The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

What is This Anyway?

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

What is This Anyway?

Usually Lucy comes up with a recipe and tells me what to do and then I do my best to execute her recipe wishes as closely as possible or risk having my ankles savaged by a wild beast, small in leg length.  Then I tell you all about it.  This time was a bit different.

Lucy put everything together and she said …..‘OK Master, what kind of bread is this and how was it made?  It’s time to find out if you know your stuff or not or at least to know it well enough to know it when you see it.  Then she showed me the photos and said take your best shot at guessing what this is.

I have to admit that I didn’t do as well as I thought I would but I also thought you all might be better at figuring this out as a group.  So here goes.

What kind of bread is this? What kind of grains and flour were used.  Is it SD?  How was the levain made? Was it autolysed? Was it retarded?   What is the hydration? What is that add-in? How was it made?  Now knowing Lucy helps a lot and watching her recipes over the last several years is full of hints and answers.  So good luck with it.

I’ve decided to pair it with homemade, smoked pastrami that is currently on the smoker for the 4th of July Holiday – Yum!  Happy Birthday America!

 

 

 

Comments

Yippee's picture
Yippee

My brain is in long weekend mode, so I'll just wait for the answers.  Whatever it is, the crumb looks fantastic.  It definitely makes a good sandwich bread.  So, what is it?

Happy Baking and Happy 4th, DBM

Yippee

 

 

 

 

 

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

tasty and it will make for some fine Ruben's.  Enjoy the holiday weekend!

Danni3ll3's picture
Danni3ll3

Caraway, Fennel, Anise, Coriander. At least that is my best guess from looking at some of your past bakes.

So with those add ins, it would make sense that the dark greyish dough is all rye or part rye and whole grain of some kind made from your 66% rye starter that you keep in the fridge. These grains were probably sprouted, dried and milled over a few days. They are also likely to constitute at least 40% of your total dough since you like whole grains in your bread due to health reasons. 

Going with some of Lucie's usual methods, the starter was fed the sifted out bran from the rye (or rye/whole grain combo) and built in 3 stages before being refrigerated to develop the sour. 

As to the white dough, I am really not sure what it would be. I need to do more creeping of your breads to figure it out. 

Somehow, this feels like stalking. Hope you are aware of that. 

Danni3ll3's picture
Danni3ll3

I think I have the grains figured out. To quote you: " It was 75% white flour half LaFama AP and half KA bread flour with 25% home sprouted and milled 3 grain flour of wheat, spelt and rye." from 3 Grain Sprouted White Sourdough with Sprouts added in. The dough pictures look very similar in both recipes. So roughly 75% hydration but I still think that the split is 60/40 for white flour to whole grains or maybe a bit less such as 65/35. It definitely is more than your other recipe. 

How am I doing so far?

 

Ru007's picture
Ru007

I see Lucy is playing little mind games today!

The only thing i can say is that it looks like you folded in the add ins or rolled the dough (no slaps here), because they aren't evenly distributed. I don't think this one was retarded, just because if Danni is right and its got a fair amount of rye i would think that you'd retard it?

Hydration? Hmmm... maybe 75% - 80%, it looks quite wet, but it doesn't look like shaping it was a problem for you.

That's the best i can come up with! 

Well, whatever it is, it looks really great. Love the look of the crumb. Great bake Dab!

Why do you say you didn't do as well as you thought you would? What were you aiming for? 

Happy baking :)

Mini Oven's picture
Mini Oven

I have to agree with Danni.  

Mini  

PalwithnoovenP's picture
PalwithnoovenP

I'm not gonna give any additional hypothesis. That looks very beautiful and tasty.

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

I've got a challenge bread coming out tomorrow on America's Birthday about another countries liberty and freedom  so look for it.  Glad you liked the bread and 

Happy Baking Job

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

you have been paying attention and are just as perceptive.  Well done.  o ave to say you did better than I did and I got to smell it as it baked - it was lovely due to the 5% black and brown caraway (half the mix), fennel, coriander and anise seed add in as Danni expertly spied out.  These were toasted and then lightly ground in a spice mill.

The grains were 40% whole grains, right again with 80% of them sprouted rye and 20% sprouted wheat.  The 60% remaining was half LaFama AP and half KA Bread Flour - right again - Danni has been stalking.  I suppose one give away was the cocktail rye bread pan!  Lucy's favorite sandwich breads seem follow a similar path.

The levain was a 3 stage build with the sprouted bran the first to go in the mix and it was retarded overnight.  The starter was the 66% hydration NMNF rye one too.  Danni is uncanny in a nice if creepy way:-) 

RU007 was quite the spy when it came to the rest of the methods.  Since the dough was not retarded as she she said the levain was upped to 20% pre - fermented flour, instead of 10% for the summer,  since rye breads require acid and we didn't have a 20 hour retard to count on to proof the bread.  We did do 3 sets of slap and folds and then incorporated the aromatic toasted seeds on the first set of stretch and folds just like she said and we only did 2 sets, 4 folds each from the compass points so the seeds were not as fully incorporated as they could have been which led to Mini's marbled streaking in the crumb.

We proofed this one to 75% and then baked it off where it sprang and bloomed beautifully.  I suppose that the other hint was the smoked pastrami it was to be paired with so there you go.  40% Sprouted Cocktail Rye Sourdough with Aromatic Seeds.

Now for those Rubens with pan fried bacon and vinegar cabbage, with home made: vinegar, Dijon mustard and kosher dill pickles.  I have to say I am truly amazed at how well you gals figured out this bread.

Well done and happy baking.  

 

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

the fat to fry, brown and then steam the cabbage with some vinegar added at the end.  I like to put the pastrami and bacon on top of the cabbage and cover to steam - pastrami is always better when it is steamed if you like Katz's method.  Katz's wouldn't have the bacon of course and they would't have home made mustard, vinegar or this great Jewish Deli Rye Bread either:-)

Then you assemble with the mustard on one side and Munster on the other piece of bread, butter up the bread and fry until toasted on both sides - served with home made kosher Dill pickles.  That new ceramic pan is just perfect for this kind of cooking - and nothing ever sticks to it,

Enjoy the 4th of July everyone and if you live in NY go to Katz's today and get a sandwich for tomorrow......

Danni3ll3's picture
Danni3ll3

Yum!

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

Have a great 4th of July

Yippee's picture
Yippee

It's really a torture looking at your food, which I cannot have, around midnight, when my stomach is rumbling!

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

Nothing like a summer celebration!  Yummy indeed!

PalwithnoovenP's picture
PalwithnoovenP

Everything is homemade. You said homemade vinegar? How  do you make it?

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

'mother', time and wine.  My mother is many years old now and I just keep pouring off vinegar and pouring in wine. 

PalwithnoovenP's picture
PalwithnoovenP

Our town has reputation for having excellent vinegar. It's 8 years now that we've been harvesting and fermenting our own. We never use a mother; the "wine" is just left to ferment on its own for a fortnight then aged for better flavor. The process is big and dramatic every year still using traditional tools and crockery. Our home fermented vinegar is the best one I've tasted too.

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

If you strain your vinegar you will find a mother there that can be used to make more vinegar.

Isand66's picture
Isand66

Awesome bread and I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to play along.  I'm sure this one must taste perfect and that sandwhich looks amazing!  I'm not a big cooked cabbage fan so I might have to leave that out along with the mustard :).  I know that's blasphemy but I'm more of a Thousand Island guy...

Can't wait to see your next creation.

I'm about to put an experimental porridge loaf in the oven.  Not so sure how this one is going to turn out though..stay tuned.

Happy 4th to you, Lucy and your family.

 

dabrownman's picture
dabrownman

mustard.  This was a pretty tasty sandwich for sure but a lot of work if you make it all from scratch.  At least we didn't grow the cabbage and the grain:-)  Hope your 4th was as nice as ours and that your porridge bread turns out OK.  Lucy sends her best to here furry friends and 

Happy baking Ian

Reynard's picture
Reynard

And an equally appetising sandwich, Dabrownman :-) (Lexi's looking with envy at the pastrami...)

We've been keeping bread things very simple here of late as things have been rather busy, what with one thing and another. No-knead breads have been a real life-saver... Got one on the go that's 60% strong white flour, 20% wholegrain and 20% light rye.

The girls send purrs and headbutts to you and Lucy.