The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Using fridge with dough

purpleronie's picture
purpleronie

Using fridge with dough

Hi,

I am shortly going to be running a small scale trial of breads and pastries for a visitor centre cafe on the island where I live. I am a home baker, and have tried various recipes, and catered for functions where I have baked repeated batches of dough so they are all ready to go in the oven one after the other. I know you can put dough in the fridge overnight, and then remove it in the morning, and leave for couple of hours before its ready for baking.

What happens if its not left long enough to warm up?

Do I need to let it warm up, then seperate, shape and proof again before baking?

How can I deal with a bigger quantity of dough that needs to be baked at different times? for example, if my oven holds 6 loaves on the top shelf, can I remove the dough from the fridge, let it stand, seperate it and leave some standing at room temperature while the first lot is shaped and baked?

And is it possible to bake bread on both shelves of a domestic electric oven at the same time if you rotate them?

I know my setup is far from ideal, but we have no bakery on the island, only shipped in steam baked sliced sh*te so there is a real need for something. If I can survive the 3 months trial, I will have a better idea of what sells and can use that to try and obtain funding to set up with better equipment. Until then its hand mixing, and domestic ovens all the way!

Any help on this matter would be much appreciated.

Ronie.

AnnaInNC's picture
AnnaInNC

re with which shelf to bake, I personally like the very lowest on which I placed a Lowe's 18 inch square floor tile.  Even though my breads bake their suggested time, the bottom always looks like it could use a bit more, feels slightly moist and I have read where others actually turn the loaf over and bake a bit more. Interesting question.

anna

 

josephine's picture
josephine

I have had success baking dough from the fridge straight into a cold oven

liztree's picture
liztree

Hi
I almost always bake from fridge!!! Mix up and ferment, shape and put in fridge in the afternoon to evening and bake for fresh bread in the am. ( By the way I am using exclusively sourdough)

I beleive it is Hammelman who says you do not need to let the bread warm up at room temp before puutting in the oven, as many authors do. Jeffery Hammelman says the oven is so hot and the diffrerence in temp from the fridge to room temp is so small compared to the jumo to the oven

Anyway I have had great results going directly from fridge to oven.
Wouls love to hear more about your efforts as I am considering a very small scale bakery.

Good luck!!!!
Liz Tree