Elsie_iu's blog

 It’s Chinese New Year again! Traditional celebration food is usually either heavy in sugar or fat… Why not celebrate it with healthy Chinese-New-Year-inspired SD bread instead? :)

Triple Red Grains Sourdough

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

90g       30%       Whole red fife wheat flour

90g       30%       Whole spelt flour

45g       15%       Red quinoa flour

45g       15%       Germinated red rice flour

30g       10%       Sprouted spelt flour

For leaven:

20g       6.67%       Starter

20g       6.67%       Bran sifted from dough flour

20g       6.67%       Water

For dough:

280g      93.3%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

100g      33.3%       Whey

166g      55.3%       Water

60g            20%       Leaven

9g                3%       Vital Wheat Gluten

5g           1.67%       Salt

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310g        100%       Whole grain

296g       95.5%       Total hydration

Sift out the bran from dough flour, reserve 20 g for the leaven. Soak the rest (I got 22g) in equal amount of whey taken from dough ingredients.

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 2 hours (23.5°C).

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 15 minutes. Fold in the salt and ferment for 4 hours 15 minutes longer.

Preshape the dough and let it rest for 15 minutes. Shape the dough then put in into a banneton. Retard for 14 hours.

Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F. Score and spritz the dough then bake straight from the fridge at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

In the past few bakes, I’ve tried to omit vital wheat gluten from the formula. Since the amount of gluten-free flour is relatively large this time, I reincorporated it into the formula. As I was working with the dough, I noticed a significant improvement in the dough structure when compared with my other recent bakes. I therefore feel that it’s wise to continue using in it in the future.

The crumb is not widely open but it’s pretty moist and tender. This bread is sweet, with hints of coconut taste coming from the germinated red rice. To my surprise, it’s also quite tangy, which I can only guess is due to the warmer weather we’re having currently.

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Pan-grilled honey garlic pork chop

Spicy cabbages shiitake mushrooms pork dumplings

Smoked paprika white wine linguine with pan-grilled baby cuttlefish

Happy Chinese New Year!

I have very little experience working with white flour. There’re two reasons why I used so much white flour in this bake. The first is to stay true to the community bake’s formula. The second is to suit the palate of most people as I’ll give this loaf away to my aunts.

25% Spelt Multi-Seeds Sourdough

For dough:

225g        75%       Bread flour

75g          25%       Freshly milled spelt flour

239g     79.7%       Water

30g          10%       Active starter (half whole rye, half whole wheat)

5g         1.67%       Salt

Add-ins:

21g         7%       Toasted white sesame seeds

21g         7%       Toasted black sesame seeds

21g         7%       Toasted sunflower seeds

21g         7%       Toasted golden flaxseeds

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90g         28.6%       Whole grain

315g       100%        Total flour

254g       80.6%       Total hydration

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 30 minutes. Fold in the salt and mix by the dough using Rubaud method for 5 minutes. Ferment for 30 minutes. Fold in the add-ins and proof for 6 hours longer (22.5°C).

Preshape the dough and let it rest for 15 minutes. Shape the dough then put in into a banneton. Retard for 10 hours.

Before retarding

After retarding

Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F. Score and spritz the dough then bake straight from the fridge at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 203°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

Originally, I mixed 233g of water with the flour. However, the dough felt very stiff after the seeds were added. Therefore, I tried to put 6g more water into the dough by spraying water on top of the dough, with not much success. That’s why I failed to distribute the seeds evenly and some parts of the dough were stiffer than the others.

Though there was some spring, the dough tended to spread in the oven. It also has no ear so I sliced the bread rather soon to mask this flaw :) Since I plan to give the entire loaf away, I didn’t get to taste it.

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My second ciabatta (totally unplanned and almost hands-off). 15% whole gains (half rye, half white wheat) This Looks better…

But this definitely Tastes superior. Your choice. I always pick this one :) 60% whole wheat (half sprouted & half red half white), 10% each barley and germinated red rice, 20% spelt 

Smoked salmon, olive cilantro pesto, red onions topped scrambled eggs and toasted ciabatta

Almond moong dal beetroot hummus & falafels on toasted naan

German crispy-skinned cured pork knuckle, pesto sautéed broccoli & mushrooms, home fermented sauerkraut, beetroot hummus and onions rice pilaf

This loaf was partly inspired by the tempering technique in Indian cooking. The aroma of spices blooming in hot oil is notably different from that of dry toasting spices. This makes sense: we all know the flavor of spices is oil-soluble :)

Spiced Walnuts SD with 50% Sprouted White Wheat & Rye

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

120g      40%       Whole white wheat flour

90g        30%       Sprouted white wheat flour

60g        20%       Sprouted rye flour

30g        10%       Whole rye flour

For leaven:

16g       5.33%       Starter

32g       10.7%       Bran sifted from dough flour

32g       10.7%       Water

For dough:

268g      89.3%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

150g         50%       Whey

88g        29.3%       Water

80g        26.7%       Leaven

5g          1.67%       Salt

Add-ins:

-g              -%        Mixed whole spices (1 tsp coriander seeds, 1/2 tsp each of cumin seeds and black peppercorns)

30g         10%       Raw walnuts

-g              -%       1/2 tsp cooking fat (I used ghee)

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308g        100%       Whole grain

278g       90.3%       Total hydration

Sift out the bran from dough flour, reserve 32 g for the leaven. Soak the rest, if any, in equal amount of whey taken from dough ingredients.

Prepare the ingredients under add-ins. Heat the fat of choice in a pan, put in the whole spices when it is warm-hot. When they start to smell fragrant, turn the heat to low and mix the raw walnuts in. Keep on stirring the mixture until the walnuts are toasted. Set the mixture aside until needed.

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 4.5 hours (21°C).

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 20 minutes. Fold in the salt and ferment for 20 minutes. Knead in the add-ins and proof for 3 hours 20 minutes longer.

Preshape the dough and let it rest for 40 minutes. Shape the dough then put in into a banneton. Retard for 10 hours.

Remove the dough from the fridge and let it warm up for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F. Score and spritz the dough then bake at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

I got fair oven-spring for this loaf and it didn’t spread much in the oven. This was probably due to the addition of whole rye, which is known to be less prone to spreading. The crust is quite crispy and browned pretty well, likely attributed to the sugar from the sprouted grains.

Once again, I cut into the loaf way earlier than I should… Can you blame me though? I’m not one who can resist the aroma of toasty walnuts, warming spices and malty grains, well, at least not for long. Sweetness dominates the flavor at the beginning, yet sourness slowly emerges as one keeps swallowing. I prefer to use whole spices rather than ground spices since I can keep getting surprising pops of flavors with different bites this way.

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Sichuan fish fillets & silken tofu, Pressure cooked pork knuckle & peanuts in a Chinese fermented red bean curd sauce, and oyster sauce braised enoki mushrooms served over choy sum

Homemade samosas, cholar dal, tandoori salmon & chicken drumsticks, sautéed spinach, red peppers and mushrooms, and spiced basmati rice

For those who have never tasted Morbier cheese, it’s a kind of cheese that turns very chewy when melted. Moreover, its taste is so lactic that it resembles yogurt a lot.

Arugula & Morbier Cheese SD with 30% Sprouted Kamut

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

150g      50%       Whole white wheat flour

90g        30%       Sprouted kamut flour

60g        20%       Pearl barley flour

For leaven:

14g       4.67%       Starter

38g       12.7%       Bran sifted from dough flour

38g       12.7%       Water

For dough:

262g      87.3%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

150g        50%        Whey

100g      33.3%       Water

90g           30%       Leaven

5g          1.67%       Salt

Add-ins:

90g        30%        Morbier cheese

15g          5%        Arugula

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247g        80.5%      Whole grain

307g        100%       Total flour

295g       96.1%       Total hydration

Sift out the bran from dough flour, reserve 38 g for the leaven. Soak the rest, if any, in equal amount of whey taken from dough ingredients.

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 4 hours (22°C).

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 20 minutes. Fold in the salt and ferment for 20 minutes. Knead in the add-ins and proof for 3 hours longer.

Preshape the dough and let it rest for 25 minutes. Shape the dough then put in into a banneton. Retard for 10 hours.

Remove the dough from the fridge and let it warm up for 45 minutes. Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F. Score and spritz the dough then bake at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

Like all bread with cheese, this bread has killer crispy crust as the fat oozing out from the cheese fried the dough. The crumb is dense, partly due to the low gluten content of the dough and partly because it was slightly under-proofed... I’m still beyond stocked at how dissimilar the dough performs in different seasons! 

This bread tastes very sweet so it goes well with the tangy cheese. The arugula adds both freshness and peppery spiciness, which in my opinion, are indispensable components of the loaf.

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Smoked Raclette stuffed chicken breast, homemade chorizo penne, roasted sweet potatoes and caramelized mushrooms & onions on beans & two sprouts

Ghee roasted baby cuttlefish with rava upma

Spicy caramelized lotus roots, vinegary bean sprouts & black fungus and YW kimchi dumplings

Anchovies and caperberries linguine with garlicky shrimps

30% rye SD bagels

 I have kept this bread simple as half of it was give away to some friends.

30% Toasted Sprouted Black Quinoa Sourdough

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

180g      60%       Whole white wheat flour

90g        30%       Toasted sprouted black quinoa flour

30g        10%       Sprouted white wheat flour

For leaven:

14g       4.67%       Starter

43g       14.3%       Bran sifted from dough flour

43g       14.3%       Water

For dough:

257g      85.7%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

257g      85.7%       Water

100g      33.3%       Leaven

5g          1.67%       Salt

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307g       100%       Whole grain

307g       100%       Total hydration

Sift out the bran from dough flour, reserve 43 g for the leaven. Soak the rest, if any, in equal amount of water taken from dough ingredients.

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 4.5 hours (22°C).

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 20 minutes. Fold in the salt and ferment for 2 hour 25 minutes longer.

Preshape the dough and let it rest for 15 minutes. Shape the dough then put in into a banneton. Retard for 8 hours.

Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F. Score and spritz the dough then bake straight from the fridge at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

This loaf was under-proofed because it took longer than I expected to ferment. It was already 12 a.m. and I was not willing to stay up late. Therefore, the texture of the loaf suffers: the crumb is sticky and relatively close.  

The taste is pleasant though. Sprouted black quinoa never let me down and this time is no exception. This bread is very sweet and truly nutty (I don’t use it to describe every kind of whole grain like many do). It is not sour, which was probably because of the cooler temperature. 

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Beef Rendang and mixed vegetables with sweet & tangy peanut sauce 

Soba noodles salad with homemade fishcakes…But where’re the noodles? :)

Black pepper spiced pork and peppers tacos with Gorgonzola

Gorgonzola and scallions white wheat pancakes. Don’t judge. They’re good.

Mexican homemade chorizo omelette with smoky roasted green peppers sauce and refried beans

Sprouted White Wheat Buckwheat Barley SD

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

150g      50%       Whole white wheat flour

90g        30%       Sprouted white wheat flour

30g        10%       Toasted buckwheat flour

30g        10%       Toasted pearl barley flour

For leaven:

20g       6.67%       Starter

30g          10%       Bran sifted from dough flour

30g          10%       Water

For dough:

270g         90%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

100g      33.3%       Whey

143g      47.7%       Water

80g        26.7%       Leaven

5g          1.67%       Salt

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280g       90.3%       Whole grain

310g       100%        Total flour

283g       91.3%       Total hydration

Sift out the bran from dough flour, reserve 30 g for the leaven. Soak the rest, if any, in equal amount of whey taken from dough ingredients.

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 5.5 hours (18.5°C).

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 20 minutes. Fold in the salt and ferment for 4 hour 10 minutes longer.

Preshape the dough and let it rest for 15 minutes. Shape the dough then put in into a banneton. Retard for 8 hours.

Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F. Remove the dough from the oven and let it warm up for 40 minutes. Score and spritz the dough then bake at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

As the temperature of my home dropped to 18.5°C/65.3°F, the fermentation time of the dough more than doubled. Though I tried to feel the dough rather than relying on the clock, I still under-proofed the dough slightly…

This bread is quite robust in flavor. You can definitely tell the presence of the toasted buckwheat despite the small percentage of it used. The sweetness and toastiness are more pronounced than the sourness, thanks to the toasted barley and buckwheat, and sprouted white wheat.

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Fermented red beancurd marinated ribs & potatoes rice, Thai basil vermicelli with shrimps & lotus roots, and garlicky mixed veggies

Savory sweet potatoes soup

Mushroom Makhani linguine with toasted papads

Pan fried cabbage & home fermented daikon radish YW dumplings

Satay pork tacos

Taiwanese beef bowl with YW noodles

Time to retake the 100%-spelt-with-half-sprouted challenge! This time, I put in some add-ins instead of leaving it plain to change things up.

50% Sprouted Spelt Thai Basil Sun-Dried Tomatoes Walnuts SD

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

150g      50%       Whole spelt flour

150g      50%       Sprouted spelt flour

For leaven:

46g      15.3%       Water

46g      15.3%       Bran sifted from dough flour

8g        2.67%       Starter

For dough:

254g      84.7%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

100g      33.3%       Whey

100g      33.3%       Water

100g      33.3%       Leaven

5g          1.67%       Salt

Add-ins:

30g        10%        Toasted walnuts

30g        10%        Sun-dried tomatoes, re-hydrated

6g            2%        Fresh Thai basil, chopped into medium-sized pieces

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304g        100%       Whole grain

250g       82.2%       Total hydration

Sift out the bran from dough flour, reserve 46 g for the leaven. Soak the rest, if any, in equal amount of whey taken from dough ingredients.

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 4.5 hours.

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 20 minutes. Fold in the salt and ferment for 2 hour 10 minutes longer. Construct a set of stretch and fold at the 20, 40 and 60 minute mark. Knead in the add-ins at the 2^nd round of fold.

Preshape the dough and let it rest for 15 minutes. Shape the dough then put in into a banneton. Retard for 8 hours.

Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F. Score and spritz the dough then bake directly at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

Despite the absence of a perfect score, the dough sprang well in the oven and developed a shiny crust. I’m glad it didn’t under-proof like a few of my recent bakes did as the temperature dropped. The crumb is pretty open and springy with a nice chew.

With 50% sprouted spelt, I knew the taste wouldn’t let me down. It has a balance of maltiness, sweetness and tanginess. The walnuts, sun-dried tomatoes and Thai basil contribute toastiness, sourness and saltiness, and freshness to this loaf respectively.

I only noticed this now but does the red & green color combo kind of make this a Christmas celebration loaf? :)

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Garlic chives and shrimps sheng jian bao with YW dough + and how I deal with the leftover fillings

Tomatoes scrambled eggs: a dish my grandma made in my childhood

Lemongrass chicken with corns & tomatoes fried rice

Taiwanese five spice Thai basil squid with homemade SD semola noodles: an idea I stole from Lucy’s SD noodles

Happy Boxing Day!

Here is a simple formula that I have used after baking a few full-of-add-ins loaves.

30% Sprouted White Wheat 20% Barley Sourdough

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

150g      50%       Whole white wheat flour

90g        30%       Sprouted white wheat flour

60g        20%       Pearl barley flour

For leaven:

26g      8.67%       Starter

27g           9%       Bran sifted from dough flour

27g           9%       Water

For dough:

273g         91%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

100g      33.3%       Whey

140g      46.7%       Water

80g        26.7%       Leaven

9g               3%       Vital wheat gluten (can be omitted, I have used it because my white wheat has abnormally weak gluten)

5g           1.67%      Salt

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313g       100%       Total flour

253g      80.8%       Whole grain

280g      89.5%       Total hydration

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 2 hours.

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 20 minutes. Fold in the salt and ferment for 1 hour 55 minutes longer.

Preshape the dough and let rest for 15 minutes. Shape the dough then put in into a banneton. Retard for 16 hours.

The dough looked very under-proofed out of the fridge so I let it rise for 1 hour 45 minutes longer. Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F. Score and spritz the dough then bake at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

The dough had quite a low hydration level considering the grains used. I suspect this was due to the unusual performance of my white wheat berries. It also led to a slightly sticky and close crumb that should be more open if “normal” white wheat was used instead.

Onto the taste: this is the kind of all-round bread that probably suits the taste of most people. It is sweet and nutty from the sprouted wheat and barley but it is not as sugary as bread composed mainly of kamut and durum. It is also a bit tangy and yet it is hardly comparable to that you get with rye.

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100% white whole wheat YW flatbread

Shrimps and king oyster mushrooms fusilli in garlicky white wine cream sauce

Shahi soya chunks mixed vegetable curry with YW semola naan (those spongy, curry-soaked soya chunks are the best part!)

Pulled duck enchiladas with roasted peppers sauce and homemade 100% masa corn tortillas

Curried vermicelli mixed vegetables (daikon radishes, peppers and sugar snap peas) and mussels…Spicy in every possible way

No vital wheat gluten this time.

Porcini Mushrooms Cheddar 30% Germinated Red Rice SD

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

150g      50%       Whole spelt flour

90g        30%       Germinated red rice flour

60g        20%       Whole Red Fife wheat flour

For leaven:

10g       3.33%       Starter

40g       13.3%       Bran sifted from dough flour

40g       13.3%       Water

For dough:

260g     86.7%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

100g     33.3%       Whey

132g        44%       Water

90g          30%       Leaven

5g          1.67%      Salt

For porcini sautéed mushrooms:

60g        20%        Diced king oyster mushrooms

1 tsp         -%        Dried porcini mushrooms, powdered 

1/4 tsp      -%        Onion powder

1/8 tsp      -%        Salt

1/2 tsp      -%        Cooking fats (preferably ghee)

Add-ins:

-g               -%       All of the porcini sautéed mushrooms

50g      16.7%       Red mature cheddar cheese

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305g       100%       Whole grain

277g      90.8%       Total hydration

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 3.5 hours.

Make the porcini sautéed mushrooms. Heat the fats in a pan over medium heat, toss in the king oyster mushrooms and cook until caramelized. Put in the rest of the ingredients and mix until the mushrooms are well-coated in the powders. Deglaze the pan with a tablespoon of water or dry white wine. Remove them from the pan when the water/wine evaporates. Set aside until needed.

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 20 minutes. Fold in the salt and the add-ins. Ferment for 1 hour 55 minutes longer.

Shape the dough and put in into a banneton. Retard for 10 hours.

Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F.

Remove the dough from the fridge to warm up for 30 minutes. Score and spritz the dough then bake at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

I’m not sure whether the bread was under or over-proofed so any comment would be appreciated. Neglecting the unimpressive look, the bread tastes pretty nice. After all, how could it be otherwise when cheese, porcini mushrooms and red rice are combined?

Germinated red rice is a really flavorful grain: it not only contributes sweetness, but also alluring aroma to this bread. I highly recommend you to give it a try if you can get it on hand. I guess you can also sprout red rice from scratch but I haven’t tried it myself.

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A couple of stir-fries

Minced mutton okra dry curry with naan

Coconut raisins buns

Spiced pumpkin pancakes

Roasted spiced orange duck with Brownman’s killer gravy :)

Cilantro Goat Cheese & Spicy Salami SD

Dough flour (all freshly milled):

150g      50%       Whole red fife wheat flour

90g        30%       Sprouted durum flour

60g        20%       Sprouted kamut flour

For leaven:

10g      3.33%       Starter

35g      11.7%       Bran sifted from dough flour

35g      11.7%       Water

For dough:

265g     88.3%       Dough flour excluding flour for leaven

130g     33.3%       Whey

110g     36.7%       Water

80g       26.7%       Leaven

9g              3%       Vital wheat gluten

5g          1.67%      Salt

Add-ins:

60g       20%       Crumbled goat cheese

30g       10%       Spicy salami, thick cut and crisped (weight measured before crisping)

9g           3%       Cilantro, leaves only

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305g       100%       Whole grain

280g      91.8%       Total hydration

Combine all leaven ingredients and let sit until doubled, around 3.5 hours.

Roughly combine all dough ingredients except for the salt and let it ferment for 20 minutes. Fold in the add-ins. Ferment for 1 hour 40 minutes longer.

Shape the dough and put in into a banneton. Retard for 11 hours.

Preheat the oven at 250°C/482°F.

Remove the dough from the fridge to warm up for 30 minutes. Score and spritz the dough then bake at 250°C/482°F with steam for 15 minutes then without steam for 25 minutes more or until the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 208°F. Let cool for at least 2 hours before slicing.

This is a re-attempt of this formula as I over-hydrated the dough at the first try. I really like this combination that it seemed wasteful for not sharing it. Nevertheless, this time I struggled with determining when to stop the bulk so the dough was under-proofed... It had quite a lot of fragile goat cheese, which hindered me to get an idea of its degree of fermentation by poking it.

The flavor is nice though. You know for sure it’d be sweet with 50% sprouted grains, especially when they’re kamut and durum, the candies of grains. The red fife wheat contributes to some grape-like flavor, which ups the complexity by giving the bread a bit of tanginess. Since I love to serve goat cheese honey and black pepper, I thought it would go well with sweet grains and spicy salami. The cilantro is not optional: the bread would be a tad heavy without it.

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Garlicky linguine with cabbages, spicy salami and seared scallops

Semola milk buns

Mixed vegetables Thai green curry with capelin, Spicy chicken drumsticks, and sweet & sour slaw with toasted cashews

Homemade dumplings (pork, cilantro and water chestnuts) I know they look ugly…

1^st way: steamed

2^nd way: pan fried

Japanese hot pot (enoki beef rolls, leek, fried tofu skin, Konjac Noodles and carrots), homemade udon, sugar snap peas, pea shoots & king oyster mushrooms salad with shio koji yuzu dressing, pan fried dumplings and oven fried potato croquettes