About 25 min later...
Not me in the picture...
Attachment 181504
Golden brown and crunchy.
Attachment 181505
Printable View
About 25 min later...
Not me in the picture...
Attachment 181504
Golden brown and crunchy.
Attachment 181505
You are dead on, nifty shaving, with the small Dutch oven space trapping the loaf moisture in for a nice crust.
However, just recently, I got out my French loaf pan out and used the cast frying pan with water for some great results.
On the next batch I forgot the frying pan water deal, and the crust was the same; still great. Go figure.
I also tried some oat flour with steel cut oats mixed in too. Like I said before, plain straight white is the flavor king for me, but I keep trying other stuff.
Traditional Christmas bread
http://i1020.photobucket.com/albums/...psqwpknhcc.jpg
Made a few baguettes for the weekend.
Attachment 190548
Nice looking loaves and slash marks.
I am now using a baking stone that I picked up years ago (1/2" x 14" x 18").
With no oven water dish, just stone and dough, I am turning out some supper breads with a nice crisp crust.
I set the formed dough on parchment paper for a short rise.
When ready to bake, I use a peel (spelling?) to side under paper and dough and then onto the hot stone. Use the same method to remove from oven.
A study in contrasts:
#2 stepdaughter (Dietician/Nutritionist) one day asked me to teach her how to bake braided challah like my mother used to make. Seen here with her first loaf.
http://i.imgur.com/iFyGMS7.jpg
#1 stepdaughter (Marine Biologist) asked if she could help me break open a 911 engine the day before she got married. Seen here with her first 911 un-build.
http://i.imgur.com/4njuM0f.jpg
Go figure.
I picked up one of these from Amazon. I haven't had a chance to use it yet but I'll see how this bakes them next time.
Attachment 190721
Man, oh man!
How could I have missed this thread?
I'm going to bake some Irish soda bread in a couple of days. Would it be ok if I were to post the photos here?
I have used that pan too. I have found that my heavy baking stone eliminates the need for a pan. Yesterday I laid out a long skinny dough for an hour before baking and it spread like an old boob. But the stone's heat had the finished bread rise up fully rounded and plump. Just like magic.
like I may have mentioned earlier, place the dough on parchment paper and slide a peel under it for transfer to the oven stone. Otherwise you will have a mess. Corn meal in place of the paper is a disaster for me too.
Been using a Breadmaker on a regular bases. Differ the recipe, works well.
I pushed the fermentation on these a lot further than the last batch. I created somewhat of a poolish by mixing the yeast and some water then covered with some flour. I let this rest for about 6 hours. I then mixed in the rest of the ingredients, stretched and folded the dough, and let it rise 2 more hours at room temp. I then stretched and folded it again and put it in the fridge overnight. I'll taste them in a bit and see how the added fermentation affected the taste.
Attachment 191275
The first time I visited my Mentor, pinklather, he was in the middle of getting some sourdough ready for it's final rise. Subsequent visits were the same with the addition of freshly baked to taste. I'm more a yeast man, but the bread was heavenly. I've started baking my bread again and certainly will add to the posts after tax time. Looking forward to smelling the aroma of fresh baked bread right out of the oven in my mind as I read about all the interesting recipes coming.:rock:
Irish Soda Bread, fresh out of the oven. My grandma's recipe.
Four ingredients, four lines of instructions, four hundred Fahrenheit in the oven.
Attachment 192367
Fluffy and light it ain't, but boy does the distinctive aroma bring back memories.
I just had to celebrate with Nutella and a glass of amaretto.
Attachment 192368
Ya need to post the recipe in the Recipe Sticky.
big, that's an interesting variation on a Challah recipe. First, the combining of the oil and flour, the vanilla and the assembly of the dough. Have to try it in a month or so. Back log of frozen bread that need to be used up first.
It makes a soft, moist and slightly sweet loaf.
I tried something new today - Pain a l'Ancienne. It was an interesting method and a super hydrated dough. Much like Ciabatta. But the fermentation is delayed. Instead of using luke warm water, you use ice water (40 degree F). The cold water and immediate refrigeration of the finished dough keeps the yeast dormant until the following day. Then you just take it out of the frige and let it ferment for about 3 hours. It makes an outstanding bread at home.
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I use a similar method for making true water bagels. They call it retarded rise or something like that. I form the bagels and then quickly put it in the refrigerator for a day or two well covered and then they go into the boiling water. Unfortunately bagels like that a very hard to find. Most are just from a mix and then extruded and baked.
big, I hesitate to call the current bagel a bagel. Puffy, soft, doughy, bagel like objects is as close as I can call them without resorting to foul language. I literally teethed on the old fashioned water bagel and I miss them dearly. If I find free time somewhere in the next decade I just might make some.
It very well might but I really don't know for sure. But to be honest, the rationale behind the delayed fermentation is to allow enzymes to break down the starches into sugar before the yeast can begin feeding on them. It yields more for the yeast to feed on once fermentation begins and leaves more behind for the palate as it's eaten. Freezing may stop all of the processes and defeat the purpose. But I really don't know. In spite of the complex theory behind it all, it's really not as complicated as a traditional baguette.
I have fond memories as a kid of going into the local bagel bakery with my father and getting those hot bagels and eating them right there and then.
The problem these days is outfits like Einstein and similar are interested in the bottom line and they don't want to pay a unionized baker. So they hire an unskilled person who only has to dump a bag of mix into a mixer, add water and then dump the product into an extruder which churns bagels out by the thousands. Spray some chemical shine on and sprinkle the toppings and right into the revolving convection oven. Then charge a buck or more per bagel. You know why you don't see Bialys in those places? it's because you can't extrude them. They have to be made by hand and that requires a baker and they won't hire them. I make em all the time and boy do they taste gooood.
Gawd, big, I'm gaining weight just thinking about them! PB&J for breakfast just doesn't feel right this morning.
I posted this in the breakfast thread. But I baked one of these for the weekend as well.
Attachment 192759
Attachment 192760
'Been working more Ryes, having grown up hating them for all the wrong reasons. I don't like caraway. 'Haven't had the courage to work more than 66% whole (nuthin but fresh ground) Rye. I'm eying a 100% rye Volkornbrot, but am still on the fence.
This is the simple fall-back wheat/rye blend. Something magic happens when those two grains get together. So far, have 8 or 9 bread books. All good, but the Jeffrey Hamelman 'Bread' has been the most productive.
If I couldn't have sourdough, I'd prob. give up on bread altogether.
I'm making bagels on Sundays every once in a while, when I wake up early enough :)
My first loaf of "no-knead bread in a hurry" is currently rising and will be baked tonight for dinner. I'll post a picture, obviously :)
So mark that one down as a learning experience... it tasted delicious but didn't rise enough while proofing or at all while baking. I'll try again next week!
My first attempt ever of a Homemade Loaf of bread is in progress :)
Having fun so far :)
Making bread is fun, haven't done it in a while, hmmmm, maybe time to mess up the kitchen!
I'm baking another Kougelhof (see my last post above). I slice it half and its breakfast over the weekend. Tomorrow will be regular bread for Friday/Saturday night.
Well first attempt at activating/proofing Yeast ended in abject failure :(
Second attempt in progress.. Probably should have just bought the packets, but we keep blocks of Yeast from the Bakery in the freezer to feed the Septic each month..
I read the process twice watched the vids, using exact temperature also ..
:rofl2: Sounds just like the new honers, "I watched the vids I read the threads why isn't my razor getting sharp" LMAO
Back to the kitchen