My First Danish Rye (Rugbrot)
Today I baked a Danish Rye from Chad Robertson's formula. It was a long time coming as I have been trying to get a rye starter up and living (Thanks again Mini!). Finally, it is healthy and alive. This means I was able to bake this bread that has been on my mind for 3 weeks. With a few pointers from Jorgen (breaducation) and Phil (PiPs), I think it turned out a success. Of course the proof will be after the painful wait of 24 hours that this bread needs to rest. I couldn't help but cut a few slices off the side after 6 hours of rest just to get some crumb shots - and a greedy taste. Tastes great so far, but I think it needs to set up. Still a bit on the damp side. Also, the one mistake I made was to dust the top of the bread with ground up sunflower and flax seeds instead of just simple flour. I guess the seeds dried out during the long bake and now have a tough and hard/crunchy texture. The other three sides of the crust are fine, just the top is a problem. Next time I will simply dust with flour.
Couldn't resist trying out an authentic way of enjoying this bread. You know the saying, if in Vancouver, eat as the World eats. A few Smorrebrod, Danish sandwich variations.
Herring with pickled shallot, creme fraiche and fresh cracked pepper.
Alder smoked salmon with cream cheese and dill yogurt
I am hooked on this crazy Danish sandwich. So many possibilities, so little bake time.
John