Sourdough

Last weekend I baked a multi-grain bread using white wine with sweet potatoes which came out as good as I could have expected.  This time I wanted to try using a red wine and what goes better with red wine but chocolate and cheese.  I used a cocoa rouge which is a special type of cocoa that has an intense bittersweet character with a rich deep red color and fudge-like flavor.

In my last bake with the white wine you did not really taste the wine due to the fact that i used so many different multi-grains so I wanted to make sure to keep this one a little simpler.  I two of my favorite flours, durum and white spelt added with some European style flour from KAF and some potato flour.

I also tried to make one loaf using a new cat cookie cutter I just bought, but that was probably a mistake.  The cookie cutter ended up leaving too much of an escape hatch for the cheese which ended up splattering all over the front of the bread.  I guess that's not the worse thing that could have happened.

The end result was a nice flavorful dark and rich bread with the added flavor of the Havarti cheese to put it over the top.  The crumb was nice and open and flavorful with a nice chew.

I used a Merlot from another local winery called Duckwalk on the east end of Long Island.

Directions follow below.

AP Starter

227 grams AP Flour

71 grams AP Seed Starter

151 grams Water at Room Temperature (80-90 degrees F.)

Mix ingredients in a bowl until thoroughly combined.  Cover the bowl and let it sit at room temperature for around 8 hours.  The starter should almost double when ready to proceed.  You can either mix in final dough or put in refrigerator for at most 1 day before using.  If your kitchen is warmer than mine which is usually about 70-72 degrees with my air-conditioning you can proceed sooner.

Main Dough Ingredients

425 grams Refreshed AP Starter (65% hydration) from above

103 grams White Spelt (KAF brand)

200 grams Durum Flour (KAF brand)

220 European Style Flour from KAF (can substitute Bread Flour)

50 grams Potato Flour

15 grams Cocoa Rouge (KAF, you can substitute any dark cocoa but use a good quality)

16 grams Sea Salt or Table Salt

410 grams Merlot Wine

26 grams Walnut Oil

Havarti Cheese (sorry but I forgot to measure how much cheese I used.  I believe it was probably about 10 ounces)

Procedure

Mix the flours with the wine leaving 50 grams of wine for later in your mixer or by hand for 1 minute.    Let the dough autolyse for one hour in your bowl and make sure to cover it.  Next add in the salt and the starter with the balance of the wine and mix by hand for 2 minutes until everything is well incorporated.  Mix on speed #1 for 2 minutes and speed #2 for 2 minutes or by hand for 5 minutes.

Next take the dough out of the bowl and place it on your work surface.  Do a stretch and fold and rest the dough uncovered for 10 minutes.  After the rest do another stretch and fold and cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.  Do one more stretch and fold and put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and let it sit at room temperature covered for 2 hours.  After 2 hours you can put the dough into the refrigerator for 24 hours or up to 2 days before baking.  Feel free to do some additional S & F's if you feel it is necessary.  I baked the bread about 24 hours later.

The next day (or when ready to bake) let the dough sit out at room temperature for  2  hours.

Next, form the dough into your desired shape and put them in floured bannetons, bowls or on a baking sheet and let them rise covered for 2 hours or until they pass the poke test.  If you want to make the pattern on top, press your cookie cutter into the dough and place it good side up in a floured basket to rise.  When ready to bake, score the loaves as desired and prepare your oven for baking with steam.

Set your oven for 500 degrees F. at least 30 minutes before ready to bake.  When ready to bake place the loaves into your on  your oven stone with steam and lower the temperature immediately to 450 degrees.   The total baking time was around 45 minutes.  When both loaves are golden brown and reached an internal temperature of 200 degrees F. you can remove them from the oven.

Let the loaves cool down for at least an 6 hours or so before eating as desired.

Please visit my other blog at www.mookielovesbread.wordpress.com for all of my recipes.

Cosmo resting after a full meal :)

My wife asked for a sandwich loaf that was made with whole grain, mainly whole wheat and a tiny bit of sweetness supplied by honey.  She wants a replacement for her old favorite Oroweat Whole Wheat.

She doesn’t like sprouts or seeds or soakers in her bread which makes it easier if more boring.  So we came up with a loaf she can take for lunch every day and not be forced to read the ingredient label that scares folks to death.

The whole grains include home ground whole; wheat, spelt and kamut with more emphasis on wheat.  Since wheat would be the dominate flour, we decided to use our Desem starter that is fed only whole wheat and tends to produce bread that is less sour and more sweet than our rye sour starter.

Method

We levain was a 5 hour single all in one shot kind of build, which had the same variety of home milled whole grains in it.  We like using whole grains in levains and at220 gthis one was 23% of the total dough weight - right in the 20-30% range we like. 

While levain was building itself up to full strength we autolysed all the other ingredients including the salt for nearly 5 hours.  When the levain was finished we mixed it by hand with the autolysed portion of the mix.  Once mixed we did a full 12 minutes of French slap and folds before allowing the dough to rest in a plastic covered  and oiled bowl for 15 minutes.

After the brief rest, 4 sets of S&F’s were done one 15 minute intervals with the resting done back in the covered bowl.  Once the S&F’s were completed the dough was allowed to develop and ferment for 1 hour before being pre-shaped into a loaf and allowed to rest for 10 minutes before being final shaped and place into a loaf tin.

As soon as the tin was filled with dough,  it was placed into a plastic bag and refrigerated for a 15 hour retard at 38 F.  The dough was taken out of the fridge and allowed to come to room temperature for 1 hour.

With 15 minutes left for the warm up, (2) of Sylvia’s steaming cups were prepared with dish cloth, Pyrex cup 1/2 full of water and micro-waved to boiling and the Mini Oven heated to 500 F.

One of Sylvia’s steaming cups were placed in the back of the oven, the bread tin slid in and the other steaming cup placed in front.  It is a perfect fit that ensures maximum steam if you throw in ¼ C of water on the bottom of the mini oven when you close the door like we did.

We steamed the bread for 2 minutes and then turned down the mini oven to 450 Fand steamed for another 8 minutes – 10 minutes of steam total.  When the steam was removed the MO was turned down to 400 F - convection this time.  Every 5 minutes the tin was turned 180 degrees.  After 5minutes the bread was removed from the tin and baked directly on the oven rack.  In 10 more minutes the bread tested 205 F and in Fahrenheit degrees too.  Total bake time was 25 minutes.

Since we wanted a softer crust the bread was removed to a cooling rack instead of being allowed to crisp in the off oven with the door ajar.  It was surprising how nice this bread really is - no kidding.  The taste is nice and wheaty and the sour is mild.  The crust baked up blistered and softly chewy like we had hoped for.  The crumb is glossy, soft, and very moist.  A real challenger to Oroweat Whole Wheat that tastes and looks better too.   

Nothing like laying down in the cool grass when it is 104 F outside - if you are a tired baking apprentice.

Formula

I’m still experimenting and making observations my with my natural “lievito 2.0”. All that experimenting and nothing to show for it… So while I had the time I decided to actually make something. Something different to Panettone…

I adapted the original recipe (from Dolcesalato), scaling down the formula, making just one modification to include white, along with the milk and dark chocolate chips.

		Veneziana al Cioccolato by Giovanni Pina VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

First dough – left to rise at 30C for 10-12hrs

• 225g ‘00’ flour
• 75g lievito naturale
• 56g egg yolks
• 64g caster sugar
• 90g water
• 75g butter

Second dough – left to rise at 30C for 6-7hrs

• 83g ‘00’ flour
• 56g caster sugar
• 56g egg yolks
• 4g salt
• 15g honey
• 38g water
• 98g butter
• 165g chocolate chips (55g each of white, milk and dark)

I glazed the dough with an egg and sugar solution and scored a Y shape on top as per original instructions.

So off I go... I have completed my 1st attempt at one of two recipes I will fervently try to "perfect" over the course of the next year.

Today, I baked cranbo's sourdough recipe which I shaped into a boule. I did however incorporate some different techniques that I wish to "master". (I put quotations because I can already see this will be a life long endeavor to perfect my loafs and techniques). I used the 36 hour method for this boule and will continue to do so making slight changes one at a time to see how I can improve my loaf with the conditions I am given. This might get lengthy because I want to keep accurate review of each bake so that I may improve my loafs.

Furthermore, as long as my situation allows, I will start the sourdough boule on Thursdays and the baguette a l'ancienne on Sundays and finishing the loaves on Saturday and Tuesdays, respectively.

Ok, here is the process:

Recipe:

• 550g KAF Bread Flour
• 308g water (38.2 F)
• 110g 100% hydration starter (AP Flour)
• 12g Pink Himalayan Salt

• Mix flour and cold water into a rough mass. Dough temp was 66.2 F going into the fridge, which was at 36 F +/- .5 F. Hung out in my fridge for 14 hours.

• Saved the flour/water mix from the depths of my fridge and kneaded in the starter first, then the salt. It was cold! Kneaded approx. 15-18 mins with a 10 min rest at 8 mins. (Was very difficult to knead at first. I'm sure the lower hydration and the temp didn't help much. Also I believe my starter was a bit past prime usage because it had become more liquidy than a dough consistency. So that also made it more difficult to knead into the dough. In the end this, in my opinion, was the best dough I had kneaded. Very supple and slightly tacky but not sticky.)

• Once I kneaded it into submission I began 4 S&F's at 30 min intervals. After the last S&F I let the dough relax for 20 min then shaped and placed into ze brotform. Slid the brotform into a plastic bag and back into the fridge for 19 1/2 hours at 40 F.

• After the dough's cat nap I let it proof for 6 1/4 hours at 75 F.

• Set the temp of the oven to 525 F, for heat loss when I open the door, and placed the boule onto the baking stone and poured 1 cup of boiling water in a pan below with lav rocks, shut the door and reduced the temp to 450 F for 25 mins, rotated the boule 180 degrees, then reduced temp to 400 F for 15 more mins. The boule out of the oven was at 208.5 F internally.

Overall, very pleased. Taste was delicious with a smooth and creamy texture with a subtle tang. Open to advice or critques please.

One more thing, for aesthic reasons only I'm concerned with the major center bloom. I think I need a better choice for scoring.

Here on Long Island, New York we have a ever-growing wine country on the East End of the Island.  My wife and I like to go visit a few different wineries and enjoy sampling the different varieties of wine available.  There is nothing more relaxing than to sit down with some good wine, cheese and bread and enjoy the cooler autumn air.

Last weekend we visited a few wineries we like after picking some pumpkins and it inspired me to try to incorporate one of the chardonnay from Mattebella vineyards into my next bake.

I decided to make a variation on my multi-grain soaker bread and also incorporated some roasted sweet potatoes in the mix along with freshly ground spelt flour and soft white wheat flour.

The soaker was made up of rolled oats, bulgur, millet and malted flakes.

I also decided to try being a little stylish with these loaves and used a snow flake cookie cutter to create an interesting effect.  On one loaf I brushed it with an egg white mixed with water and sprinkled on some chia seeds.

AP Starter

227 grams AP Flour

71 grams AP Seed Starter

151 grams Water at Room Temperature (80-90 degrees F.)

Mix ingredients in a bowl until thoroughly combined.  Cover the bowl and let it sit at room temperature for around 8 hours.  The starter should almost double when ready to proceed.  You can either mix in final dough or put in refrigerator for at most 1 day before using.  If your kitchen is warmer than mine which is usually about 70-72 degrees with my air-conditioning you can proceed sooner.

Soaker

70 grams Rolled Oats

50 grams Bulgar Wheat

30 grams Millet

25 grams Malted Wheat Flakes

275 grams Boiling Water

Mix ingredients together in a bowl and cover.  Let rest for 30 minutes or longer until ready to use.

Drain the liquid before mixing in the final dough.  (Note: most of the liquid will get absorbed by the soaker ingredients which will help make this a fairly wet dough)

Main Dough Ingredients

425 grams Refreshed AP Starter (65% hydration) from above

All of the Soaker from above with water drained

50 grams Rye Chops

141 Freshly Ground and Sifted Spelt Flour

50 grams Wheat Germ

225 European Style Flour from KAF (can substitute Bread Flour)

130 grams Freshly Ground Soft Wheat Flour

160 grams Roasted and Mashed Sweet Potatoes

14 grams Sea Salt or Table Salt

268 grams White Wine (I used a Dry Chardonnay)

Procedure

Mix the flours with the wine and starter leaving 50 grams of wine for later in your mixer or by hand for 1 minute.    Let the dough autolyse for one hour in your bowl and make sure to cover it.  Next add in the salt, potatoes and the soaker with the balance of the wind and mix by hand for 2 minutes until everything is well incorporated.  Mix on speed #1 for 2 minutes and speed #2 for 2 minutes or by hand for 5 minutes.

Next take the dough out of the bowl and place it on your work surface.  Do a stretch and fold and rest the dough uncovered for 10 minutes.  After the rest do another stretch and fold and cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.  Do one more stretch and fold and put the dough into a lightly oiled bowl and let it sit at room temperature covered for 2 hours.  After 2 hours you can put the dough into the refrigerator for 24 hours or up to 2 days before baking.  Feel free to do some additional S & F's if you feel it is necessary.  I baked the bread about 24 hours later.

The next day (or when ready to bake) let the dough sit out at room temperature for  2  hours.

Next, form the dough into your desired shape and put them in floured bannetons, bowls or on a baking sheet and let them rise covered for 2 hours or until they pass the poke test.  If you want to make the pattern on top, press your cookie cutter into the dough and place it good side up in a floured basket to rise.  When ready to bake, make an egg wash or use some milk and brush on to the top of the loaf you want to add seeds to.  Sprinkle the seeds on and then proceed to score the loaves as desired and prepare your oven for baking with steam.

Set your oven for 500 degrees F. at least 30 minutes before ready to bake.  When ready to bake place the loaves into your on  your oven stone with steam and lower the temperature immediately to 450 degrees.   The total baking time was around 45 minutes.  When both loaves are golden brown and reached an internal temperature of 200 degrees F. you can remove them from the oven.

Let the loaves cool down for at least an 6 hours or so before eating as desired.

Since there are so many different grains and flours in this bread the wine flavor is not very apparent. The final bread did come out very nice with a nice moist crumb and thick crust.  This is a hearty bread and if you don't like whole grains you will not like this one.  I just ate some for breakfast with some nice Havarti style cheese.

Please feel free to visit my other blog at www.mookielovesbread.wordpress.com for all my recipes.

We ran out of English muffins and once again used a variation fop the one at KAF.  We use YW in conjunction with a SD Desem starter to make EM;s that are very similar to Wofferman’s but 16% whole wheat.  They are light, fluffy, airy and just plain delicious.  We make them all the time and never want to run out of them in the freezer

After 8 hours the dough had more than doubled and stuck to the plastic cover to reveal the airy structure beneath. 

The method is simple enough.  Build the SD and YW levains over 6 hours in one stage each.  After the levains have doubled, mix everything except the salt, sugar and baking soda together and let sit out overnight or for 8 hours on the counter.  Make sure the bowl is covered in plastic and well oiled and at least 3 times the size of the dough ball.

See the 2 free form ones made after cutting out 7 on the first pass?

After the overnight proofing add the remaining salt, sugar and BP and knead on a floured work surface for 4-5 minutes.  Let rest for 10 minutes and then press out into a circle that is ¾ “ thick.  No need for a rolling pin.  Use a cutter to make 3”-4” rounds – I used a plastic drinking cup.  Move to a corn meal or semolina sprinkled parchment paper covered cookie sheet and cover with plastic to final proof 45 minutes on the counter.

We managed 9 large ones but you could get a dozen smaller ones.  Dry fry in a seasoned cast iron skillet on medium low heat about 4-5 minutes per side until golden brown.  Move to a cooling rack.  Eat while warm with butter and jam.  Yummy!

    I only recently delved into the world of bread, and before I overwhelm myself with the plethora of recipes I am going to hone in on the basics with 2 recipes. I have been reading Peter Reinhart's The Bread Baker's Apprentice and obtaining the "feel" for the dough is my end goal. Instead of relying on timers, I want to depend on my senses.

   My hope for this year long bread baking journey is to be able to bake an excellent sourdough boule and baguette. That is not to say I wont bake a few odd recipes here and there, but my main focus will be on the basic sourdough recipe posted by cranbo which I will use for my boule and the Baguettes a l'Ancienne recipe posted by DonD for my baguettes. Gaining experience using a sourdough starter and instant yeast will be invaulable. Already, I can see the subtle and sometimes obvious differences in the way each type of yeast acts on the dough. As I gain experience hopefully it will lead to better tasting bread.

   I must be honest, I will be posting rookie questions for quite some time, but I have noticed already how helpful the TFL community is and hopefully you all can guide me through my trials and errors. Well here goes a year of enjoyment.

Lane