The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

31st bake. 01/16/2021. Minor revamp of 30th. Mini miche!

idaveindy's picture
idaveindy

31st bake. 01/16/2021. Minor revamp of 30th. Mini miche!

Jan. 16, 2021. This turned out to be a mini-miche.

The goals for this bake are to tweak the previous bake, #30, by increasing the percent of whole wheat, pre-soak the add-ins, and weigh some things so others can better replicate it if they want.  The poppy seeds and maybe the corn meal in the previous bake were not quite soft enough for my liking.

First mix. All mixing and folding-in was done with a silicone spatula/scraper.

  • 15 fl oz water, 443 grams. Water was weighed, and the volume computed.
  • 1.5 tsp poppy seeds.
  • 2 tbsp chia seeds. These tend to clump in water. I had to break them apart several times.
  • 2 tbsp ground flax.
  • 2 tbsp quick oats, not instant.
  • 2 tbsp corn meal, not flour, but fine grind.
  • 1 tbsp jaggery, a.k.a. brown sugar.
  • 1 tsp ground bread spice. A mixture of sesame, coriander, caraway, and fennel, that was first toasted and then ground.
  • 1 tsp raw (ie not toasted) whole caraway seed.
  • 1-1/8 tsp salt.

The above was left to soak about 10 to 15 minutes.

  • 2 cups, 339 grams, of Bob's Red Mill stone ground whole wheat. This was measured by a 1/2 cup measure and weighed. I used the "scoop and shake" method, so figure 170 grams per cup with this measuring method.
  • I let it soak a while. 5 to 10 minutes.
  • 2 tbsp fat-free powdered milk, the instant-dissolving kind. Mixed/folded the dough  some.
  • Heaping 1/8 tsp of instant dry yeast. Mixed/folded it in.
  • 1 tsp sourdough starter, 100% hyd, 2 days since fed, stored in fridge. Mixed/folded in.
  • At this point, the dough felt a bit airy or foamy, not dense, not watery. I don't know if this feeling is due to the add-ins trapping tiny bubbles of air, or if the WW flour did that.
  • Let it soak a while, maybe 5 minutes.

The following was added in 3 stages, 3 sets of (water, folded in, then flour, folded in):

  • 69 grams (weighed) water, which calculates to 1/4 cup + 2 tsp.
  • 1-1/4 cup King Arthur Bread flour, 200 gr, both measured (.5 cup, .5 cup, .25 cup) by scoop and shake, and then weighed.
  • These were folded in until well mixed.

Then, because I had forgotten:

  • 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, folded in until mixed.

I then put the dough mass on some wax paper, cleaned the bowl, put the dough back in the bowl to weigh.  1151 grams total dough weight. I then drizzled about 1/2 tsp of regular olive oil around the perimeter and rolled the dough around to oil the dough and the bowl to reduce sticking.

% WW = 339 / 539 = 62.9%.

Hydration, not counting add-ins (because I didn't weigh them) = 512 / 539 = 95%.

Finished mixing all of it at 11:53 AM.

1:03 pm - 1 set of stretch and folds.

2:00 pm - 1 set of stretch and folds.

3:13 pm - 1 set of stretch and folds.  The dough feels good. My gut feel is that this is going to be a good loaf.

4:45 pm - The dough seemed ready, so... folded, shaped, put it in a lined banneton dusted with 50/50 mix of rice flour and bread flour.  I used the 8" (I.D., 8.5" O.D.) banneton, but after I put it in, I started thinking I should have used the next bigger one. Put plastic wrap from the bulk ferment over the banneton, plus a rubber band.  Put it in oven at same warm temp. (Not sure what temp, but  I keep it consistently over the "E" on the oven thermometer.)

5:16 pm - Checked on it. It had grown a bit, so transfered it to the 9.15" (I.D., 9.7" O.D.) banneton. I had used an oversized liner, so it was easy. Put the banneton in a plastic grocery bag, and into the fridge. 

This size banneton means that the loaf will be baked on the lid portion (also 9" I.D.) of the Lodge combo cooker, with the deep part as the cover.

6:00 pm - Started to pre-heat oven, 490* / 465 F.

Inverted the dough over parchment paper, brushed off excess dusting flour, and scored a #.  I flubbed the transfer of the parchment and dough to the hot dutch oven lid. You can see some unevenness.

  • Bake started at 6:53 pm.
  • Baked 10 min at 475/450, covered.
  • Baked 10 min at 465/440, covered.
  • Baked 10 min at 455/430, covered.
  • Uncovered after 30 min., flat, but nice separation at the scores.
  • Baked 10 min at 425/400, uncovered.
  • Baked 10 min at 415/390, uncovered.
  • Total time: 50 min. Final inner temp 208.8 F.

--

* First number is thermostat setting, second number is a cheapy oven thermometer that I keep in it. They differ by 25 degrees F.

The white paper plate is 9" diameter.

Top view:

45 degree view:

Side view:

Crumb:

The crust looks thick, but it's soft and chewy, the way I like it.

Comments

idaveindy's picture
idaveindy

This wider loaf, baked on the lid, is too wide for the 1 gallon plastic zipper bags, so I cut it open after a couple hours so I could put it in the bag overnight.

The taste, immediately upon cutting open, was not as good as the previous loaf was after letting it sit several more hours.

I shared a slice with a neighbor who said it was good.

Today, I ate a slice, and now it is as good or better than the previous loaf. Aging it a few hours really brings out the flavor, even for a yeasted loaf.

Usually, complex loaves with add-ins aren't so good for dipping in olive oil. But this one is great dipped in extra virgin olive oil.

--

Pre-soaking the add-ins removed the fine grit feel of the poppy seeds and maybe the corn meal too.

BXMurphy's picture
BXMurphy

I like that crumb! Is it chewy?...it looks like it has a nice mouth-feel.

That's what I call a hearty loaf. It screams for a nice, stout beer. Maybe even cut it with a Pilsner. What are you topping or using it with?

I'm jealous of your adventure. Good job! I do believe that when someone gets to adding all the nuts and seeds, they've become bored with ordinary bead. With a 31st bake, you've taken boredom.-busting to a whole new level!

Murph

idaveindy's picture
idaveindy

It's hard for me to describe the chewiness of the crumb. My normal loaves are 90% coarse-milled home-milled WW.

This is 63% BRM stone-milled red-wheat  WW which is a finer grind than my home-milled.

BRM WW has some kind of attribute or quality that traps tiny bubbles of air, such that the dough feels a bit "foamy" before any fermentation occurs.  It could also be the poppy seed, chia seed, ground flax seed, or corn meal that is contributing to the foaminess feel of the yet-to-be-fermented dough.

The poppy seeds and corn meal definitely need pre-soaking. The chia sort-of do.

idaveindy's picture
idaveindy

For these BRM WW loaves, I've only eaten plain, or dipped in EV olive oil. Actually gave a lot away. 

My idea for the seed add-ins is to add fiber and oil to make up for the bran-less germ-less white flour in the loaf. Though I think the corn meal is endosperm only.

Chia seed and especially flaxseed are high in oil.

Actually, the high portion white flour was to make it more palatable for some neighbors who I would like to recruit to bread-baking.  bake #30 was very light crumb, hard to believe it was 50% WW.