The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Recent baking

Floydm's picture
Floydm

Recent baking

We've been having a lovely fall here in BC and I've been getting back into the baking routine.  These sourdough loaves were shared at our Thanksgiving dinner.

Then we had pizza night a couple of days later.

And last weekend I made a big honkin' miche with 5% rye flour, 10% whole wheat.  

I forgot to get a crumb shot, but it was pretty nice.

Of course, what would autumn be without apples and apple pie?  

Recently I learned a trick for making the crust: rather than trying to cube and cut the butter in with forks like the cookbooks always tell you to do, just toss the butter in the freezer for an hour or so before making the crust, then use a cheese grater to slice into little bitty bits.  It is so much easier and having the butter that cold to begin with makes the crust considerably flakier.

Happy baking!

-Floyd

Comments

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Beautiful looking breads and pie!  I never heard about that trick for the pie crust before.  Thanks for sharing.

So how did you get that big miche to look like it is square, or is it my imagination or a trick of the Canadian light?

Nice scoring on the miche as well.

Regards,
Ian

Floydm's picture
Floydm

Yeah, it was a bit square-ish because of the way I folded it.  It wasn't on purpose though.

-Floyd

chefscook's picture
chefscook

I love your idear with the butter thanks by the  way your breads look good nice color                                              thanks                                                                        

dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

David

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

Love the bread and pies!  Nice scoring on the miche.  All are well baked.

Glad you have settled in.

rayel's picture
rayel

I like that Margherita pizza,  the breads and pie look wonderful. Great tip re. grating frozen butter. The crust looks flaky indeed.

Ray

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

I love the look of the apple pie.  So inviting with the crust the way you have it.  I like the tip on frozen butter too.  Sure sounds a lot easier to handle.  Thanksgiving will be here before I know it so I can give it a try :-)

Take Care,

Janet

EvaB's picture
EvaB

I use a special item to do my pie crusts with. But grating the butter or lard would work, I am still using the old tool I got when we moved from my home town to here. So that is around 30 years, I have a newer one that cleans the blades of the thing, its not as easy to use as the old one, which is essentially a half dozen wires on metal ends fastened to a handle, looks sort of like one of those meza de luna knives, but with wires instead of blades. Its for cutting fat into pastry, but I have used it for other things as well, it chops the boiled eggs for egg salad just great, and you can actually mix the whole egg salad with it. I have seen them made with sort of blade like fingers rather than the wire shapes, but don't think they are any better.

I never could do the fork or two knives thing for making pastry, and when you learn to make pastry with bacon grease (that was all my mother ever used) its not so much cut the bacon grease up, as cut the mess into chunks with lots of flour on the grease spots! Technique is everything, and you do get a nice flaky crust, but you have to understand the grease is more difficult to get incorporated just right, you can wind up with pie crust that won't hold together if you aren't careful.

SylviaH's picture
SylviaH

Love the breads and you know I love your pizza and pie : ) makes me hungry!

Sylvia