This weekend, I baked another miche using the formula from the SFBI Artisan II workshop I attended last December. The SFBI formula and method can be found in my previous blog entry: This miche is a hit!

I amended the formula and methods as follows: For this bake, I used my usual sourdough feeding mix of 70% AP, 20% WW and 10% dark rye for the levain. The Final Dough was mixed with about 1/3 Central Milling "Organic Type-85 malted" flour and 2/3 WFM Organic AP, which is also a Central Milling flour. The SFBI method does not include an autolyse, but I did one. (Mixed the water, liquid levain, toasted wheat germ and flour and autolysed for an hour. Then mixed in the salt and proceeded.)

The bread flavor was the best yet, to my taste. I tasted it about 18 hours after baking. I had left it on the counter, wrapped in baker's linen overnight before slicing. This is the sourest miche I've baked. I like the sour tang and the flavor of the flour mix I used a lot.

SFBI Miche crumb

I also baked a couple loaves of one of the sourdoughs we made at the SFBI workshop. This one uses a firm levain fed at 12 hour intervals at 40% (by levain weight) of the final dough flour weight. After last week's trial of different methods of forming bâtards, I wanted to try the method portrayed in the KAF videos ( See Shaping) I think this method will become my method of choice.

The other loaf, which had an essentially identical appearance, was gifted to a neighbor before I took the photos.

SFBI "Sourdough with 2 feedings and 40% levain" crumb

This bread is meant to be a French-style pain au levain with little sour flavor. My wife's assessment sums it up pretty well: "It's just good bread."

Happy baking!

David

I don't know what I am doing hanging around a culinary activity that largely demands, and attracts, precision-oriented individuals and the sort of methodical, careful procedures that lend themselves to notekeeping. I am a right side person. I don't keep records of my bakes. I do measure my ingredients by weight but I often make arithmetic mistakes. I fail to take account of variations in temperature and humidity in my apartment. I share the drive for self improvement in baking, but I don't crave the utter perfection of some, unless it comes through my hands and experiential learning, rather than through scientific or quasi scientific trial.

I envy those with stable environmental conditions. I'm amazed by professional bakeries, which have their procedures right down to the number of revolutions of the mixer. But being a right side type, variation more than consistency inhabits my home bakery. I've learned to accept it.

Take Nancy Silverton's walnut bread, the best walnut bread I've ever had anywhere, by a mile. I've been baking it since the book was published and it usually turns out more or less the same. Yesterday, though, the dough wanted a good deal more water, and the dark rye flour seemed, somehow, to make up more of the dough than usual. For scheduling reasons, fermentation and proofing went on longer than they should have. Not by much, but by enough to make a difference. By the same token, Silverton calls for a fairly intensive mix, so taken all together, this is a loaf with a relatively close crumb, albeit one in which the cell structure should be evident throughout.

This is one the best specialty breads I've come across. The taste is very rich and complex, creamy and deep. The crust shatters all over the place. It's great out of hand, but it is spectacular with cheese. Highly recommended, even if you are a right sider, like me.

Seeded Rye Hot Soaker Boules.

Pain de Siègle style of loaf, baked in a Sandwich Tin

The local flour theme continues….

After 2 recent homebaking sessions, my wheat levain has now joined the rye sour; both are built from traditional, local and organic flours.

I made 3 boules using a seeded rye hot soaker with a wheat leaven, a very simple formula for a sandwich bread, leavened with rye sour, and using the Gilchesters Farmhouse in the final dough with an 85% hydration! [Think high extraction flour here!]   Oh! We had the family round today, so I also made pizzas with homemade tomato sauce with garden herbs, and a variety of lovely toppings [from: artichokes, capers, olives, anchovies, flaked salmon, fresh basil, buffalo mozzarella or creamy Lancashire cheese.   The dough was made with a stiff wheat levain [60% hydration, just 20% pre-fermented flour], overall dough hydration was just over 76%.   No photos, sorry; but I made them as 3 tray-baked, skinny bottomed, hence crisp based, pizzas.   I gave the finished dough about 8 hours slow proof in the fridge before rolling out the bases and docking them prior to topping and baking.

1. 1.    Seeded Rye Hot Soaker Boules

I built the leaven with 3 refreshments.   Final amounts of flour and water only are shown, but I started with 80g levain and refreshed from there.

I made 3 boules: 1 @ 1.5kg, 1 @700g and 1 @ 940g

Method:

• Make the hot soaker and final refreshment of the levain the night before, about 6 hours ahead of use if possible.   Cover and leave ambient.
• Mix the soaker with the flour and water needed for the final dough.   Once properly combined, leave covered on the bench for 1 hour.   Add the leaven and work up to a soft dough.   Brush the bench with a little olive oil, to allow the dough to rest and condition, covered.   Leave 3 hours, using S&F regularly to develop the dough.
• Scale and divide as desired and mould dough pieces round.   Brush the tops with a little water, and dip into a seed mixture.
• Prove upside down in Bannetons for 3 hours.
• Bake in a pre-heated oven with masonry, and utilise steam.
• Cool on wires

1. 2.    Pain de Siègle in a Sandwich Tin

A really simple formula.   The rye sourdough was given 2 refreshments over 2 days.   The only flour in the final dough was Gilchesters Organic Farmhouse flour, which I am informed has an extraction rate of c.85%, and is beautifully milled.   The hydration overall is an impressive 85%, and I was able to mould this loaf just before panning!   Not bad when the weight is over 1.5kg!

Again, figures for flour and water totals only are given for the sour.   The recipe made 1 large loaf in a Pullman Pan.

Method

• Use autolyse principle, to combine flour and water with the sour, and leave, covered, for ½  hour.
• Add the salt and mix the soft dough to strengthen.   I used a small hand mixer with hook attachments.
• Bulk prove for 1 hour
• Use scant flour to mould and shape the dough piece for panning.
• Prove for 3 hours
• Bake for 1½ to 1¾ hours at 190°C with steam.
• De-pan and cool on wires.

Further thoughts:

• Flavour and performance in these doughs are both significantly improved on the last attempts with all local flour.   The high ash content dictates generous hydration levels, but also necessitates a reduction in the amount of pre-fermented flour.   The wheat leaven needs to be less ripe than my previous effort.   This time, I had it about right.
• The leaven is stiff, as the flour is thirsty, so 60% is less than generous hydration, but it gives greater tolerance in terms of fermentation rates.   I suspect a leaven made with the Farmhouse flour may need 70% hydration, so fermentation may be over rapid to give the best dough quality possible.
• Photographs of all products, crust and crumb are attached; my apologies, they are not the best shots I've ever taken, it has to be said!

All good wishes

Andy