Shiao-Ping's Orange Turmeric Pain au Levain with Yeast Water
I love the smell of this bread. This is what makes it so alluring and eventually delicious. Stunning toasted. I cut the recipe in half. My Mandarin, Minneola, Apple Yeast Water (don't ask) was used to build the levain over 2 days with 12 hour feedings. It was eventually ready at 250 g and I used a like weight of flours but added 5% WW and 5% spelt to the 5% rye and lowered the white flour a like amount. I had a 5 hour bulk ferment with 3 S&F's at each of the first 3 hours and a 9 hour retard with a 4 hour final proof. The bulk and final proofs could have each been 2 hours longer but I got impatient and the rise was not a high as it could have been. This is a very fine bread with open crumb, chewy texture, aromatic and delicious. The varied citrus YWwent went well with the Minneola juice that was part of the liquid for the dough. It was great to be able to find a bread where the YW was so perfectly matched to it. Lucky indeed. I will make this bread often - and be more patient....... since patience comes to those who wait ........a long long time.
My lentil soup used homemade chicken stock and the leftover caramelized onion and smoke pork jowl from isand66's bacon, cheese and onion bread I baked this morning. I also added some whole Thai chilies for heat. No chicken required because of the hog jowl.. The soup was so simple and delicious. A perfect foil for the beautiful yellow bread. A very fine combination. Thanks Shiao-Ping