After many months, I have baked loaves from straight dough again, besides my pretty regular Zopf. I had refreshed my starters on Friday, but then the weekend presented itself in a way that I just couldn't keep up with a lengthy sourdough schedule, so in the fridge they went again, unused.
I made JoeVa's sourdough with Durum Flour and while very tasty there are more holes than crumb. Anyone know why? I followed his formula but added 1 TBLS. vital wheat gluten because I was using all purpose flour with the durum and thought the AP might need a boost. When I took it out of the fridge this morning it looked ready to bake so as soon as the oven was ready I put one in then baked the other when the first came out. This photo is of the second loaf. The crumb was not as open on the first but almost. You can see I did not get the lift that Joe got.
I baked two batches of bread today, the first being a batch of Whole Wheat Seeded Rolls.
I used the master recipe from Jeff Hertzberg and Zoë François's new book Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day as the base for these. Portlanders: Jeff and Zoë are going to be at Powell's Tuesday evening.
I end a period of inactivity with a picture of croissants!
Well, I tried it: two different starters, each handled to emphasize yeast activity in one, flavor production (sourness) in the second. I have three starters, all from commercial sources. Two were purchased online, the third came from a well-known bakery, with even more well-known bakers. I chose one of the online-sourced starters; it's been consistently more active (measured by proofing times, and oven-spring) than the other two, and I chose the bakery-one for its good, but not overwhelming, sourness. I maintain the first starter at 100% hydration, I keep the second one at 67% hydration.
My love story with the kitchen started at a very young age,but before I could actually step into the field of the professionals ,I had to go through a short experience practicing law at a law office.That experience only pushed me further to search for my real destination,and soon enough I packed my bags and flew all the way to Paris,France ,where my real journey has all started....
Altogether I stayed in France about 5 years,getting a first hand experience,first at Lenotre pastry school
and then in different Pastry boutiques in Paris,including Stohrer
This bread is another of my "everyday sourdough" (I do not bake everyday! just ones in the weekend, and one pizza baking every week).
As I begin to work my way through Dan Lepard's The Handmade Loaf, there is a bread pictured on the inside cover that got me wondering. It looks like a boule with an appendage twisted with pointed tips and makes me think of a handle to hold while carrying or cutting. Dan didn't identify the bread by name and I haven't seen anything like it before so until I hear otherwise from Dan or someone who knows the real name, I'm calling it Medieval Bread.
