A Little More Rye
I enjoyed the last country rye I baked so much that I tried another one. This is the Polish Cottage Rye from Local Breads and the formula is pretty similar to the one I used for the last bake. The only place I really strayed from the book was to use a coarse, whole rye instead of a white rye.
Two main differences between this and the last bake: a long knead rather than stretch and folds and a less aggressive bake. It was nice to be kneading again, even with such a sticky dough. All that kneading lent a bit more strength and a bit more chew to the crumb. In combination with the cooler bake it made a crust that was more crispy-chewy than crispy-crackly.
All in all a very nice bread. These light ryes are beginning to grow on me. I think I'll head back to the books to find the next one.
Marcus
Comments
Leader's Polish Cottage Rye is a wonderful bread. I also prefer it with whole rye than with white rye.
David
Thank you, David. I ran across your post of this bread before I baked it (I like to do a quick search when I can just to get a better idea of what to expect). You made it looked so good I just had to give it a go! I didn't get quite as much loft, but even so, it's just such a nice bread - even made a giant slab of French toast with it this morning, mmm...!
Marcus
makes all the difference, Marcus!
And it has to be dark rye too, for me!
Lovely breads
Andy
I think I'm sold on the dark rye as well, Andy. The bread still comes out with a nice, light texture so why not? Would a white rye ferment more slowly, I wonder? This dough rose so fast it was almost scary! I think I underproofed it a touch just because of how fast it came up, but now that I know I'll be ready for it next time.
Thank you for the kind words,
Marcus
Lovely crumb, crust and color.
Howard
I appreciate it, Howard. Your cracked rye pain au levain post (beautiful bread, by the way - I'm green with rye envy) got me eyeing the bag of rye berries in my cupboard, thinking maybe I could throw a few in the spice grinder and add a bit more texture to my next loaf. Hmmm... we'll see.
Marcus
your posts on rye. This one looks terrifically moist and substantial. -Varda
The formula worked like a charm - highly recommended! It turned out to be a great keeper as well. Great sandwiches for days and good toast even after that.
Marcus