I've become somewhat obsessed lately with Durum flour. It adds such a sweet, buttery flavor to the bread, which is good- because then I don't add butter when I have slice after slice of this bread!
The boule on the left is the sourdough with durum. The loaf on the right is a vermont sourdough (a la Hammelman's formula). The scoring pattern didn't quite turn out as planned...anyway, the percentage of durum flour in this particular boule came to about 15%. That's only because I am rationing out my durum flour until I can find a less expensive source :-) Otherwise I would have it at about 25%.
When I feed my firm starter, I take the "waste" and make a teeny-tiny little sourdough boule- it's so cute and fun to make because it's so small. It's also a good one because I bake it the same day I mix; skipping the overnight retardation step (forfeiting more flavor, I know, but sometimes it's nice to not have to wait). I think the formula ends up:
25g firm levain
130g bread flour
20g durum flour
103g water
3g sea salt
I baked this with the "magic bowl" method, same as for the loaves above. But for some reason, due to the size, it doesn't come out with much of a crust. It's more thin and chewy instead of thicker and well, crustier. Still good though. Perfect size for 2 people! Okay, perfect size for one person to eat- by themselves.....
The small size is also nice for experimenting with different additions/ formulas. For instance, I attempted a chocolate cherry sourdough (which turned out really yummy) and didn't want to waste the cherries and the time if it wasn't going to taste good. Now that I know it does, I will make a larger loaf.
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David
I have to give durum a try.
Those look great! I recently made a sourdough that had a softer, thinner, chewier crust and it was really good for a change. I think that it was just because I used too much water in my steam pans and steamed the loaves for too long. However, my friends husband, who likes soft bread, said that they were my best loaves yet. It's all a matter of taste!
Summer
I wish the duram flour was less to..I usually stock up when there's free shipping offered.
Sylvia
Sylvia, do you have any place that sells fresh pasta where you live? I stock up on durum from a local place for a low price or in exchange for bread. It beats paying for shipping, for sure.
Logan
Sylvia, I find durum in the local Middle Eastern markets here in LA. Do you have any in the San Diego area?
Marni
Those are lovely.
Those look beautiful! I recently made a little loaf from the disgard of my firn starter too! So cute and a perfect little lunch roll.
Marni