I know that UFO Bread Lames from Wire Monkey Shop have been talked about for a while, specifically in the online sourdough bread community. Since I've had a UFO lame for seven months and I've been using it actively, I thought I would make a full review of this type of lame. Hope it's helpful for anyone who is considering purchasing one of these, or any other type of lame. Enjoy!
I have decided to experiment with 100% whole grain sourdough breads lately, so below is the recipe for my 100% Whole Grain Spelt Sourdough Boule. I saw someone advise to try using a lower hydration when working with whole spelt because of the extensibility of the dough. The lower (65%) hydration definitely works for me! This bread was great. A video of the whole process is below.
Levain/Starter Build
25g Sourdough Discard (from the fridge) 50g Whole Grain Spelt Flour (Bob's Red Mill brand) 50g Water (ambient temp.)
Final Dough Build
450g Whole Grain Spelt Flour 275g Water (ambient temp.) 100g Sourdough Starter/Levain 10g Salt
Ambient Temperature of My Kitchen
~68-70dF (20-21dC)
Instructions
Measure all of the ingredients together and mix to combine. (No autolyze).
Keep mixing until all of the dry bits of flour have disappeared.
Cover the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes on your kitchen counter.
Let the dough bulk ferment for about 4.5 more hours, giving the dough three sets of stretch and folds, spaced out at half hour intervals (see video)
Pre-shape the dough into a ball and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Shape the dough into a boule with your hands or bench scraper and flip the dough upside down into a floured banneton basket.
Move the dough to the fridge and let it proof overnight in the cold environment.
The next day, when you’re ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 500 degrees F or 260 degrees C for at least 30 minutes. Place your dutch oven or baking vessel inside the oven to pre-heat too.
Flip the dough out onto a sheet of parchment paper. Score it in a cross pattern (or however you want!) and transfer the dough into the dutch oven.
Close the lid and move the dutch oven to the real oven. Bake for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, remove the dutch oven lid and continue baking for an additional 15 minutes.
Remove the bread from the oven when it has achieved the color that you’re looking for and give it at least an hour to cool down.
Here's my take on a sourdough bread made with pumpkin puree. I didn't include any pumpkin seeds or pepitas in the mix, but on second thought those would have been an amazing inclusion! Here's the specs of the dough, the process, and a video of the whole bake.
Levain Build
10g Sourdough Starter from the fridge
25g Whole Wheat Flour
25g Bread Flour
50g Water
Final Dough Build
400g Bread Flour
50g Whole Wheat Flour
290g Water (use 250g for a more manageable dough)
200g Pumpkin Puree
10g Salt
100g Levain
Process
Feed starter (levain build) in PM of Day 1
Mix all dough ingredients together at the same time on AM of Day 2. Let ingredients rest for 30 min.
Stretch and Fold #1. Rest 30 min.
Stretch and Fold #2. Rest 30 min.
Stretch and Fold #3. Let the dough finish bulk fermenting for 3.5 more hours.
Pre-shape into a round. Rest 30 min.
Final shape dough into a round boule.
Proof overnight in a banneton in the fridge.
Preheat oven to 500°F with dutch oven inside for 30 min.
Remove dough from fridge. Score and transfer on parchment paper to the dutch oven.
Bake with lid on for 20 min at 500°F.
Remove lid and bake for another 15 min at 500°F.
Overall this bread was great but the dough was a bit sticky for my liking. I will opt for using just 250g of water next time to lower the hydration. Next time I will also add maybe 50-100g of toasted pepita seeds to the dough during stretch and folds to add to the pumpkin feel of the bread.
I made a new sourdough starter a few weeks ago and this was it's inaugural loaf of bread! I went with a no-knead method for this first one instead of my typical bread with stretch and folds. I was going for simplicity on this one and I wanted to make a video about my no-knead process. Below is the video and the process:
Ingredients
KA Bread Flour - 450g
Rye Sourdough Starter 100% hydration - 74g (Was going for 70 but overshot)
Water - 300g
Salt - 10g
Video
Method
15:00 - Around three o'clock PM I took my new starter out of the fridge, about a tablespoon of starter, and fed it 50g rye flour and 50g water. I used Bob's Red Mill Organic Dark Rye Flour.
21:00 - When the starter had risen and just started to fall a little bit (I caught it past its peak) I mixed all four of my ingredients together until fully incorporated. I covered up the dough with a kitchen towel and let it bulk rise overnight. No stretch and folds or anything.
06:00 - The next morning I shaped the dough into a boule on a floured counter and placed it into a towel-lined bowl. I chose not to use a banneton basket this time, but that's what I usually use. I let the dough proof for two hours at room temperature.
8:00 - Two hours later I transferred the dough to a sheet of parchment paper, scored it, then set it in my dutch oven, which had been preheating to 500°F for 30 minutes. I baked it for 20 minutes with the lid on, then 20 minutes with the lid off.
The bread turned out great for a no-knead loaf! Could definitely have had higher oven spring, and a more open crumb, but I'm content with how this turned out for a no-knead bread. It was delicious and perfect for about three days of toast :)
On a whim, I decided to see if I could bulk ferment baguette dough in the fridge overnight and have it come out perfectly fermented for shaping in the morning. Well, I think I came pretty close honestly!
Recipe is below for two 180g baguettes:
KA Bread Flour........220g
Lukewarm Water.....143
Instant Yeast...........2g
Salt.........................4g
Method:
9pm - Mixed all ingredients and kneaded by hand for one minute until there was some gluten development. Moved to the fridge for bulk fermentation.
6am - Removed from fridge and onto a floured counter. Divided in two and pre-shaped into slightly oblong shapes. Bench rested for 10 minutes.
6:10 - Shaped baguettes on the counter. Note that baguette shaping is not my strong suit yet. Proofed for an hour, covered.
7:10 - Baked on a baking steel with steam in a tray on the bottom rack of the oven at 500dF. 15min with steam and 5min without steam.
The crumb was slightly tight but a little bit lacy. I like a slightly more open crumb but I can work with this.
The taste was pretty great, but maybe just slightly yeasty. When I try this again I will attempt taking it down to 1g of instant yeast and maybe having a slightly longer proofing time at room temperature after the shaping to compensate.
If anyone has hints to reduce the yeasty flavor in some yeasted breads, please let me know what you think.
Today I made a video of how I usually shape a sourdough boule. This is a really easy method for me, as it's very similar to the "Stretch and Fold" process. The video is included below for anyone who wants to see it!
