The Fresh Loaf

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Oven turned into a bread machine

ordep's picture
ordep

Oven turned into a bread machine

I have been looking into how to ge fresh bread also during the week in the morning before going to work. In the weekend I had tried already to do the final proofing overnight in the fridge. In the morning all I had to do was put the bread straight out of the fridge into a pre heated oven.

 

This morning I tried a different thing: In the evening at 10 pm I took 200g of dough from a batch I have in the fridge for a couple of days now. A sourdough at 68% hydration and 30% WW. I shaped it and put it in the small loaf pan. The pan went directly into a cold oven and the oven was set to turn on for 40 minutes in the morning at 230C. Below are the pictures of the result:

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I am really happy with the results.The 40 minutes includes the oven getting up to temperature, but next time I will try 30 or 35 since it looks like it could do with a little less time.

barryvabeach's picture
barryvabeach

Wow,  that looks pretty impressive since you had to guess at proofing times.  Keep us updated.

ordep's picture
ordep

After eating the bread for lunch I can confirm the taste was delicious. Also it really needs less time in the oven as the crust started to become too dry and the bottom was just slightly burned, presumably because I had placed the pan right on the bottom of the oven.

This evening I will give it another try. What I will adjust is:

-Place the pan in the middle of the oven. 

-Set the oven to switch on in the morning for 30 minutes at 230C, it takes 20 minutes to get up to 230C, it will then have another 10 min at 230C and finally it might be in there 5 more minutes before I can get to it in the morning.

-Proofing time looked good, so will still take the dough out of the fridge into the oven at 10pm and set it to switch on between 5:45-6:15 am.

Will be back tomorrow with the results.

dobie's picture
dobie

Yeah, that looks pretty good ordep

I'll bet it's a little easier waking up in the morning with the smell of fresh bread baking.

dobie

ordep's picture
ordep

It sure does!  

swanky_baking's picture
swanky_baking

I love this idea! Does the loaf dry out while just sitting in the oven all night? In my experience I have never left dough to proof in a dry environment. I've also never used a bread machine.

ordep's picture
ordep

Could be that sitting uncovered in the oven makes the top dry out a little more, but the bottom of the loaf was also too dry, so I think it really is mostly to do with the time in the oven. 

This reminds me, I could also spray a little mist of water over the top before putting in the oven in the evening.

dobie's picture
dobie

ordep

That crossed my mind, but it didn't seem like you had a problem with that.

Rather than a spray, maybe a tray of water on the bottom rack would keep the oven hydration up enough to negate it, if you felt it were a problem.

dobie

swanky_baking's picture
swanky_baking

If you love how it turns out that is what matters. A bit of moisture has always helped my proof.

ordep's picture
ordep

This morning was my second attempt. The oven was on for 30 minutes set at 230C and I took the bread out 10 minutes after the oven switched off. The bottom was no longer burned, it was even still a bit soft, so next time I might try putting the pan on the bottom again. I will stay with 30 minutes total time as that looks good.

The top was a bit hard and dry, but I attribute that to the overfilling of the pan. I used 300 grams this time and a little had spilled to the sides. Perhaps that is not the best way of forming a nice crust.

Adjustment for next time:

  • don't overfill the pan ( at least now I now what overfilling is, 250 grams for the small pan seems to be the max)
  • put the pan back on the bottom for a better crust.

 

This is the container with dough in the fridge: 

1

The shaped loaf in the oven at 10pm, with a little water on top:

2

How it came out of the oven this morning at 6:25 am:

3

 

The inside:4

dobie's picture
dobie

ordep

I think you are on to it with the thought of of 250g rather than 200 or 300g. You have probably found that sweet spot.

Did you spray it as you put it to rest?

Interesting how the time/rack placement worked out.. Pretty darn well it seems, but I could see going back down a rack with the same time/temp.

If you think the top is dehydrating, I would suggest a water pan, just to keep the oven hydration up over night.

Personally, I like an open crumb like that, but I can understand a critique that it is a little top light.

It is not an easy experiment you are taking on.

I think your plan is sound and tomorrow will probably be spot on.

I remember the first time I awoke to the smell of fresh coffee brewing on the timer. Again, this must be heaven. What if it were the aroma of fresh coffee and bread that awoke you? I don't know if I could handle that. I would just might have to take the day off.

Looking forward to tomorrow.

dobie

ordep's picture
ordep

I didn't use spray since the loaf pan has a non-stick layer. But this time it stuck a little to the sides, so I might use a little bit of butter next time.

Third time and it is getting better. I used a bigger loaf pan with 750 grams of dough, it looks like this pan has room for even a little more. The top crust was much better now, without the dough spilling out it did not dry out anymore.

Oven was on for 30 minutes again at 230C. The placement of the loaf pan was again directly on the oven bottom like the in the first try. The bottom crust is now a bit better than when the pan was in the middle of the oven, it is just ever so slightly burned and I might try placing it on a stone in the bottom of the oven next time.

I am pretty happy with the results. A free standing bread baked using steam in a pre heated oven on a thick stone tastes better and has better crust, but this is the best bread I can get at 6:30am after having slept all night!

Some pictures:

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dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

Looks like they are paying off and working well.

Happy baking 

dobie's picture
dobie

ordep

I was just referring to your thought of spraying water on the top of the loaf, but a spray of oil (or smear of butter) on the tin is a good idea as well.

So, other then that it looks great, maybe 800g rather than 750?

You are really dialing it in. And once you do, I will rip it off. I think my oven can do that trick, but I haven't yet tried it. There are obviously great rewards.

dobie

ordep's picture
ordep

Ah yes, I do make the top a little wet before putting it in the oven at night. Either with a spray or just using my wet hands. This morning I baked another loaf in the same way. This time the bottom got burned but the rest of the loaf tasted great. So time and heat is good, just need to get the right amount of heat to the bottom with the right placement.

Next time I will try placing a thick stone on the bottom of the oven and place the loaf pan directly on the stone. This way I hope the bottom will get slightly less heat than when it is placed directly on the bottom of the oven.

dobie's picture
dobie

ordep

If you get a chance to post pics of today's bake, however failed, I'd love to see them.

I'm thinking that the stone will be effective, but perhaps too much so. If so, maybe a slight time/temp adjustment (minus the stone) would work. But you'll find out, I'm sure. Keep experimenting, no matter the back up of the bread flow. You must be swimming in it by now.

Thanks about the 'wetting' of the top. That was a big question for me.

Keep going,

dobie

ordep's picture
ordep

Yes, I guess I need to try it once with the stone to see if it gives more heat to the the bottom than placing it on the rack. If the stone blocks the heat too much, I could try lifting the pan just a little off the bottom.

I have three more hungry mouths to feed here so we are able to finish most of the bread. Today I finished the batch of dough I had in the fridge, so the experiments will continue next week. For the weekend I am preparing my first 100% WW SD bread. But that one I will bake as a freestanding loaf on Saturday and Sunday morning, most likely after slow proofing in the fridge during the night.

Here is what is left of the loaf from this morning. The missing part on the bottom is because it remained stuck to the bottom of the pan. Some oil or butter might have prevented it from getting stuck, but it would still have been burned. Even now at 9pm the bread still feels nice and moist and is very tasty (could not stop myself from having a slice with home made almond butter :) )

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dobie's picture
dobie

ordep

Good luck with that. Seriously, not easy to do. I wish you luck.

You really are getting your morning bread zeroed in tho.

There is no reward without risk. And the risk is more the cost of time than the flour.

dobie