The Fresh Loaf

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help please, bread falls apart

glenlhein's picture
glenlhein

help please, bread falls apart

I've been experimenting with Einkorn flour from Jovial foods. I've been having a problem where the top portion of the loaf falls apart. It's like there's a air buble about one inch below the surface that runs the entire length of the loaf.

My ingedients are:

5 cups flour1.5 cups water (105-110F)
2.25 teaspoons of yeast (red star)
2 tablespoons olive oil

Note: I don't include salt because I'm trying to keep my sodium intake down.

Mix the dry ingedients then add liquids. Knead with kitchen aid mixer for about 5 minutes. Place in covered bowl and let rise for 90 minutes. Knead lightly, shape, place in bread pan, let rise for 30 minutes. Bake at 375F for 40 minutes.

Overall, I'm very happy with the flavor and texture of the bread, but I would love to solve the falling-apart problem.

If it helps, I can upload a picture of the defect in a few hours.

Thanks for any help!

 

BobBoule's picture
BobBoule

I have been exclusively baking with Jovial's Einkorn flour for a bit over a year now. I found that Einkorn is unique in just about every possible way that is important. Yes, you can make a decent bread with it but it seems to defy the rules that apply to all other strains of wheat.

First I recommend that you switch to weighing your flour, get a decent digital scale if you don't already have one. Flour settles over time and the amount the fits into one cup increases over time. You will eventually get to a point where every loaf will fail. Weighing all the ingredients will give you very consistent results.

Salt is necessary to control the activity of the yeast (otherwise they grow like crazy and make huge air bubbles). It also contributes greatly to taste. I also have family members that are sensitive to salt but its necessary in bread, just use the recommended amount and cut salt out of their diet elsewhere.

It seems that you might be using a bit too little water but I can't really tell because measuring with cups instead of weighing is unreliable.

All my recipes call for allowed the dough to develop its flavor for 18 hours to three days, I think that two hours is not enough to really get Einkorn's unique flavor to come through completely.

If you decide to go with a No Knead type recipe let me know and I'll give you a starting formula (I also use olive oil in my Einkorn bread) that works for everyone I have shared with it. Einkorn is a bit fussy in so many ways that I think the No Knead method really helps you get a good loaf consistently (if you have a dutch oven or cloche to bake it in).