The Fresh Loaf

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20200515 Chef Gregoire Michaud's Dark Chocolate and Sour Cherry Bread with CLAS

Yippee's picture
Yippee

20200515 Chef Gregoire Michaud's Dark Chocolate and Sour Cherry Bread with CLAS

 

To learn more about concentrated lactic acid sourdough (CLAS), please see here and here

 

This bread is from one of Chef Michaud's books, "La Boulangerie Baking at home". 

 

 

 

 

My family finished the 2-lb cranberry walnut bread that I made yesterday. So, I made another dessert bread today. I used good quality chocolate and cocoa powder. The loaf turned out very chocolaty just as I like. The crust was very crispy, and the crumb was so moist that its mouthfeel was almost like a brownie. However, it did not taste sweet. Instead, it left a slightly salty, buttery aftertaste. It was tangier than any of the CLAS white bread I have made-- maybe because I used a whole rye CLAS and rye flour in this bread. My family loved this bread. Half of the loaf was gone before I had a chance to take pictures. 

 

 

I followed Chef Michaud's overall formula as much as possible. I only reduced 5% of the water and substituted 3% of the rye flour with whole rye CLAS. Oh, I also reduced the amount of yeast.

 

85%     Beehive AP

12%     medium rye

3%       whole rye CLAS

8.5%    cocoa powder 

7.3%    butter

0.7%    dry yeast

3.39%  salt

70%     water

23%     dark chocolate trunk 

17%     frozen cherries

 

Similar workflow as yesterday- finished in about three hours. 

 

 

 

 

I can hardly keep up with the demand if my family continues to eat bread like today and yesterday. 

 

 

 

 

I am a chocolate addict.  I love King Arthur's Bensdorp Dutch-process cocoa--I can't live without it.  I mix it with KA's espresso powder and Guittard's dark chocolate to make hot chocolate--at least two cups a day.

  

  

 

 

 

 

 

Can someone please explain why generally the formulae of this dessert bread use so much salt and no sweet ingredients (the dark chocolate is not sweet)?

 

Comments

MTloaf's picture
MTloaf

I can see why it disappears so quickly. Your fruit/dessert/morning toast breads are always appealing. Nice work. I am hooked on Trevor Wilsons spelt cranberry bread that I add pepitas to. 

Yippee's picture
Yippee

I did not know what pepitas are, but now I do!  Thank you for the new idea! Have a good Sunday.

Yippee