Today's Breads: Sweet and Sourdough
Today was my best baking day yet, and not just because it was a gorgeous day on the Mendocino Coast. It was a sweet and sourdough day. Last night the San Joaquin Sourdough dough was mixed, stretched, folded, grown to 150% size, and refrigerated.
This morning, I complied with a spousal edict: Make Cinnamon-Raisin-Walnut Bread! One is well advised to comply with such insistence from The Loved One. Using the BBA recipe, and hoping it came out somewhere near as good as Brother David’s, I found the recipe to be simple and satisfying. I admit, I hadn’t eaten anything but an apple all day when the C-R-W Bread was cut at 12:30, but it was about the best bread I ever had (ok...I was really hungry). Just a bit sweet, great moist texture. totally delicious. And kinda pretty.
The two loaves were baked in different types of pans. The bigger poofier one was in Pyrex, the other in a non-stick metal pan. The two loaves were exactly the same weight and formed the same way. Interesting difference. The first loaf is half gone. The second went into the freezer for next time.
By 2 p.m., it was time to pre-shape the SJ SD. After my last (repeated) batard-shaping mistakes, I used the technique in Floyd’s video (http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/1688), and the batards came out more or less the right shape. Not so symmetrical as to make me feel like perfection was anywhere in reach, but generally ok.
The real question this weekend was whether my recurrent lack of oven spring and grigne and the blond bottoms my loaves usually had were due to a bad stone in our San Francisco house. Our some-day-retirement house up the coast has a newer and better oven and a pizza stone that David ordered for us from NY Bakers. The answer is Yes! The SJ SD got nice spring and by far the best grigne I’ve achieved yet. And the bottoms are toasty brown. As you see, one was scored a lot better than the other.
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I guess I’m going to have to retire the SF stone and get another from NY Bakers.
Crispy crust, moist chewy crumb with good hole structure. Totally delicious. You can see this dough would make great baguettes. Maybe next time.
The SJ SD was great for BLTs (another spousal edict…don’t you just hate that?!) . She calls BLTs the perfect food. And who can argue. You got the most delectable form of carbohydrates, Bacon (“The Candy of Meats”) and lots of Vitamin Red.
I might some day find a sourdough formula I like more than this, but I’m not in a hurry to start looking.
Happy Baking!
Glenn
Comments
Nice job on both the C-R-W and the SJ SD!
You know you've got Cat addicted to your baking now! It's fortunate you seem to be enjoying the production process.
Searching for nits to pick ... It's getting harder ... Can't fault the scoring. That will come with practice. ... Nothing wrong with the crumb. It's perfect. ...
Aha! The crust on the SJ SD is a bit dull. You need to generate more steam for the first 12 minutes or so of the bake. I suggest you splurge on a 7 inch cast iron skillet and recycle that loaf pan I left you with the lava rocks. It doesn't have enough thermal mass to give you the steam you need.
What are you baking for me next weekend?
David
David-- Thanks for the high praise. But there are lots of areas for improvement. I think I know what they are and, in concept, what I need to do to improve. As you say about scoring, it'll come with practice. Hopefully the same with shaping. I think my feel for the dough is getting pretty good and I'm getting the iron hand/velvet glove thing (though I need to find a dry cleaner who does velvet gloves for less than an arm and a leg).
Thermal Mass, eh? Is that a worship service for warmer weather? If you hum a few bars, maybe I can fake it. Where's my mitre?
As for your last question,
Next weekend is the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival in Golden Gate Park, but I think I'll bake Saturday and go to the Festival Sunday. The choices are SJ SD baguettes (which would be my first try at baguettes) or the Cheese Board Curry-Onion-Cheese Bread. The Cheese Bread is more unusual, but it would be good to get your review of the taste and texture of the SJ SD. Up to you.
Glenn
I meant to ask a question about crumb structure. I have baked lean slow-fermenting bread before with lots of little holes and a few big ones. In this bake, the crumb had lots of big holes. Is this related to the big oven spring, or did I handle the dough better in shaping, or is it kismet? Thanks.
Glenn
There are lots of factors that influence crumb structure. The two that apply especially to the SJ SD are 1) high dough hydration and 2) gentle mixing (compared to machine mixing).
I can explain either or both of these in more technical terms, but I need a second cappuccino.
David
A far cry from your first bake, Glenn! Lovely Sourdough and Loaf you have there, the crumb structure indicates a well proofed dough.
You have an advantage over most TFL members, including myself. In no time, you'll be baking some really quility breads.
khalid
Thanks, Khalid, but my Dough Boy T-shirt doesn't give me that big an advantage.
Glenn
How do you get that BLT in your mouth. ;-)
Sure looks good. The crumb makes me very jealous.
wayne
That picture was just after the first rise. I had to punch it down. I use a specialized tool...a pickle jar.The probiotic properties of the pickle also helps with "final (gastric) ferment". And the combination of salts in the bacon and pickles makes the Pinot Blanc taste especially good. It's an all-in-one tool. Thanks for asking.
And as for the crumb, thanks for the compliment, but don't be jealous. Follow the instructions (http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/14140/san-joaquin-sourdough-another-variation-produces-best-flavor-yet) and you can do it too.
Glenn
Nice ear on SJ too! You caught the culprit stone in the works, that's great! I especially love the look of your Cinn./Nut loaf, just what I've been craving a sweeter bread and the sandwich...well it's definately a favorite of mine...now I'm hungry!
Sylvia
But how did you know that "Nut Loaf" is a term of endearment in my family?
After the perfect toast this morning (it disappeared too fast for a picture), I have been informed that Cinnamon-Raisin-Walnut Bread is henceforth to be at least every other loaf I bake.
Glenn
My wife says she like the C-R-W Bread even better than Floyd's Cinnamon Rolls I baked last week. Maybe that's because you can gain 5 pounds just looking at the pictures of the Cinnamon Rolls [Warning: close your eyes if you're on a diet].
Glenn
These types of breads/rolls/pastries are sublisted as 'Restricted' bakes, to extra long waits.
Sylvia
Glenn,
You are one quick study when it comes to baking! Everything looks great & even better, it sounds like you had fun! I have some first attempt pain au levain in the midst of final proofing. I'm hoping for a good bake later this evening.
Thank you for the pictures!
Toni
I'm pretty proud of myself for producing real good bread most of the time after only five weeks or so. I aspire to make excellent bread every time, and to make beautiful bread eventually.
Good luck with the sour dough. As the French say: I feel your pain (sounds better in French).
Glenn
That's a mighty fine SD - and the sweet bread looks pretty good, too.
You mentioned: "Our some-day-retirement house up the coast has a newer and better oven..."
Do you have a good oven thermomenter in your SF oven? Am curious only because I've never heard of a defective baking stone, but used to have a defective oven.
I use the oven very often and with good results. I haven't taken it's temperature, but it's pretty accurate. Though it is slow to pre-heat.
I brought the good stone back to SF and will bake Saturday. It better work, because dmsnyder is coming to sample my bread.
Glenn