The Fresh Loaf

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Laurel Kitchen's Feather Puff Bread

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Laurel Kitchen's Feather Puff Bread

I’ve always wanted to try Laurel’s Whole wheat buns, and last weekend I had the chance to try one. I’ve chosen the feather Puff recipe, which is an enriched 100% whole wheat bread from the book: (Laurel's Kitchen bread book: a guide to whole grain breadmaking). The recipe calls for  eggs, honey, butter, cottage cheese, and good deal of kneading (15 minutes kneading at least), and makes for wonderfully light buns (for whole wheat, that is!).I had no cottage cheese, and decided to do without it altogether.

The author does promise outrageous lightness of the bread when kneaded properly, and boy was she right!

Shaped Buns:

Fairly light buns!

Even, smooth texture:

A close look:

The crust is soft, and full of flavor, and the crumb is light, soft, yet dry. The eggs have contributed to the dryness of the crumb. The sesame seeds add a nutty flavor to the buns, and the bread has some pronounced sweet under tones, due to the Honey.

Although the recipe is a straight dough, with no preferment, it is an excellent healthy, and all purpose bread that is good with any food.

Khalid

Comments

nicodvb's picture
nicodvb

Khalid, you the buns look really feathery as you wrote. Did you try to substitute the egg-white with milk to see if the crumb comes out less dry? Did you use soft wheat or hard wheat?

  Nico

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Nice suggestion, the milk. I guess that the cottage cheese, as DA noted, would have retained some moisture. I didn't have any. As to the wheat, it is turkish regular wheat, and i think it is the winter one. The wheat. However is lighter in color than your typical hard winter. Frankly, i don't know what type it is, but it isn't soft.

Thanks, Nico!

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

nice buns for hamburgers or sandwiches.  I'm guessing, like you are, that the cottage cheese would have kept the dry away too.  Did you stick those sesame seeds on with some egg wash?  Nice baking Khalid.  Good to see you baking regularly again.

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Cottage cheese would have offset the dryness. I think that milk , or any fatty dairy would have achieved that. 

I have applied the sesame topping by inverting the smooth part of my rounded doughs into some water, and then on some sesame. They stick pretty much uniformly this way.

Thanks, DA!

Floydm's picture
Floydm

Those look great!

-Floyd

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Thanks,Floyd!

SylviaH's picture
SylviaH

I imagine these would be very enjoyable with just about anyway you choose to eat them.

Sylvia 

Mebake's picture
Mebake

True, Sylvia.

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Khalid,

These are very nice buns.  I like the sesame seeds on the top too :-).  

Laurel does seem to know how to achieve proper doughs through intensive kneading....she uses her hands....I cheat and use my machine and it still takes a long time!  She must have great upper body strength from all of her years of working with whole wheat flours only.

I thought eggs kept breads moist due to the fat in the yolk.  Is it the whites of the eggs that cause the dryness?

Thanks for the post.

Take Care,

Janet

Mebake's picture
Mebake

I find that a mixer could always use the assistance of our hands. Hand kneading alone is tedious! My back would cry foul even before the dough starts to form a window pain film.

Laurel's book is a great read. She inspires many.

nicodvb's picture
nicodvb

 Is it the whites of the eggs that cause the dryness?

Yes, Janet. Coagulating the proteins in egg whites squeeze water away.

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Thanks for this information.  I had checked in my resource books but hadn't run across the drying out part.  Seems like the yolk is the moisture and strengthening ingredient.  Explains why the challah loaf I baked recently dried out a lot more quickly than one of my regular loaves.  I had kinda suspected the eggs but now I know for sure.

Janet

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Very nice looking airy rolls Kahlid!  Like you I don't have any issues using my mixer when it is called for.  I think the cottage cheese or maybe some cream would have added some additional moisture, but either way they look perfect for sandwiches or a nice burger!

Regards,
Ian

Mebake's picture
Mebake

A mixer is an imperative requirement for us , back-ached patients.

I'll try with cottage cheese next time!

 

breadsong's picture
breadsong

Hi Khalid,
Your rolls look like they rose beautifully - tall enough to be sliced into three
(a 'triple-decker' bun? - that would make quite a sandwich)  :^)
That's how it looks to me, looking at the roll in front, in the 4th photo.
Your whole-grain bread baking is always gorgeous!
:^) breadsong

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Thanks, Breadsong! I actually never viewed them as triple decker, nor intended for them to be so, but you're right!

You are a keen observer! Always great to see your comments.

varda's picture
varda

Those buns look terrific.   You seem to have done really well with Laurel's book if my memory serves me right.  -Varda

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Thank you, Varda! 

Today, munching on the last bits of those lovely buns, i concluded that no matter how light, healthy yeasted whole grain breads can become, sourdough breads are always superior. It could be owed to the lack of a preferment, but i will definitely add a preferment (preferably a sourdough) to any of laurel's breads from now on.

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Hi Khalid,

I just saw your comment to Varda and felt compelled to jump in and say I totally agree with you!  I have converted all of the loaves that I bake from her book to sd and I let them ferment overnight in my refrigerator....Learned that trick from the posts txfarmer has done using Laurel's recipes - All turn out really well and last a lot longer if they aren't all eaten up within a couple of days.  :-)

If I hadn't found Peter Reinhart's WGB I never would have know how to use sd with any of my loaves because I never would have attempted making a desem the way she has it outlined in her book.  Too daunting of a process for a novice.  What I know now is that baking with sd is really quite simple and my fear of it was totally unfounded - as most fears are :-) 

Anyway, it is nice to know that you feel the same way about using sd instead of IY.

Take Care,

Janet

Mebake's picture
Mebake

I'll have to make the transition soon. I'm a sucker for sd breads now, thanks to TFL. What used to be heavenly delicious , homebaked wholewheat yeasted breads I used to enjoy alot, has now become much inferior to a similar sourdough version. 

 

 

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

I can't help but smile at this because that is what happened here.  All liked my initial yeasted breads baked ala Peter Reinhart's epoxy method but then I got hooked on sd and, initially, I got a few complaints about 'sour' but now, when I do make a yeasted whole grain bread - it sits around and doesn't get eaten and is stale within just 3 days....For some things the family does like it but overall they now seem to prefer the sd versions and so do most of the friends I bake for.

Janet