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I made this bread back in June and really liked it then. It was one of the breads I wanted to repeat. Because of time, I changed the method and ingredients a bit and used a bit less cereal and water. For some reason, this dough seemed extremely wet when it came to shaping but it is hard to compare it to the other dough because I bulk fermented that one in the fridge, shaped it cold and proofed it on the counter. This one was bulk fermented in a warm place and proofed in the fridge. I think I got a bit more oven spring with the first method but both recipes turned out quite nice.

I finally got around to trying my hand at DMSynder’s San Joaquin Sourdough recipe, one that I bookmarked years ago, but hadn’t got around to trying for no good reason.  I used the “Updated” SJSD recipe post, though he left me know he’s made some updates to the update, so next time I’ll make the latest tweaks as well.

The ciabatta, something I've not made in a long time, is the result of a request from new friends that own an Italian restaurant who complain of a lack of good bread in our area and wanted an easy recipie so they could make their own. Go figure everyone seems to want that but when you tell them that good bread takes time and technique they mostly lose interest.

We are looking for help in our Waltham bakery, Bread Obsession - including delivery and logistics plus bread baking.   We will train.   If you know of anyone who is interested, please have them get in touch.   http://boston.craigslist.org/bmw/fbh/5758711840.html
Thank you.

Varda Haimo

Bread Obsession

My blog posting pattern has clearly established itself – long periods of silence, short bursts of “catch up” posts with highlights from the months prior.  Not unlike Steven Jay Gould’s punctuated equilibrium theory of evolution I suppose.  Ah well.  Here goes another one, as I’ve been radio silent for a while now!

Oatmeal Buttermilk Sandwich bread.  So good, especially when you rub hot crust with a stick of butter just out of the oven.

    Based on one of David Snyder's' popular formulas  this one includes dried cherries and a maple smoked cheddar cheese I picked up on my last trip to Vermont while visiting King Arthur Flour to stock up.

I used about half freshly milled whole wheat along with KAF French style flour and a little bit of fresh milled rye.

The end result was a tasty bread but I was disappointed in the crumb as it was a little too tight.  I think I would up the water content even more to compensate for the large portion of freshly ground whole wheat next time.

Instead of spending 5 days making a loaf of bread this week Lucy and I made a batch of Red Rye Malt - which takes just as long -5 days.

All you have to do is sprout rye berries or about 4 days or so until the shoot, not the 3 rootlets that come out first, is at least as long as the seed itself.  The rootlets will be 5 times that long by then.  Then you dry the malted berries over about 5 hours at 105 F.

I love a seedy, nutty loaf.  A dear, old friend of mine would have teased me by calling this a "sticks and leaves" loaf.  Mind you, he was the one with the Birkenstocks, but I digress.  This Treehugger Special was inspired by my taste for heavily seeded, toothsome loaves, as well as my curiosity about porridge breads.  (Oh, and I bought a bag of buckwheat flour that I really wanted to experiment with -- I'm a newbie to buckwheat.  A nubuck.  I won't quit my day job.)   I've read many an Ode to Oat paying homage to Robertson's oat porridge loaf.

Okay, I'm quite sure one is not allowed to have this much fun while baking bread. :) With all the ideas purcolating through my head, many sparked by questions and comments on this site, I decided to go a little nuts with this weekend's fun bake.

My husband is a dark chocolate fiend.  I love to throw dinner parties and no matter how lovely my finale dessert may be, he teasingly chides, "if it isn't chocolate, it isn't worth eating."  (Of course, his empty plate and disheveled napkin bear witness to the contrary....)  So, this one is for the Hubbin!!