Well, after my last experience with the flat whole wheat struan(s), I decided to take a momentary break from whole grains and build my confidence back up by trying something completely different.  I've always had good luck with Leader's breads and so borrowed "Local Breads" from the library.  Am I glad I did!

 I used some of my existing bubbling chef (Leader's recipe from Bread Alone) to create the biga naturalle used in the Genzano Country Bread recipe. Not only did the fermentation take off beautifully, but the loaf is my best to-date.   

If ONLY I had my digital camera!  I would love to send a picture.  I didn't realise you were supposed to score the loaf (didn't hunt for the picture until AFTER it came out of the oven), but other than that, it looked nearly identical to the picture in local breads (sans scoring) and the crumb was almost as open as the Panmarino picture at the beginning of that section of pictures.  

I made this without a mixer, kneading by hand using the french fold method (much to the consternation of my husband who was trying to sleep in right above the kitchen) for nearly 20 minutes to get the windowpane.  The first rising seemed a little sluggish, but Boston has had some cool nights and the kitchen was pretty cold.  The second rising and proofing, however, went 'by the book'.

If the proof is in the eating, my two boys are firm supporters of the moist, chewy texture and mild, wheaty flavor.  The 2 year old is even eating every bit of the crust...now THAT's something.   

I can't wait to make this one again!

Momma T 

la grignela mie

Some pics from the latest baguette test batch. I'm still finalising the recipe and trying to weigh up the pros and cons of various fermentation strategies but I feel it's finally getting there....

Hopefully a full post soon. 

FP 

la mie

la grigne

No wait, strike that – reverse it.

Summer is here and it’s too hot to fire up the oven which makes it a perfect time to take the electric griddle outside and make English muffins.

The problem, of course, is getting those great nooks and crannies.  My old formula and technique got me plenty of little holes in the muffins, but not those great nooks and crannies (well, the little holes caught the melting butter, but still, the drive for “just a little better” is strong.)

So I thought about both my formula and my technique.

I was using an adaptation of the King Arthur “English Tea Cakes” recipe which calls for beating the dough for 5 minutes in a mixer.  I thought about “Batter Whipped” bread and how beating the dough caused its fine texture.  Then I thought about baguettes.

Well, English – French, different, but in the end – all European.  So I thought I would adapt my baguette technique for my English Muffins.

I use King Arthur All Purpose flour.

Makes about 6 

The formula:

Levain Build

Starter    .65 oz (100% hydration)

Flour      .95 oz

Water     .95 oz

Let ripen overnight.

Final Mix

All of the levain build

Flour                9.25 oz

Salt                   .16 oz

Dry Milk         1.25 oz

Sugar                .55 oz

Vegetable oil    .55 oz

Water              9.25 oz

Mix to a loose batter.  Four times at 30 minute intervals, stir 30 strokes with a spoon or spatula.

Let rise until domed and bubbly.  Do not let it collapse.  This particular batch took about 3 hours at this phase.

Baked in greased muffing rings on a lightly greased griddle at 325F.  8-9 mins per side.

The results. 

(I'm no photographer - that's for sure...) 

Finally the nooks…

I just converted this to a sourdough (levain) recipe and it has turned out great. Yeasted version is way quicker but doesn't have the taste. Great taste and texture, really good with PBJ.

Hi there,

I am quite new to this site and live in a smallish town. I am trying the levain in Local Breads. Has anybody tried this without organic flour? and to what end? I am on day 2 with reg. grocery store bread flour. Any input would be appreciated.

Thank you.

Hi. I've just purchased Dan Lepard's The Handmade Loaf and am dying to try his leaven recipe. However he uses yoghurt and we can't have dairy in my house (alas), so I was wondering if anyone could recommend a substitution.

Also, a lot of his recipes include milk or buttermilk as well as butter. Any suggestions how to handle this?

Thanks!

Bettina