February 12, 2007 - 1:40pm
Hard Amber Durum
"Flour Power" by Basey recommends hard amber durum, not as a stand alone, but in moderation as a loaf enhancer. Have you used it and what are your findings?
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"Flour Power" by Basey recommends hard amber durum, not as a stand alone, but in moderation as a loaf enhancer. Have you used it and what are your findings?
Durum wheat is commonly associated with pastas. I've never used it in making bread. I find Basey's comment and labeling of durum flour as an "enhancer" interesting. Louis Degouy in "The Bread Tray" (a deceased author and his classic book) writes this about durum.
"Durum flour is milled from durum wheat, grown mostly in the northwest section of the United States. It has a yellowish creamy color and a large amount of very hard and tough gluten. It is not satisfactory for bread making purposes unless blended with a weaker flour."
This raises a few interesting thoughts... If one uses durum wheat flour is one actually degrading the quality of one's bread? Is Basey's suggestion a thinly veiled sales pitch for an over-produced wheat to take buying pressure off the higher grades of bread-making flours? Are the times changing and tastes with them? Dunno.
Cliff. Johnston
"May the best you've ever seen,
Be the worst you'll ever see;"
from A Scots Toast by Allan Ramsay