Blog posts

Doughnuts.... Time to make the doughnuts!

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My husband woke up Saturday morning to an early morning show featuring the best doughnuts in the country.  So he announces he wants doughnuts for breakfast.  Unfortunately, doughnuts are not like pancakes or waffles that you can just whip up without notice.  He had to settle for sourdough (from starter scraps) waffles with fresh raspberries and cream and of course, bacon.  And then I got off to starting the doughnuts for next day's breakfast.

Susan from San Diego's "Ultimate Sourdough:" A trial of cold retardation in bulk.

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There has been quite a bit of discussion on TFL regarding cold retardation of late. This is a recurring issue, as a site search on “retardation” will reveal. My overall conclusion has to be that, particularly for sourdough breads, there is no hard and fast rule. This is not surprising, since review of several highly-regarding bread books reveals considerable variation in how this subject is approached.

Scandinavian Cardamom Braid

Toast

I needed to bake something for a neighborhood picnic today and in my trusty notebook I found the recipe for this cardamom braid. I thought it was from somebody here at TFL but haven't been able to find the post. Just want to thank you, if you recognize the name, and to say the loaves are wonderful! It makes two braided loaves and the dough must be from Beatrice Ojakangas because it uses her no knead chilled overnight method. I brushed the braids with egg and milk wash and sprinkled raw sugar, and the great oven spring opened up the braids and made a neat pattern. Definitely a keeper, A.

... an orange sun low in the sky

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1973, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.  The Taiwan Provincial Symphony Orchestra was coming into town.  I was in my first year of high school.  My father was given free tickets because of his position at the ruling KMT Party.  He pulled me out of the school that day; in my school uniform, I sat on the front roll of the concert hall, listening to the Western symphonic music for the first time ever in my life.  I had never heard anything like it; I was so moved, I had joyous tears in my eyes that to this day I still don't know where they came from.  

Pain a l'Ancienne Hydration & Mini-Baguette Photos

Toast

I've been making Gosselin/Reinhart's pain a l'ancienne since last fall, and until a few days ago, I was having a big problem scoring it consistently.  My breakthrough?  I stumbled upon Gosselin's website and saw them scoring loaves that were MUCH less hydrated than Reinhart's recipe was leading me to create.  Oh, Peter Reinhart!  So I cut back on the water, and voila, the lame scores it perfectly (forgive the shallow angle of the scoring, but it's a mini-baguette).

100% Seeded Rye sourdough loaf

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Ever since he left germany, my father has always been a fan of german sourdough ryes, aren't we all?

The store bought Seeded Sourdough rye my father often buys is so called (nordic or norlander bread). I thought that i could mimic the taste and appearance of the said bread, i tried twice and failed.

Venturing into starter world and sourdoughs helped develop my baking skills, and Rye baking was especially successful. Credit goes to God almighty and freshloavers.

Sting & A Thousand Years

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[color=blue]A thousand years, a thousand more[/color]

[color=blue]A thousand times a million doors to eternity[/color]

[color=blue]I may have lived a thousand lives, a thousand times[/color]

[color=blue]An endless turning stairway climbs to a tower of souls[/color]

[color=blue]If it takes another thousand years, a thousand [b]wars[/b][/color]

[color=blue]The towers rise to numberless floors in space[/color]

[color=blue]I could shed another million tears, a million breaths[/color]