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This weekend, I baked another version of my San Francisco-style Sourdough and Hamelman's Flaxseed Rye Bread. 

Whole wheat flour sourdough power

This isn't a bread picture blog and I apologize. It is more of a catch-up blog for those who have wondered where I have been and what I have been doing in my baking career. No, I am not conceeded, I just remember one or two people asking what I have been up too while I pop in-n-out of TFL on occasions.

This is my version of the flaxseed rye posted by hansjoakim a couple of weeks ago.  I couldn’t resist this one.  Not only would it satisfy my ongoing and inexplicable craving for flaxseeds, but it also provided an opportunity to use-up some of the old bread I’ve had frozen and waiting for just such an occasion. 

The first time I made limoncello I used the skins of 7 lemons per liter of grain alcohol and let the the grain sit on the skins for 20 days to extract the oil from skins and then let it age another 20 days to mello after straining filtering and cutting with sugar syrup 5o-50.  I used 454 g of sugar per liter of water and liter of lemon oil alcohol extraction.  It was a real Amalfi Coast recipe from Villa di Marie but I didn't like it that much even though it tasted just like the too many samples I had in Italy and couldn't get enough of. 

These sweet little jewels are made with home made puff paste and lemon curd with a little dollop of cream cheese to make it interesting.

My first attempt this bread I concocted came out excellent with a nice moist open crumb and crisp crust.  I decided it was time to try it again and change-up some of the flours and grains used in the soaker.  I just picked up some Bulgar Wheat so I decided to add that to the soaker along with rolled oats, malt rye berries, oat bran and cracked wheat.  I also used a different mix of

As a "no knead" graduate, I'm used to making high hydration, slack doughs, slumped into loaves which are only vaguely "boule" shaped. Tasty enough, full of "rustic charm", but definitely not pretty.

I want pretty. So I've picked up some banneton, and am training myself to use more flour than seems right, on the understanding that stiffer dough will be easier for a beginner to shape.

And so, this is a slightly stiffer version of Saus' "San Francisco Sourdough Bread". The formula calls for 69% hydration; this is 63%.