I've been lurking this board a week or so, maybe; thought it was about time I introduced myself. Been baking bread since my kids were little; now my grandsons are almost grown...sigh. I use either a Kitchnaid or a bread machine, depending on time and recipe. Baked myself right out of yeast, so decided to make a sourdough starter until I can get to Sam's and buy more.

Every one of the recipes from this board has been a winner; so glad I found you!

Happy baking, all...

I was stuck without power for 4 days following Irene... fortunately, the local library was open and they had Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice.  I've been reading it for a couple of days (by flashlight :) )  One of the first recipes I looked at was for "Anadama" bread and I figured I try it now that I've got power back.

I started the soaker last night and, this morning, I mixed part of the flour with the yeast, water and corn meal mixture, covered it and let it pre-ferment for about an hour.  The instructions said, "or until bubbly" and mine was certainly bubbly by the time the hour was up.  Once the pre-ferment was ready, the remaining flour, salt, molasses and shortening (unsalted butter) was mixed in to form the dough.  After a couple of minutes in the KA mixer, the dough was still very sticky, so I ended up adding a couple of teaspoons of flour (little by little) to get it (to where I thought it was) right.  

After mixing for some time, it still didn't appear to have a very well developed gluten structure (window pane test) so I decided to do some stretch and folds, rest, and S&F again.  It really is amazing how doing something so simple for a short amount of time can have such an immediate impact on the dough... It literally changes before your eyes.   Anyway, once I was satisfied (or so this newbie thought), I put it in the oven to bulk ferment.  The instructions said 60 to 90 minutes (or until doubled in size).  I looked at mine after an hour (about 78F in my oven) and it was more than doubled.  

All in all, I ended up with a dough that was pretty easy to handle and it felt "right" to me; not stiff, very suptle.  Now, since these were going to go into 9x5 loaf pans (first time I've used loaf pans), I didn't think it was THAT important to get the forming done perfectly.  Ah, but that was a newbie error :) 

 Turns out the bread had a nice "oven spring" within the first 10 min or so and, it looked like I hit a home run.  However, one of the loaves basically flattened at the top and the other did so partially.  This was either due to improper forming or possibly over-proofing (or both)? 

This is what the loaves looked like after proofing in the pans (one in stoneware, the other aluminum).  At this point I thought they looked just fine.

Here you can see how the one in the aluminum pan gained some height within the first 10 min of baking

But darn it, not too long after, I took a peek and found it had "collapsed" a bit.  I was pretty disappointed...   (The other one in the stoneware did the same but only on one side).

 Here's what the crumb looked like:

I think the unevenness of the holes in the crumb was just due to my own inexperience at working / forming the dough after bulk fermentation.  Aesthetics aside, the crumb was nice, light and chewy and had a nice "sweetness" to it.  I used "Grandma's Molasses" but not the light variety the recipe called for.  I guess this resulted in a "stronger" flavor of molasses, but I really liked it.  The crust (sprinkled with corn meal) had a nice crunch to it. 

 So, not a "total" failure after all... just need to know how to handle this better the next time. 

Thanks,

Joe G

I've actually had 2 whole wheat breads since my last bread baking post.  The "baguettes" were not particularly pretty, but they tasted fine (especially when used as pizza).  see: http://pojosbreadblog.blogspot.com/ 

The bread after the "passable" baguettes was also 25% whole wheat but at a 75% hydration with a preferment (100% hydration poolish of whole wheat).  Unfortunately, my skill level is nil when it comes to forming any shape when the dough is that sticky.  I ended up with a nasty looking baguette and something more akin to a ciabatta than a batard.  Both took too many tries to form, were most definitely over-proofed and the results reflected it.  In my newbie attempts to date, these were my only two true failures.

Last night I put together a 62% hydration dough using the 25% / 75% whole wheat flour to white.  The fermentation took place in the fridge overnight (around 12 hours).  This was so much easier to form into a boule!  I let this proof after forming for about 40 minutes (while the oven pre-heated).  The finished bread looked wonderful.  This is the only one I've made so far that had a nice oven spring.  I used a combination of normal bake and convection bake at different oven temps  (to control the color of the crust).    Here's what it looked like:

 Now the crumb was, as I expected, somewhat denser than the higher hydration doughs I've made but it was not "heavy" if you know what I mean.  I'm guessing that the addition of the olive oil makes it that way.   While I did steam the oven for 15 minutes or so and sprayed the bread / oven 4 times during the bake, the crust was not as "crunchy" as I thought it would be (although it had a very gentle crispiness to it).  The flavor however was exceptional!

I guess I'll keep working on this particular hydration until I get the hang of handling it.  All in all, I think this one was was my best to date.  I'll stick with a winner for now. :)

Here's the formula (I didn't completely fill out the form, but you'll get the idea:

http://pojosbreadblog.blogspot.com/

I'm new to this and have only done around 7 breads so far (each one progressively better than the last for the most part)  However, since my first attempt at a pain rustique didn't fair well, I decided to give it another shot today.  I mixed my poolish last night (100% hydration) but ended up having to t'fer it to a larger bowl very early this morning (put it in one that was way too small for some reason).  I have to say, the wonderful fragrance that leaps from the bowl when you first remove the plastic wrap from this stuff is just incredible!  Here's what it looked like after 13 hours:

Here's the formula that I calculated based on Hamelman's pain rustique.  I simply typed in my figures into a  "design worksheet" pdf along with my notes.  I guess I got it right considering the end result :)

I proofed 900g of dough in a 8" X 10" X 3" homemade banneton (cost me all of $2).  After 20 min I inverted it onto a peel.   I had trouble scoring (as usual).  The dough, while manageable after the stretch and folds, was still pretty sticky so the knife tugged on the surface of the dough.  Maybe this will be easier after I get my lame this week.  After my pitiful scoring, the dough somewhat deflated...

However, after just  10 minutes (at 465F on a stone), it seemed to perk up a bit.  I did pour a cup of hot water into a pan on the bottom of the oven for steam as well as sprayed the top of the loaf and the oven walls (twice).

I continued baking while keeping an eye on the color... at 40 minutes, I decided to take it out.  The internal temperature was 205.  Overall, this one looked the best to me.  No "singing" was heard but there was a lot of nice crackling going on.   (The oval shape somehow got a little distorted getting it from the proofing basket to the peel)

The crumb came out better than any of my other breads.  It smells and tastes great but I'm wondering just what the "bite" of the crumb should be like?  This has some resiliance to it; chewy but not tough and it does dissolve in the mouth nicely.  Is it that I'm tasting good bread for the first time or did I screw this up and simply produce bad bread?  :) )

Here's a cross-section of an end piece.  The larger air pocket has a bit of a sheen to it.  I've read somewhere this is a good sign?

 One would think that making bread would be relatively easy but I'm learning that's not necessarily the case :) Well, that's about it :)  Thanks in advance for any advice or comments.

Po Jo 

Hello All,

I've done *very* basic recipes, but got feeling ambitious this weekend and wanted to re-create a sandwich from Panera Bread, their Turkey Bacon Bravo sandwich.  It is made with a tomato basil bread with a slight sugar/honey glaze on the crust, turkey, gouda, bacon, and a thousand island-like dressing.

I found a recipe online for the tomato basil bread but when I made it, it came out like a dense brick.  It still tasted alright and the house smelled wonderful, but not something I could make a sandwich on.  I've tried it 2x already, hoping a little tweaking will get it right but so far, no dice.  It doesn't rise a lot so I think I need to adjust the amount of yeast in the dough, but not sure how much or what else I need to do...so I'm hoping a knowledgeable bread enthusiast will be able to help me get it right the third time.

My goal is a soft but durable sandwich bread with a chewy if not slightly crunchy (and not overly browned) crust.  I only have the option of either a glass standard 9x5 loaf pan or metal one, and a aluminum cookie sheet - which is the best for my needs?  I know if I want "sandwich" bread I should probably get one of those covered pans but I just don't have anywhere in my area that sells them so I can't get one right now.

As for the recipe:

• 2 1/4 t. yeast
• 1/4 c. warm water
• 1/2 c. warm milk
• 1/4 c. minced fresh basil
• 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 T. tomato paste
• 1 T. sugar
• 1 T. olive oil
• 1 egg
• 1 t. salt
• 1 t. onion powder
• 1/2 t. garlic powder 
• 1/3 c. minced sundried tomatoes
• 2 1/4 – 2 1/2 c. flour (1 c. all purpose, 1.25-1.5 c. unbleached white whole wheat) 

After mixing/kneading, I let it rise about an hour in the bowl, knead again a little, put in a greased bread pan and let rise another hour before popping in the over and cooking at 350 degrees for about 50 minutes, or until it reaches an internal temp of at least 190 degrees.  It also has some sugary glaze on it but I'll worry about getting the bread right first before tackling the glaze.

Hello all... just dropping a line to say hello from Northern Ireland! Anybody else from the Belfast area?

I've been hanging around the site for a couple of weeks now, and have definitely got the bread making bug. Even my fussy eater boyfriend is excited about the bread I'm making - hurrah for the Fresh Loaf!

All the best

Sheps

Just a quick hello to all from a new member. My wife of 25 years is a phenomenal cook & baker, and we just bought our first real mill & are looking forward to making and using our own flour. We bought a whispermill; may one day buy one that can do meal as well (Nutrimill & Country Living seem prevalent here in the USA), but the whispermill should probably do us fine for a while.

Couple questions, if I may - anybody have any info or links to good sources for whole wheat berries (probably hard white to start, based on what I've read)..? Also, any tips & tricks on milling or whispermill-specific use would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance

John in Arkansas

Hi! I'm Margaret, my friends call me Margarita. I got into cooking a few years ago but have always been scared of baking aside from Granny Smith's sugar cookies and the occasional scone or zuccini bread. I found this sight, though, and after making my first loaf of bread today, I'm hooked. I started with lesson two and my bread turned out wonderful! It was so exciting pulling it out of the oven! I can't wait to further my bread experience and master the more advanced recipes.

Hello,

I'm so glad to find this place with great resources. This week I've made my first loaf following recipe from a Hovis yeast package. It smells and taste great, but it was very dense. After some googling and watching youtube and Good Eats (Dr. Strangelove) episodes, I knew my method was wrong. Didn't know about folding, and the day was too cold didn't have proper rise before bake. 

Then I tried the Cinnamon Raisin Oatmeal bread from this site today, here is my problem (link to my bread photo and comment). The first 2 rises were fine, but after shaping the rise in pan is where it failed.

Both loafs were not doorstops, even the next day, couldn't have killed a duck (like in the film About a Boy) but it's dense. It's like a very cakey bread!

Also, I don't have a kitchenaid nor any mixers, I've been doing this by hand. Lots of recipes recommend only kneading for 5-10 mins and most of them assume one has a mixer but I could not pass the stretch window test to get the elasticity where needed to be without kneading at least for 20-30 mins. I do the heal-push-turn kneading method. My pizza dough came out perfect, but not my breads. Is it my method or the recipe that i've gone wrong?

Did I overknead? Underknead?

What else could have cause the dense bread?

How can i improve this next time?

I haven't a thermometre, I've heard of the tapping method, it wasn't full hollow but was afraid to overcook the bread. In this case, is this better to overcook than to undercook?

Advise much appreciated!

So, after reading up on it here and a couple other websites, I decided to spend Labour Day learning how to bake. How I came upon this idea,  I don't really know, but the results were certainly tasty.  Saturday was the basic loaf from Lesson 2 (I like skipping ahead, what can I say!). That was the only one I really used measurements on. I'm kind of a "throw more or less in and see what happens!" kind of girl. Don't have a scale or stone or anything yet, just the most basic kitcheny implements. Instead of just a few gentle pokes at it to degas, I kinda did a full on 10 minutes of kneading, and didn't cover it at all when it was rising...but somehow it still magically worked out.  My yeast is also 2 years past the expiry date (I have a breadmaker whose sole purpose is to make me pizza dough once in a blue moon), but apparently still perfectly happy to do it's thing.

Day two was a raisin-y-egg thing, the remains of which you can see on the right of that picture. I didn't really know what I was doing, but I threw an egg in, threw some cinnamon and yeast in, and tried to make a kneadable dough. Worked out well enough for breakfast toast, anyway! Could have used more raisins. Also made up some 1/2 spelt, 1/2 bread flour starter for Day Three! Me, not really knowing what I was doing, basically make a little dough ball out of that, although further research leads me to believe it was far, far too dry. Either way. Also started a sourdough starter that day. I'm productive! :D

Day Three has me mixing in a bit more spelt, some flax, and trying to keep the dough as moist as I can (although as an utter newbie, I'm guessing it was still plenty dry). Again, I didn't follow a recipe or anything. If it went horribly bad, it's entirely my own fault. XD Tried to give it as much time to rise as it wanted, poked and saw how it rebounded, all the stuff  I read about on here. Man, giving it the night to do it's thing made a HUGE difference in the taste! Below are the results of my weekend of entertainment!

Suffice it to say, I'm pretty happy with that, considering I'm just testing the waters and experimenting.

BUT, I have some questions.

Oven spring, I don't have any, not really. :( I preheat my oven at max for around 10 minutes or so, then stick the loaves in on the baking sheet they were proofing on along with a tin with some water in it. I turn it down a minute or two after, after I cleaned up the area a little. Then it was 350 for 40 minutes.

I covered these loaves with an old cut-up bedsheet which I rubbed flour into. Yet they still definitely dried out on top a bit, and that made scoring more of an exercise in poking the bread with a knife until I was done. I'm guessing that's what's causing the utter lack in oven spring, but still, it'd be nice to know how to fix that.My guess is that's why the crusts have been so crispy, even on the one with a bunch of egg and milk in it. Also, am I supposed to shape right before going in the oven, or before the rising session? They seem a little flatter than they could be, but not depressingly so.

I know I should pick up some books, a scale and such, and I likely will in the future, but I am but a poor student so it may be a little bit. Still, the adventures begin! I'm sure I'll have more questions later on, but this is a start.