The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Today's SD bake, a batard and a boule

Skibum's picture
Skibum

Today's SD bake, a batard and a boule

I used a small amount of organic rye flour, perhaps 10% in my white bread flour starter and that seemed to kick things up a bit.I have reduced the proofing time to 40 minutes on the batard and while a little easier to score, my lame work still needs work.  Next bake I will try a 35 minute proof for the batard/ baguette.

The boule contains about 5% whole wheat and organic rye and it is a tasty loaf, but I liked my last bake with 10% WW and 15% organic rye better -- better flavour, greater volume in less time, better oven spring and my scores held their ears on the last one.  Okay, I was a little sloppy getting the loaf into the hot DO using parchment paper and oven mitts and need to work on that as well.

Perhaps the best part is that the flavours I am getting from my SD loaves is just amazing.  I also have some VERY happy neighbours as I have been in full on experiment and bake mode and simply cannot eat all I am baking!  The long slow SD process, sorry the DMAN process I have been using really brings out the flavours of the grains, very much P. Reinhart's thesis in using time to bring out flavour and explained som much beter by dabrownman!

Tomorrow I am baking up supplies for my upcoming BC road trip.  A couple of nights in Golden with friends to celebrate my birthday Monday and paddle the Kicking Horse River Tuesday, Wednesday to Sicamous for a couple of days beach time and then up to paddle the Clearwater River and have a look around.

Happy baking folks!  Brian

Comments

golgi70's picture
golgi70

Hey these loaves look great and your progress is quite obvious and fast.  That being said a bit more practice and the lame will soon be an extension of your arm.  I wish i could see that boules crumb a bit better.  It looks fantastic.  Nice spring, nice crumb, and it looks nice and whole grain from here.  You should look into the combo cookers people use. When I baked in the D.O. it was so hard getting the loaf clean into that deep ripping hot pan.  The combo cookers have the lower bottom and taller top and would seem to be easier for this step of the process.  

 

Keep up the good fight. And don't be discouraged as the yeast always wins

 

Happy Baking

josh

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

want you to spend more time baking:-)  Your breads are getting there but I donlt get the pale coloe of the batard.  it bloomed well but didn't get the color of the boule.  You need to get a longer, oval shaped Turkey Roaster like John and I use fto DO  breads like these :-) Well done SKI

The slow bread concept really brings out the flavor of SD breads.  Whole grains, long cold waits and a sour starter were made for each other.  When you are retired like me, you can take forever to make a loaf of bread and it seems like I do by building stiff whole rye starter and retard it for at least 3 days, build a whole grain levain from it over 12 hours and then retard that for a day. Then build a 20% -255 whole grain 1,000 g dough where the whole grains are in the levain, autolyse the white dough flour for a couple of hours and then retard that for 24 hours too.  Next thing you know you have one fine loaf a great tasting bread,  Mill the flours yourself and up the hydration add some malts - then the sour, flavor of the grains and color really takes off.  i'm going for a retarded 100% rye pumpernickel next

Many folks don't have a week to make a loaf of bread but wish they did!  Even great commercial bakers don't have the cold space or time to bake bread this way.  Finally something we home bakers can do that the real pros can't - at least at, and or for, work :-)  Sure wish I had one of the steam injecting , 3 level glass front ovens though but for 1 loaf of bread a week......not happening - score another one for the pros.

Happy baking

Happy baking Brian

 

Skibum's picture
Skibum

and it is darn nice having the time to take a week to bake a loaf of bread!

The boule was baked in a hot DO and contained 5% each WW and rye flours.  The batard was baked on my oven stove and was bread flour only.  I have already found a combo cooker for my future baking projects!

When I return from holidays I plan to begin adding some of the many additions you add to your loaves.  I really like the idea of adding sprouted grains and have been reading on this subject.

I looked at home milling a while ago, then abandoned the idea as I began buying my flour from a local Artisan bakery.  Okay dman, now you have got me looking at home grain mills again.

Another day and another couple of loafs on the way to be baked in the morning.

Happy baking!  Brian

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

several river paddling trip - sounds wonderful and a great get away from all that retirement kitchen and baking drudgery:-)

Skibum's picture
Skibum

I laughed out loud and remembered an old tv commercial promising to save some poor 60's housewife a lifetime of kitchen drudgery.  My kitchen time is play time and the best part is eating the results!

I really like the look of the Lodge combo cooker and the price is right at Bass Pro's for less than $50, but if I am going to do this, I want to do it right.

In an earlier post you mentioned that you and John both have long oval (cast?) cookers.   Could you share a quick photo of yours and the make etc? 

TIA, Brian

Skibum's picture
Skibum

The combo cooker is a great idea.  It is indeed hard to get a loaf into a smoking hot DO cleanly and a combo would be indeed easier.  I forgot to support the bottom this load and the parchment paper kind of folded the boule into itself.

Anyhow thanks for the kind comments, it is most encouraging and combo cooker here I come!

Happy baking!  Brian

trailrunner's picture
trailrunner

Happy Birthday !  Have a fun road trip and come back all ready to bake !  Beautiful efforts. c

Skibum's picture
Skibum

every bake gets a little better. :-)