The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Cranberries, Figs,Raisins, Currants and Whole Wheat

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Cranberries, Figs,Raisins, Currants and Whole Wheat

A few weeks back yozzause/Derek mentioned a 'local' cookbook, BOURKE STREET BAKERY, in his blog and it caught my attention.  I wasn't able to obtain a copy of the book from my local library so, to satisfy my curiosity, I plunged in and actually purchased a copy sight unseen. Luckily the risk was well worth it.  A real beauty in appearance and all that it contains within its covers.  No corners cut in publishing this tome. 

This past week I set about baking several of the loaves contained within its pages.  The following loaf intrigued me because it contained 2 leavens - one a rye sour and the other a whole wheat leaven.  Something I have done in the past inspired by a loaf presented here by PiPs several years ago.  It also captured my attention because it contained figs which seem to be my fruit of the week this week due to a post by Marcus in which he combined figs with walnuts.

A simple loaf.  Simple ingredients and a marvelous outcome.

   Rye and Wheat

 

 

                                                      Salt

 

                       The Dough

 

                            The Brotform     

 

   The Result

 

                                     And A Mini Loaf Too

 

No crumb shots.  All bagged up and passed on to friends.

No formula on this one….It is in the book.

Thanks Derek for mentioning this excellent book in your blog!

 

Comments

Song Of The Baker's picture
Song Of The Baker

Well Janet, from the bit of photos you do have, it looks like it turned out great.  Sure do like seeing seasonal ingredients pumped into breads.

John

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Hi John,

Baking this time of year is a real treat because of all of the new crops being harvested all over.  I tend to bake lean in the summer months and then, come fall, 'other' things begin to appear in by doughs.  :*)

Take Care,

Janet

wassisname's picture
wassisname

Packed with fruit goodies and two leavens, what's not to love!?!  That's a great looking bread, Janet.  The friends on the receiving end of this bake are lucky indeed!  It's been too long since I've done a two leaven bread, thanks for the reminder.

Marcus

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Hi Marcus,

You are welcome:)

This time of year I begin to dabble in rye loaves so I usually have the rye sour available making using 2 leavens in one loaf not as difficult as it sounds.  The rye sour adds a really nice consistency to this dough and I haven't heard any complaints yet!

Take Care,

Janet

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

it looks tremendous:-)  Just love this combination of ingredients.   With all those different fruits there was no room for nuts !  Well done and happy baking Janet.

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Hi MrD,

Always room for nuts but when I bake following a formula for the first go around I 'try' to stick to what is printed on the page.  Not always possible but I did restrain myself this time but next time I am thinking some roasted hazelnuts will add a wonderful crunch….Combinations are always endless which is one of the reasons I love to bake and especially this time of year.

Take Care,

Janet

 

chouette22's picture
chouette22

Your bread looks delicious and your photos are beautiful, especially that first one and the brotform, bot with sunlight. How nice that this book did not disappoint, especially when you, as I am sure, already have an extensive collection of bread-baking books. I also love that piece of artwork in your last picture, you are not the artist of that, are you?

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Thank you for you very kind words.  No, I did not do the piece in the background.  It is a piece from an artist that I really like for his simplicity in materials and subject matter.  His name is George Carruth.

Take care,

Janet

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Awesome looking bread, Janet. How lucky are your bread recipients!

Photos remind me of the book WGB by peter reinhart.

Khalid

Janetcook's picture
Janetcook

Hi Khalid,

Thank you for your very generous complements!  This is a fun time of year to bake colorful and healthy breads.

Did you know he has a new book coming out at the end of this month?  I have pre-ordered it and am really excited to see what he has been up to since WGB came out years ago.  Laurel Robertson and PR are whom I consider to be the the anchors for baking with whole grain ….I lack a better word to describe how I feel about them but Laurel was baking with whole grains years and years ago before it was the 'in' to use the ingredients she was using.  She also wrote for the homemakers which is how I found her when my children were young and I wanted to feed them healthy bread.

Thanks again for your kind, kind words my friend.

Janet

Mebake's picture
Mebake

Great news! I'll buy the book when it hits the bookstore shelves.

Thanks,my friend!

Khalid