Additionally, Labor day weekend smoked brisket, & bake.
Hello, my friends.
Sourcing rye flour here in Az. Has proved to be difficult. To the point I have yet to find retail size bags. Any tips? I am hankering for a NY deli rye. To accompany, my smoked pastrami.
Please enjoy my latest culinary achievements.
Hi all,
I need to know how to calculate flour and water weight, based on total dough weight.
if I need to mix up 1 kg of dough @ 65% hydration, how do I get there. At this point I just guess, do the math and adjust my numbers until I get there. Not efficient at all 🥴
Thank you!
I can only use my toaster oven and the highest it can go is 450. Many pizza dough recipes call for largely higher temperatures than I can do. Did this mean I can’t make pizza or should I do a different bread base to mimic a pizza base?
I began these quite awhile ago but they've become some of my family's favorite breads - levains with a goodly portion of emmer, kamut and einkorn in some combination or alone with bread flour.
A 50:50 kamut/einkorn:
60% einkorn, 40% bread flour:
60% Emmer, 40% bread flour:
Hello all
We are looking for a bakery Consultant for our upcoming bakery & cafe in Lebanon. We are a family startup and don't want anyone who is very expensive. Our menu focus is viennoiserie, breads & pastry (pastry style is more rustic and wholesome) . We are looking for a pastry chef as well. But this post is mainly for a consultant who can help train the chef's - recipes, techniques also work flow processes to run as efficiently as possible 😅. We would prefer someone close by within the middle East or Europe.
Thank you
Hello all
We are looking for a bakery Consultant for our upcoming bakery & cafe in Lebanon. We are a family startup and don't want anyone who is very expensive. Our menu focus is viennoiserie, breads & pastry (pastry style is more rustic and wholesome) . We are looking for a pastry chef as well. But this post is mainly for a consultant who can help train the chef's - recipes, techniques also work flow processes to run as efficiently as possible 😅. We would prefer someone close by within the middle East or Europe.
Thank you
Updates added here: https://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/72767/emergency-help-reviving-starter#comment-524273 and here: https://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/72767/emergency-help-reviving-starter#comment-524740
I grew a starter from scratch in Spring '20 (just like, I think, everyone else on the planet) and my Blob had been doing very well for a long time. I don't think I've posted on this forum since I made my first few loaves, but I've often checked in looking for new tips & other ideas.
However, a little over a year ago my life became busier and Blob was spending more & more time neglected in the fridge. There were several times he went a month (maybe more sometimes) without any attention at all. At first, he didn't seem to care and a couple of days of regular feedings at room temperature and he was back to his usual self. But by about 4 or 5 months ago, I had begun to notice he was no longer springing back to life so quickly. I was pretty sure the general answer was to just get him back on a regular feeding schedule and stop neglecting him, and I was working on that and seeing some improvements, but not as much as I expected. So, I was thinking of making a post here to get recommendations to help him get really vigorous again. I was hoping there might be some magic tips to really fine tune the process to make it go faster and/or, more importantly, get a better end result.
So Blob was already not a super vigorous starter any more. Then life happened. In a really big way. I left home on short notice on what I thought was going to be a 2 week trip, and got home 3 months later. One of my top priorities was feeding Blob, but when I opened up his jar, he was covered in mold. I was devastated. I would tell you there's no way you can understand how upset I was, but I guess as sourdough bakers, many of you can. None of my friends and family do, though.
Yesterday, I found some discard in the back of the fridge in a container that I thought was something else. It looks lifeless, and the hooch on the top was the darkest I've ever seen. The top layer of dough (if it can be called that) underneath the hooch was stained an unpleasant grey from the hooch. I have no real idea how long it has been sitting in the fridge since I didn't know it existed in the first place. But. No mold.
When I found it, I debated a bit about the best way to try to revive it. I decided I wanted to leave most of it undisturbed in case my first attempt was unsuccessful. There's not a lot of it, so I took about a teaspoon and mixed it with roughly equal volumes of fresh flour (King Arthur all purpose) and water. I went a little heavier on the water than I usually do unintentionally, so it's fairly liquidy. I put the rest back in the fridge and set my "fresh" starter on the counter. It's now approaching 24 hrs and altho I've checked several times I've seen zero bubbles. Perhaps because of the extra liquidy consistency, they are popping before I see them.
I'm thinking my next step should be to do basically the same thing again, minus the extra water, and mix that in with what I made yesterday. My thoughts are 1- to get it to a consistency that will help me see bubbles more easily, 2- keep any growth that has happened in the past 24 hrs, and 3- don't dilute it too much where I'll essentially be growing a new starter from scratch.
Really hoping some of you sourdough geniuses are able to offer some help to revive Blob from the dead.
Today's bake: Ukrainian Black Bread - Chornyy Khlib
Source: The Ukrainian Classic Kitchen - Olga Drozd
https://www.ukrainianclassickitchen.ca/index.php?topic=1255.0%20%20%20by%20Olga%20Drozd
Note: Doubled the TDW from .728 kg (2 loaves) to 1.654 kg. (4 loaves).
Substitutions: None
Discussion: I've been looking for a Ukrainian bread that was different from what I'd been seeing and hit upon this one. It's made from ~90% whole rye and ~10% buckwheat flours. I'd say it's typical of many high percentage rye flour breads. After 24 hours of rest, I sliced into it and can report that the crust is tender and the crumb nice and soft. The main flavor is coffee with the buckwheat and rye notes with a touch of sweetness showing up as you chew the crumb.
Olga's description of this bread - "This is not like store bought rye but dense and intense. The bread is indescribably tasty. This amount makes one long skinny loaf, or 2 shorter ones. Slice cracker thin."
Make again? - Yes, definitely.
Changes/Recommendations: Next time I would moderate the the strength of the black coffee a little and I would consider making a larger batch with larger loaves.
Ratings:
The restaurant in Petty Harbour Nfld that always made the best lobster rolls I have ever eaten disappointed me for the first time this past July. Because of that, I decided I wanted to make rolls that I could use to make shrimp rolls. Lobster is crazy expensive at the moment and my partner isn’t a fan of it, so why bother with lobster. I wanted to make the rolls so that two sides could be toasted in butter on my cast iron skillet. The slice in each roll would be vertically cut rather than horizontally so these would not be hotdog buns. This is what I came up with.
Instructions
Levain
Mix the levain ingredients in a jar or pyrex container with space for at least 300% growth.
Press down with your knuckles or silicone spatula to create a uniform surface and to push out air.
At a temperature of 76-78ºF, it typically takes up to 10-12 hours for this sweet stiff levain to be at peak. For my starter I typically see 3-3.5 times increase in size at peak. The levain will smell sweet with only a mild tang.
Tangzhong
In a sauce pan set on medium heat, stir the milk and whole wheat flour until blended. Then cook for several minutes until well thickened, stirring regularly with a spoon or heat-resistant spatula. Let cool in the pan or, for faster results, in a new bowl. Theoretically it should reach 65ºC (149ºF) but I don’t find I need to measure the temperature as the tangzhong gelatinizes at this temperature. You can prepare this the night before and refrigerate it, ensure that it is covered to prevent it from drying out.
If you plan on using a stand mixer to mix this dough, set up a Bain Marie and use your stand mixer’s bowl to prepare the tangzhong.
Dough
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the milk (consider holding back 10 g of milk and adding later if this is the first time you’re making this), egg, tangzhong, salt, sugar and levain. Mix and then break up the levain into many smaller pieces. Next add the flour. I like to use my spatula to mix until there aren’t many dry areas. Allow the flour to hydrate (fermentolyse) for 20-30 minutes. Mix on low speed and then medium speed until moderate gluten development this may take 5-10 mins. You may want to scrape the sides of the bowl during the first 5 minutes of mixing. Next add room temperature butter one pat at a time. The dough may come apart, be patient, continue to mix until it comes together before adding in more butter. Again, knead until well incorporated. You will want to check gluten development by windowpane during this time and stop mixing when you get a good windowpane. You should be able to pull a good windowpane, not quite as good as a white flour because the bran will interrupt the windowpane somewhat. Add the nuts and seeds, then mix again until they are well distributed.
On the counter, shape the dough into a tight ball, cover in the bowl and ferment for 2 - 4 hours at 82ºF. There should be some rise visible at this stage.
You can next place the dough into the fridge to chill the dough for about 1.5 hours, this makes rolling the dough easier to shape. Remember, if you do so the final proof will take longer. Alternatively, you can do a cold retard in the fridge overnight, however, you may find that this increases the tang in your bread.
Prepare your pan by greasing it with butter or line with parchment paper.
Lightly oil the top of the dough. Scrape the dough out onto a clean counter top and divide it into six. I like to weigh them to have equal sized buns. Shape each tightly into a boule, allow to rest 5 mins. Next form each boule into a roll by first flattening it out, then rolling it up pinching the ends if you like smooth ends. Place them side by side in a pan that supports the side, the ends are fine unsupported by the pan.
Cover and let proof for 4-6 hours at a warm temperature. I proof at 82°F. You will need longer than 4-6 hours if you chilled your dough for shaping. I proof until the dough passes the poke test.
Preheat the oven to 350F and brush the dough with the egg-milk wash. Just prior to baking brush with the egg-milk wash again.
Bake the loaves for 30-35 minutes or until the internal temperature is at least 190ºF, rotating as needed to get even browning. Shield your loaf if it gets brown early in the baking process. Cool on a rack and while warm brush with butter if you want the crust to be soft. You can also place them in a plastic bag while they are still warm (not hot).
You Often see CHRISTMAS IN JULY themes which seem to especially appeal to some of us that have moved from cold winter climates to the other side of the Equator. A better time to enjoy a hot roast dinner and its trimmings rather than December days here when a salad and an early morning swim at the beach which is more the norm .
Well it certainly seemed like CHRISTMAS IN JULY when this little present turned up, it wasn't wrapped in fancy paper nor adorned with a bow, but i was just as excited as you see the grand daughters when Santa has stopped by their house
!
i purchased an electric honey spinner from this mob before and it worked perfectly and helped me to harvest 18 kgs of honey fro my first year as a bee keeper (looking forward to the up and coming season with lots of flowers and weeds growing well and the warmer days returning.
i digress the Spiral mixer is 8litre or 3kg dough capacity its fairly basic with a single speed and a non removable spiral and bowl but no problem to clean especially if you do it as soon as you have finished the mix.
I have mixed 2 doughs so far a Cinnamon Scroll dough where i used a paste made from dates in the scrolls and the other one was a Toasted Lupin Flake dough i will pot those up soon as soon as i have reduced the picture size
