Hello!

I was a home baker and decided to find a job in a bakery to learn about professional baking.  Now I am employed at a restaurant as the baker - expected to fill the bread basket for a higher-end meal in the middle of nowhere (high end hear is probably not high-end in a city).  I usually make a country white loaf (a little whole wheat thrown in) and sometimes add rosemary and/or olives, etc.

OK - so we have ONLY Convection ovens and the air flow does not turn off, ever.  

I begin work at 7 am, Friday morning and work 5 days.  So.. my idea of good flavored bread from home baking was to retard the loaves overnight.  I don't work Thursday to make that happen Friday - and  there is no room in the fridge for bread.  So - I use a sourdough starter to try to add flavor but use yeast to get the rise in time for dinner. 

Any suggests in improving bread quality?  I have not been using steam in the convection ... someone mentioned brushing water onto the loaves before putting them in the oven.  Would this help the crust? 

Also - for taste quality I have already mentioned using a sourdough culture to add flavor.  I have been adjusting the yeast amounts to find the perfect amount to add without overpowering the sourdough flavor - if that is possible.  So far, I bake about 24 1.5 pound loaves (about 3 pounds starter, 9 pounds flour, down to 1 T + 1 tsp active yeast.) 

Which is another issue for me (and maybe it isn't an issue) - I am supplied with Active Yeast and so I must use hot water to wake up the yeast.  I do not add all hot water - usually just a percentage of the water is used to waken the yeast... but maybe I should insist on Instant?

Could someone in the professional world give me advice? 

I seek a thin, crunchy crust and nutty flavor.   

Thanks in advance!

-

Elise