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Hamelman's Swiss Farmhouse Bread

Abe's picture
Abe

Hamelman's Swiss Farmhouse Bread

Hi all. Been a while since i've last been on The Fresh Loaf. I have been looking in from time to time though. Just thought i'd say hello to everyone and what better way then to post one of my favourite recipes which happened to be my most recent bake. Most of you are familiar with it and love it. It's been done as a Community Bake before but i'll detail the whole recipe here again. Hope you've all been keeping well. 

 

Before you begin you need to make a fruit yeast water. Any fruit will do but must be organic with no preservatives. Raisins are popular and what is called for in this recipe. It's much easier and less time consuming than making a sourdough starter. I'll leave you with a YouTube video by Peaceful Cuisine on how to make one...

 Once your yeast water is ready then onto the first build...

 

OVERALL FORMULA:

  • Bread Flour 360g [90%]
  • Whole Wheat Flour 40g [10%]
  • Raisin Juice 42g [10.5%]
  • Water 238g [59.5%]
  • Salt 8g [2%]
  • Walnuts 88g [22%] (Not called for in the recipe but extra nice when toasted.)
  • Raisins 60g [15%]

FIRST BUILD:

  • Bread Flour 67g
  • Raisin Liquid 42g

SECOND BUILD:

  • Bread Flour 84g
  • Whole Wheat Flour 40g
  • Water 78g
  • First Build 109g

FINAL DOUGH:

  • Bread Flour 209g
  • Water 160g
  • Salt 8g
  • Walnuts 88g
  • Raisins 60g
  • Second Build 311g

METHOD:

1: First Build: Drain the raisins, collecting the juice. Discard the spent raisins. Scale the required amount of juice, add the flour, and mix to incorporate. Cover and leave at room temperature for 6 to 8 hours, until well risen.

[The yeast water may be refrigerated and kept going like a starter. Will keep very well for a few weeks. No need to discard the raisins as they'll be food for the yeast. When the yeast water has run low or it's been more than a few weeks then time for a refreshment. You can now discard all the raisins and yeast water save for 1 tablespoon. Add in more raisins, top back up with fresh water and leave at room temperature until ready. All the raisins should be floating and the mixture fizzing within 12-24 hours. Either use or store back in the fridge].

2: Second Build: Add the second build water to the first build and lightly break up the contents of the first build. Add the second build flours and mix until incorporated. Cover and leave to ripen for 12 to 14 hours, until fully domed. During warm and humid months, the vigorous yeast population in the second build might ripen things too quickly. In that case, try refrigerating it for an hour or two once mixed, in order to slow down the pace of ripening. Then remove from refrigeration and allow it to mature at room temperature. Alternatively, one can make the second build, leave it out for a few hours, and refrigerate it overnight. Needless to say, the next day be sure to take into account the temperature of the cold second build when computing the water temperature for the final dough. As always, the goal is for the preferment to be domed and fully risen at the time of final mixing; make whatever adjustments give that result and all will be well.

3: Mixing: Add all the ingredients to the mixing bowl except the walnuts and raisins. In a spiral mixer, mix on first speed for 3 minutes in order to incorporate the ingredients. If necessary, correct the hydration by adding water or flour in small amounts. Finish mixing on second speed for 3 minutes, to moderate gluten development. Mix the walnuts and raisins together and add to the dough. Mix on first speed only until they are evenly incorporated. Desired dough temperature: 76°F

4: Bulk Fermentation: 2½ to 3 hours.

5: Folding: Fold the dough halfway through the bulk fermentation.

6: Shaping: Pre-shape into a round. When sufficiently relaxed, shape into round or an oval loaf, or place into a loaf pan. Cover to prevent a crust from forming during the final fermentation.

7: Final Fermentation: 1½ to 2 hours at 76°F.

8. Baking: Place the risen loaf on the loading conveyor or peel. Slash as desired. Pre-steam the oven, load the bread, and steam again. Bake in a 450°F oven. After 15 minutes, lower the oven to 430°F to avoid excess darkening due to the raisins. Loaves scaled at 1.5 pounds will bake in approximately 36 minutes.

Ilya Flyamer's picture
Ilya Flyamer

Nice to see you back here Abe, lovely looking loaf as usual! I've done this recipe twice a while ago, very delicious. I'll surely try it again, especially when I move to Switzerland in a few months.

Abe's picture
Abe

Nice to be back. Although I never really left. Been popping in every now and again to see what's going on. I'm pleased with the distribution of the add-ins. I think the trick is not to over shape. It is a lovely recipe which has its place firmly in my baking repertoire. I'm also using the yeast water to try my hand at making wine. It's fizzing away! 

The UK will miss you so don't be a stranger and come back to visit us. Good luck with your move and wishing you all the best in Switzerland. If you ever find yourself in London i'm always good for a meet-up. And should I ever find myself skiing down an Alp i'll be sure to let you know. 

Perhaps the next community bake should be Swiss Roll in honour of your move. 

Ilya Flyamer's picture
Ilya Flyamer

I was actually wondering, what's really the difference between "concentrated" yeast water and wine?..

Thank you Abe! That's a deal, we'll keep in touch for sure, and hope for a meet up somewhere sometime.

Abe's picture
Abe

Hasn't got enough sugar in it to make a strong alcohol. It's mainly water with raisins as the sugar and yeast source. 

Wine is 100% fermented grape juice with no added water and sometimes (if needed) added sugar. The sugar is a lot higher and therefore so is the alcohol. Although if you leave your yeast water for long enough it does taste nice and definitely has alcohol. Probably on par with a low alcohol beer. I've tasted my yeast water after it has been in the fridge for a while. Whenever I make a loaf i'll take a little sip. It does hit the spot and you can detect some alcohol. 

I suppose if you made a really concentrated yeast water and if needed added enough sugar you could make a wine out of it. I'm just dipping my toes in and trying it out. Turning some grape juice from Waitrose into wine. Bought 1 litre of 100% grape juice with no added preservatives. Poured off, and drank, 100ml then added in 100g sugar plus a little yeast water. Shook it up and loosened the cap. Within 12-24 hours it was well on the way fermenting. It's commonly done but people mainly add bakers or wine yeast however I thought i'd use my yeast water for a wild ferment. Have done it once before and it makes a decent drinkable wine within 2-3 weeks. This time I plan on aging it for a while. Experimenting. 

Will your sourdough starter travel with you, Ilya? Or will you make a new one? Would be nice if you kept it and made a new one so you can compare. 

Ilya Flyamer's picture
Ilya Flyamer

Right, I see, makes sense, thanks! So you inoculated some juice with YW to make wine? Saw your edit, sounds like an interesting experiment!

I've dried both of my starters (wheat and rye), and I'll take them with me. Although I'm enjoying using CLAS: it's so easy, and results are great. I'll make a new CLAS there, since it's so quick to create.

Abe's picture
Abe

To make wine the traditional way but right now I don't have the facilities to do so. This is a cheaper and easier way. It allows me to experiment and try things out where if it goes wrong it's not the end of the world. So hopefully when I can set something up properly i'll know exactly what i'm doing. 

Yes, instead of squeezing grapes etc... just bought the grape juice and added in some yeast water. Drinkable when it stops fermenting but then you have a choice to age it. I've tried it after 2-3 weeks and now I wish to see what happens if I leave it to age for another month. It's good to experiment like this so you get to see what happens at each stage and why. 

Before long you'll have an international collection of starters. I've just been speaking to someone who ferments flour with buttermilk which leaves just the LAB when finished then it's used in yeasted breads for sourdough flavour. Sounds a lot like CLAS. I'll email you with the details through the week. Very interesting. He says it adds excellent flavour. If I try it myself i'll do a write up about it. 

HeiHei29er's picture
HeiHei29er

Looks great Abe!  Good to hear from you again.

Abe's picture
Abe

Always enjoy a Hamelman recipe. Nice to be back. Missed our chats. I've seen you've been busy baking some really lovely sourdoughs. 

HeiHei29er's picture
HeiHei29er

Likewise on the chats….    As far as the SD…. Still a lot to learn!  

gavinc's picture
gavinc

Very nice loaf and good shape. I love this recipe from Hamelman have made it serveral times.

Abe, good to hear from you again.

Cheers,

Gavin

Abe's picture
Abe

Something about Swiss Farmhouse Bread seems to ring country rustic loaf. It does have that kind of look and taste to it. 

Been a while, not that I haven't been looking in from time to time, but nice to be back. 

I have seen and admired all your bakes even if I have been quiet for a while, Gavin. 

Benito's picture
Benito

Lovely loaf Abe, you usual excellent execution. Beautifully fermented and well distributed inclusions.  Enjoy eating that loaf.

Benny

Abe's picture
Abe

It is a lovely recipe. Always enjoy making it. Difficult to stop oneself from making too much fuss over the shaping but I think for bread with add-ins it pays off.

justkeepswimming's picture
justkeepswimming

Chiming in with others, it is indeed nice to see you on here again. After the last year and a half, not "seeing" someone gives pause to wonder how they are doing. 

That's a lovely looking bread! I keep coming across a variety of yeast water recipes lately, but have never tried it. It may be time to learn something new, and break out of my sandwich bread rut.Traveling this week, but maybe after I get back.... 

Mary

Abe's picture
Abe

Funny year its been and with working from home one loses track of days, weeks and months. Before long you're thinking where has the time gone. Glad everyone here is keeping well. 

I'm sure you'll love this recipe. Every bit as fascinating and rewarding as sourdough. Natural yeast but lacks the tang. I think it'll lend itself very well to babka too. Has very good oven spring and brings out the sweeter flavours. I look forward to your bake.