Happy New Year!
Wishing all you bakers out there a healthy and sweet New Year. This year for Rosh Hashanah I made Maggie Glezer's Pan de Calabaza. This recipe is in her book "A Blessing of Bread" which is so interesting. It tells the back stories (and the formulas, of course) for all kinds of traditional Jewish breads from all over the world. There's babkas, pita, challahs, Lithuanian, Greek and Ethiopian breads. If you're looking for the Pan de Calabaza formula, it's been posted at least twice on this site. Here's one by Dolf with inventive shaping like a jack o'lantern: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/4659/happy-halloween-double-pumpkin-bread
And another version using sweet potato and whole wheat here on rubato456's blog: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/8847/sweet-potato-whole-wheat-challot
I love the color of the crumb and the very subtle flavors of pumpkin, ginger and cardamom. Also this formula is very adaptable - I've done it using sourdough, with and without raisins, substituting mashed butternut or delicata squash for the pumpkin - they're all good! Plus everybody knows that any kind of challah makes superlative french toast.
And who can resist a little blueberry pie?
Now that the summer heat has gone, it's nice to be firing up the oven again.
Happy baking and cheers!
Cherie
Comments
to you The bread, pie and F Toast all look deliciously well crafted! Here is Grandma Bell's Rustic Apple Cake to wish you a sweet New Year too. (rustic because the bottom 1" stuck to the bundt pan:-) it is plenty sweet!
You did Grandma Bell's apple cake proud!
Thanks for sharing your great looking baked goodies. And happy New Year!
Sjadad
And I was admiring your round braided challah - beautifully done!
Cheers and happy baking...
Hi--those are gorgeous braids and wonderful color in the bread. I must ask--how did you get the round to "stay"? Every time I try to do a round like that, it grows like a pyramid and tips over like the Tower of Pisa. I wrap a rope around itself, and do not use a pan.
Also--the braids really stayed nicely. Mine usually blow out with the oven spring. How did you do it to keep the braid contour looking so good? Happy NY/Shanah Tovah
Firstly, thanks for the compliments breadboy! The color comes from the pumpkin, (tho' surprisingly there isn't much pumpkin flavor). I think the way to avoid the Tower of Pisa syndrome is to leave a little room as you coil the ropes of dough. Here's a few words of wisdom from Maggie Glezer, whose book has about 25 pages with great pictures on variations for braiding.
"For the finest texture for braids or knots...one extra step that will guarantee a smooth bubble-free braid, a gossamer crumb, and a high-rising bread. 1)Using a rolling pin and a little dusting flour, first roll the dough for each strand out into a very thin sheet. Don't worry about the shape of the sheet, just roll it as thin as you can. 2) Now tightly roll the sheet into a strand, trying not to form air pockets. 3) Next, roll the strand under your palms to extend and smooth and even it. For a flat spiral: make a very loose spiral of dough, starting at the center and winding the dough around, leaving space between the loops. For a high rising spiral: wind the dough tightly around without leaving any space between the loops, and be sure that the last loop is bound with a bit of tension. This will force the dough to rise in the center as it is proofing and especially during oven rise"
So maybe you were winding the coil a bit too tight? Also, do you do the egg-wash thing? I hope this helps. Rolling out the dough seems like a chore, but it doesn't take much more time at all and it does seem to ensure a beautiful even crumb and no blow-outs...I did the final proof and baking on a sheet pan lined with parchment, so that I didn't have to move the proofed loaves.
Cheers and happy baking - Cherie
baking plans for next week's holiday? I'm thinking babka...
Beautiful baking for sure!
Happy Baking in the New year!
Ian
After next week's break-fast I intend to get back to my rye experiments and some sprouting too.
All the best,
Cherie
Cherie:
I have that book and did the recipe. So far, my four strand is beautiful (and proofing) but the round did get very high--I probably did it too tight. I guess I get to make another batch.
One question I have--I generally use a recipe adapted from Jeffrey Nathan (from Abigael's restaurant in NYC) which produces double the dough that Glezer's recipe does, and it uses the same amount of yeast (2 1/4 tsp, or one pack, or one spoonful using King Arthur's yeast spoon). Should I cut down the amount of yeast used?
sorry it is sideways. Don't know how to flip it
i think it looks pretty awesome! But if you want it to be less towering, coil it around itself more loosely, making sure that the base of each circle still touches the work surface. You're starting in the middle right?
As far as the amount of yeast goes....if your normal recipe works for you, I'd keep it the same. Maybe it has a longer, cooler rise time? Also, are you using fresh yeast? Or active dry or instant?
Well, because the dough was not sticky, I reshaped the round and this was the final result (much "lower profile" and almost wrinkled because I messed up the second rise but it was more pleasing than the tower). Came out OK. My question about the yeast was more related to: Is this Glezer recipe calling for too much yeast, as it is the same amount I have used in a recipe with double the dough? Have you tried halving it? Especially if you let it rest in the fridge for a day or two...
Thanks for your help and input.
Those challahs look great - especially the 4 braid. Nicely puffed, no blow-outs, deep brown color. Were you happy with the crumb and most important - how did you like the flavor?
I've never tried halving the commercial yeast in this recipe, I'd imagine you'd have to plan for longer bulk ferment and final rising times. Let me know how it works for you if you do try it.
I have done this recipe using sourdough instead of commercial yeast and it worked fine...except I thought the sourdough 'tang' competed a bit with the other flavors - just my palate...
I still consider myself kind of a newbie at bread-baking, and so many talented and generous people on this forum have been so helpful to me. So I'm glad I could be of some help!
Happy baking!
Cherie