Last week I made San Francisco Sourdough, and learned a lot.  I decided to try it again this weekend with some variations relating to flour mix, dough handling, retardation time and loaf shape.

I again used the formula in Peter Reinhart’s Crust and Crumb, and I again used primarily Bob’s Red Mill bread flour.  But this time, instead of 100% bread flour I used about 9% dark rye flour and about 11% whole wheat flour.  I used the rye and whole wheat in each of the three mixes: the liquid starter, the firm starter and the main dough.  I did not adjust the hydration (64%).

My other departures from the C&C formula were:

• Though the formula calls for kneading the dough, then letting it sit unmolested in a bowl for four hours, I gave it a four-way letterfold every hour.  The dough was firmer (less slack) this time, compared to last weekend when I did no folds.

• I followed the formula’s specifications for ripening and then retarding the two starters, but I decided to test the effects of retardation after proofing and to test the attributes of different loaf shapes using this formula.  I scaled the dough for 3 mini-baguettes of 250 grams each and a boule and a batard of 615 grams each.  The baguettes I baked as soon as they were proofed; the larger loaves were put in the fridge overnight after proofing 3 hours as in the formula.

I should also mention that I proofed the baguettes and the batard on linen couche, and the boule in a linen-lined basket.  I did not spray oil on the loaves at the beginning of proofing as Reinhart specifies.  The baguettes were covered with a fold of couche fabric and a tea towel over that.

Here’s the fermented dough after a 3 ½ hour rise.

Here’s the proofing loaves. 

The baguettes baked at 450 on a stone with steam for 10 minutes, then without steam at the same temperature for another 10 minutes.   Then I left them to sit on the stone with the oven off and the door ajar for another 10 minutes.  The internal temperature was 209F.  They’re really pretty to look at.

The crust is darkish, and very hard.  Indeed, it is positively tough, as in hard to bite through.

The crumb is very good tasting and nicely chewy, not what I’d call tough.  Not a very open crumb, but not really dense.

It was a really good thing I had delicious Chicken Cacciatore to dip the bread in to moisten it (the bread made a fine mop).  Thanks for the recipe, David.

So, you experienced bakers, what caused the rock hard crust this time?

• ·      Increased gluten strength from the folds during ferment?
• ·      Baguette shaping?
• ·      Baguettes getting too much air (not sealed in plastic) during proofing?
• ·      Too low hydration?
• ·      Too bold a bake or too much time drying on the stone?

Any help would be appreciated.  The boule and batard just came out of the oven, and I’ll report results later.

Thanks.

Glenn

Hi,

I've tried making the Neo-Neopolitan Pizza from ABED (Artisan Bread Everyday) page 67 a couple of times. I usually make a thin crust version. Each time the pizza comes out, the sides of the crust are slightly hard and difficult to chew. They taste like water crackers. At the same time, the middle portion of the crust looks "raw" underneath. The texture of the middle portion was somewhat softer.

Anyone has any idea why this is so? How should a really good pizza crust taste like, and more importantly, how is the texture? Am I doing something wrong here?

Many thanks.
Sue

With the help of your generous hearts last night I baked my best round rustic breads ever: I kneaded the sticky dough almost like a pro, a couple of bowls with kitchen cloths proofed the dough without letting it sag, and once in the oven at one point I was afraid the bread was going to hit the roof! I took the loaves out of the oven when their color was right, and they sounded as hollow as hollow can sound. Right out of the oven the crust was hard and firm, but as soon as they cooled down the crusts went soft. I'm looking for the kind of crust that will crack before it yields and will hurt the roof of your mouth if you don't chew it carefully. I've tried several times both spraying the loaves and steaming the oven with a small bowl full of water, and I always get the same kind of crust which comes hard out of the oven and gets soft when cool.

Once the crust is brown and the bread sounds hollow, how much longer can you bake the bread without overcooking it?

Any suggestions?

Thank you very much.

So I recently got into baking and tried a few different recipes in hopes of finding a great whole wheat loaf to make weekly. I tried a recipe by one of the threads,

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/recipes/wholewheathoneybread

I decided to cut the ingredients in half to make one loaf. With success, I made a nice loaf with a semi-soft crust and dense crumb. Bland but a purfect texture. Aside from leaving the salt out of the first datch, I tried a second time only to get a much drier dough after neading. I had a feeling this would result in a harder crust and was right.(NOTE:) I used half/half in the second batch rather thant 6 oz. of evaporated milk as was added in the first. What went wrong this second time around? Was the half/half a bad sub for evaporated milk?

Soft Crust Loaf

Hard Crust Loaf

I am using a cuisinart brick oven. It seems to work well. It doesn't heat up the kitchen like the gas oven.  The only problem I have is that my crusts are really hard. What do you think I can do to correct this.