Anybody have a recipe for Yulekaka (Swedish Christmas Bread) that they would like to share? I have one from my grandmother that is very vague. I want to recreate this holiday bread this year but would not like to waste the candied orange/lemon peel, cherries, etc that I make myself. (Too much work to waste the ingredients on trying to get the recipe right). But, if I could find a recipe that has been tried, I can compare that with what I have to recreate the Yulekaka. 

Thanks in advance for any input.

Hello all,

My pics are not working says file size to big 1.35 its only one pic can anyone help?

From Bread Baker's Apprentice....

well, for the first time I "think"  I am getting the hang of shaping those dreadful things... :-)

I had three baguettes, baked one at a time, trying the slashes in different ways - the best one was with much firmer and "aggressive" slashing. There is still A LOT of room for improvement, but at least I see a very tiny light at the end of the tunnel.... :-)

There are two videos of Peter on Amazon in conjunction with his new book. One shows how to load loaves in the oven and steam them; the other, how to do stretch and fold with an 80% hydration dough.

http://www.amazon.com/Peter-Reinharts-Artisan-Breads-Every/dp/1580089984/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257007108&sr=8-1

--Pamela

Hi everyone - so I've made a few batches of croissants over the last couple of months using a variety of recipes and youtube videos I've found online. They usually come out amazing, but within a day (and sometimes within a few hours) are quite hard...warming them up in the microwave seems to soften them up a bit, but I'm just curious whether the croissants you can buy from grocery stores/coffee shops are made in a different way or with special preservatives, since I feel like those are made to stay soft for at least 2-3 days. I ask because I've been dying to reproduce an almond croissant (essentially a marzipan filled croissant) that I had at a coffee shop once, and it was the most amazing croissant I've ever eaten, even though it wasn't heated or anything. Soft, slightly chewy, and very flaky. I don't envision my current croissants would do very well since they're tough and hard once cool.

Here is a link to PR's Thanksgiving Day recipes published in this month's Bon Appetite magazine.

http://www.bonappetit.com/search/query?contributorName=Peter%20Reinhart

I tested all of them and they're all winners.

--Pamela

In trying to broaden my horizons, I've been trying no-knead bread.  I have not had much luck with shaping boules - I always use loaf pans and shape dough accordingly - but I tried again and got a little football.  I was happy because I was not expecting as much oven spring as I got.

I expected the crumb to be somewhat open, but it was more like the sandwich bread I bake.  I apologize that the pictures seem dark.  At least on my monitor.

Could this be due to overshaping the loaf, or perhaps the dough was not as hydrated as it should be?  I replaced some of the AP flour with WW flour but did not account for upping the moisture content.  I had previously made a boule (using all AP flour) that collapsed on one side, but on the "un-collapsed" side the crumb was nice and open. 

As always, I appreciate the wisdom you share.

~jeannie

I would like to add some things to my dough.  Lets say tomatoes.  Should I add my additions when I mix the dough or wait until after the bulk ferm?  Would it matter if the additions were acidic or not?

I have had numerous requests for my Sourdough Cinnamon Swirl Bread recipe. Here it is, but it is in volume measurements. If someone wants to convert it to grams, be my guest. I'm not good at conversions and this is an old recipe, before everyone was interested in using weights.

Sourdough Cinnamon Swirl Bread

2 cups active, bubbly starter

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla (optional)

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup instant mashed potato flakes

3 1/2 cups flour (half AP, half bread flour)

Mix and knead the dough. Place in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic. Bulk ferment until about 1 1/2 times the original size. This makes a very soft dough. Roll out dough on floured or Pam sprayed surface into a rectangle about 9 x 18 inches. Spread with soft butter, sprinkle with sugar, and very generously with cinnamon, leaving 1/2" on one of the 9" ends clean for sealing. Roll up as for cinnamon rolls. Try to keep the roll snug as you roll. Place in greased loaf pan. Spray oil top of loaf and cover with plastic. Proof until almost double in size. Bake at 350°F for 30 to 40 minutes, or until done.

I don't frost my loaf because I like to toast my bread and it just melts in the toaster. As an alternative to frosting, I have brushed on an egg white wash and then sprinkled with coarse raw sugar just before baking.

I used wheat pastry flour to make muffins but it didn't turn so good. The texture is not smooth. The recipe actually requires pastry flour, but I used wheat pastry flour subsitute. Was it the reason why the muffin came out so rough?