The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

First Post & KF Field Blend 1

Kiseger's picture
Kiseger

First Post & KF Field Blend 1

Greetings!

I have been reading this site for the past month and have finally cobbled together the courage to join the site and post a photo of my first attempt at KF's Field Blend 1.  Cooked in my DO, the crust didn't crack open as I had hoped it would and I was looking for more holes.  But as a first go with this, I was happy with the flavour (esp. 2 days later!!).  Very nutty and only a very mild tang (which came out after about a day).

I have only been baking for about 6 weeks, reading (and re-reading) obsessively Forkish, Tartine, Hammelman, Calvel, Kayser, Rose L-B, McGee and even Parmentier.  That said, I do feel that I have learned as much from David Snyder, Shiao Ping, CAPhyl, DABrownman, Mebakes, Mini Oven and Floyd (to name a few) as from the books - so a very genuine and heartfelt massive thank you to all!

I am gearing up to try out David's SJSD, it looks fab.  More soon I hope!!

 

Comments

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Hi, Kiseger, and welcome to TFL.

You read all those books? that's impressive! I don't own Forkish's bread yet (shame on me), but i think your bread looks really great. 

It seems like you nailed the proofing time; that's why you have no cracks, which often indicate under-proofing. Steam also plays a significant role in oven spring. What steaming apparatus do you have in place? 

As to holes, i like how your crumb turned out. However, if you wish to have more holes, then you'll have to knead// develop your dough to a moderate stage (3-6 minutes in a home mixer). Also hydration plays a role; a higher hydration dough often contains larger bubbles than its stiffer counterpart.  Last but not least, handle the dough as minimally as you possibly can throughout the fermentation and shaping periods. 

Best of luck,

Khalid

Kiseger's picture
Kiseger

Super advice, thanks. I have so much to learn! I am doing everything by hand, have decided to eschew the home mixer so that I can learn the feel of dough as it goes through its various stages.

I'm an obsessive reader, but haven't read every page of all of them - I focussed on the theory and techniques and then only studied some of the formulae that looked interesting to me to start.  I figured I needed to understand the science behind it first and then the techniques (they all have interesting variations).  I think I'll be reading these books for a long time yet!  You should get Forkish, I really like how he writes and it is clearly laid out.

I am a bit daunted by your 36hr formula, but it's all written down in my notebook for when I'm ready!  I really wish you all the best in your progress for your bread shop.  I have been there many times and would have definitely gone out of my way for coffee or lunch to a real boulangerie - it's hard to find good quality bread there.  

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

nearly nailed it perfectly.  If you baked it seam side up n the DO and it didn't crack then I would say it was 100% proofed so  there was not enough spring to make it crack.  If you baked it seam side down and it didn't blow out on the bottom somewhere then i would say - the same thing 100% proofed :-) Since you say the flavor gets better with a tang  as time goes on I assume that this is a SD bread  .For a SD and a first try and ll in a month - I say well done and Happy Baking.   Watch the dough and get it in the Dutch oven seam side up at 85% proof and the cracks will soon be yours. 

I learned almost all I know about bread right hear at TFL from many of the same folks you did:-)  I do have Clayton's first edition of The Complete Book of Bread - with a title like that who need another bread book even though it turns out he was way wrong :-) Lucy does get bored easily and falls asleep at the drip of a hat so she does check other bread books out at the library now and again when she can find one in German or Swedish.

You are hooked now  but there are worse things we could be hooked on!

David Esq.'s picture
David Esq.

I like the knife even better.  Looks like a sword. And I want one.

Kiseger's picture
Kiseger

That's the knife brand we use and they're top notch. Wouldn't get anything else.  Have had them for years and they just keep going, super sharp and don't slip because of the handle design.  Recommend.

and thanks Re: the bread!  Nervous being a newbie on this site, so thanks!

Kiseger's picture
Kiseger

Has Lucy tried Das Brotbackbuch ( Lutz Geissler)?  I've flipped through it at a friend's house and it has some interesting things.  

This was sourdough, I've got two starters going, white and mixed white/whole wheat and they're very active (thanks to the good advice from this site).  I'm using my Le Creuset cast iron (not enamelled) large casserole and it's great.  I was trying to get those beautiful cracked openings that Forkish shows in his book - I proofed seam side down.  My first attempt at scoring on a straight dough was like a drunk surgeon cutting an eel, so I decided to go straight to sourdough and no scoring!  

Love your posts and experiments, will keep reading! Thanks!!

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

She is on his blog, www.ploetzblog.de . , every day and has entered into Lutz's frrst two Bread Olympics - Plotziade 1 & 2.

Be really lousy with sealing the dough before putting it seam side down in the basket.to proof.  Skibum has had great luck doing this and then also slashing the dough after putting it seam side up in the DO - bad seaming and bad slashing is the key here -who knew?  Opens like a flower.

WoodenSpoon's picture
WoodenSpoon

and really darn great for a first shot. hell yeah!

dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

Hmmmm .... I can't recall seeing un-enameled Le Creuset cast iron dutch ovens.

If you baked seam-side up and the seams didn't open, there are two leading suspects: You may have over-proofed somewhat - clearly not a lot, because you got nice oven spring and no huge holes in the crumb. Also, you may have sealed your seams too well in shaping the boule. In any case, this is a superficial, cosmetic issue given how well your bread turned out.

If you like Field Blend 1, go for Field Blend 2. It's a lot more flavorful, healthy and more sour.

And welcome to TFL! You are off to a great start!

David

Kiseger's picture
Kiseger

I use the satin black cast iron casserole which is a different finish from the usual shiny enamel range, so it is better for high temperatures and holds and distributes the heat more evenly and for longer.  I think it's a marginal advantage but it's great for bread.  The husband is banned from using it (I've given up on the household popularity ranking!!).  

I think you've hit the nail on the head (as has DBM) with sealing the seams too tightly, I really went for it!  Thanks!!

I love love love your blog and your insight, thanks for being an inspiration!

 

dmsnyder's picture
dmsnyder

Ha! I am banned from using our enameled cast iron dutch ovens. The enamel gets stained by baking bread in them. So, the Lodge Combo Cookers work as well. 

I'm so happy you find my blog helpful!

David