style. Not complaining.

Adapted from Hamelman's Vermont Sourdough with increased whole grain. Subbed the rye with freshly ground whole wheat. Instead of mixing with the mixer, I mixed by hand and gave the dough 3 additional folds that the recipe called for during bulk fermentation. I also added a cold bulk fermentation after the 3 folds, for about 4 hours, pre-shaped and benched and and final proofed for 1 hour after shaping.

Steam on for 15 minutes (wet towel on a hot baking pan) at 230C and then lowered to 220C for 48 minutes. Love the taste of freshly ground whole wheat which imparts a nice honey-ish taste.

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PY

Im kinda getting a hang of this bread and i love it. Mixed by hand instead of a mixer which the recipe called for and did 4 stretch and folds at 30 mins interval. After that into the fridge it went for 4.5 hours (because i had to go out). Recipe called for it to be shaped before being retarded, if desired. pre shaped straight from fridge, benched for 30 minutes. Final proof for 45 mins before loading into oven with towel steam.

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