Forkish bake week
Last week decided to bake a number of breads from FWSY.
Started off the baking with 2 yeasted loaves. White with poolish, which I have made before and enjoyed
and and as I am using up stuff in the pantry, 50% wholewheat with biga.
Then I refreshed my starter and the next morning built the levain (luckily it uses the same levain for both breads) and mid afternoon, in between other things (it was a crazy kinda day) mixed up firstly Field blend #2 (without yeast) and then Field Blend #1 as per recipe so that I could do stretch and folds basically together for next 2 1/2 hours. Then I left them to bulk ferment on the bench at 5:30 pm
Field Blend #1 was obviously more active and by 8:30 pm I could preshape, rest then final shape and into banneton for overnight retard in the fridge.
Filed Blend #2 took another 2 hours to reach the same state. so at 10:30 pm I preshaped, rested then did the final shape and into teatowel lined & floured bread tins for overnight retard in the fridge.
Next morning, cranked the oven up to 260OC, slashed loaves before baking then steamed and baked Field Blend #1 loaves separately, reheating oven in between, followed by Field Blend #2 also separately. With Field Blend #2 I tried a different slashing pattern with one and the other I thought I baked with the seam up (mistakenly it turned out as it split underneath). The front 2 are field blend #2, one of which is on the peel that I convinced hubby to make for me!
Crumb shot below. Field blend #2 shaping not quite right though. #1 on right
All in all I am quite happy. We devoured one of the Field blend #1 straight off, it was very nice and not even cold! I also like Field blend #2 so will be doing these again for sure.
I had trouble shaping the yeasted loaves and used rice flour on the wholewheat loaf. I went back and re read ken"s instructions on shaping for the SD loaves and fared a little better but still not quite right.
I enjoyed the similarities but yet differences between the hybrid #1 dough and the straight SD #2 loaves. Made for an interesting bake.
practice! Lots of bread to eat! haha I'd be driving all over town delivering breads to friends if I baked all that...as it is I'm still giving away half each time. Just dropped off two at the in-laws yesterday from my weekend bake.
The loaves look great!
Wendy
as breads are all different flavourwise. It is all in the freezer, it was my last bake for a while. I am away for several days to visit grandchildren and hubby needs his bread while I am away. then it is home again to pack for our Canadian/European holiday. no more time for baking! I will get withdrawal symptons that is for sure. but maybe I can get to try some new breads on my travels.
For field blend #2, did you increase the levain percentage or just let it ferment/proof for longer? It used to be one of my favorite breads out of FWSY, but last couple of times I felt it did not have as much flavor as straight sourdough breads...
not very scientifically though. I had scaled the quantity a little and should have used 320 grams of 80% levain . I checked my notes but didn't record the exact amount but from memory I used 350 gms. It was noticeably slower at bulk fermentation. I liked both the field blends better than the yeasted 50% wholewheat I made.
I think it would be about 27-28%, given that recipe says 20%. I haven't quite got my head around calculating what per cent each ingredient is in a given quantity of levain or dough, so not sure if I am 100% accurate.
Thanks, perhaps I'll give it another try this weekend using levain only. Have you tried yet Overnight Country Brown loaf from FWSY? Ever since I dialed in the fermentation time (short of me putting bread in the fridge, I could not get it to bulk ferment for anything close to the time specified in the book), it replaced the Field Blend #2 as my go-to recipe.
What I find fascinating with these two recipes is how Forkish handles the bulk fermentation/final proof times and amount of levain in these recipies. FB2 has a 'fairly' short bulk fermentation and long retarded proof with 20% levain in it, while OCB has a very long bulk fermentaion (I think book suggest at least 12 hours, but personally in my apartment nothing above 10 hours worked) and 'longish' final proof with only 12% levain. I always wondered how OCB would taste if I double the amount of levain to 20-24%, but half the fermentation time - would it really loose any of its flavor? Or, if it would be possible to move FB2 to OCB schedule/levain % (and no yeast) and see if it would edge ahead over modified FB2 formula similar to yours (ie slightly increased levain % and somewhat longer fermentation time, but not to the level of OCB). Unfortunately I bake once per week and facing the dilemma of trying the change(s) or to go with the bread I know works, I always end up choosing the latter...
I too often go with what I know so this bake series was an effort to try new things. I have't ever done an overnight bulk ferment so I don't know. I find that I struggle to get as big a rise in my bulk ferment as he suggests and it is usually longer than his suggested time frame. temperature maybe? I nearly didnt do FB2 with levain only but then said, nothing ventured nothing gained so went for it. I am sure you will still get really nice bread with whatever you try. have fun and give it a go. Leslie