December 27, 2009 - 8:07pm
Second try!
This is my second attempt, they looked and smelled great but still with a very fine crumb, no good air pockets :( KAF basic baguette recipe, glazed with egg whites. Time to make some poolish for tomorrow and try again!
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Just a reminder.. you do have to EAT all the bread!
Haha, I know, Alex and I are having a tough time keeping up already, I guess this is why people are weekend bakers..
The rolls look fantastic, and when I checked the formula I saw that there is 63% hydration. Based on how the oven spring spread the slashes, there should be nice air pockets inside. Two questions:
Are you using all-purpose or bread flour? Bread flour develops a more cohesive gluten structure to hold trapped gasses, whereas AP flour does not.
Are you using water or milk/water mixture for your hydration? Milk will give you a softer and tighter crumb, but still a good rise.
Cut one of the rolls and show us the crumb. If you have great flavor and beauty, I wouldn't worry about giant air holes.
P.S. I love your countertop. Is it granite or quartz? Do you know the pattern name?
I am using AP flour, I will certainly try bread flour next, maybe this weekend. The poolish was beautiful and stringy and I think it added the flavor I am looking for.
I use water, just tap, maybe I should try filtered from the fridge?
They do look nice and taste good but my goal is a chewy, smooth, crusty loaf that you have to tear with your teeth! I know I'm shooting for the moon but I have time and patience on y side.
Thanks for the comments and suggestions, all are appreciated.
p.s. We rent here but I was told the countertops were granite, they are beautiful and wonderfully durable, thank you.
You may find that bread flour, higher in protein, gives you a denser crumb than the AP. But give it a shot anyway and see how it turns out. Those boules look quite nice and you certainly have good control over the uniformity of your slashing technique.
I don't see a picture of the crumb. Might be a problem on my end.
Unless your water is unfit to drink, I doubt the water is contributing to your dillema. Personally, if teh flavor is there and teh crumb is uniform, I would not agonize over big holes. They just create places for butter to drip through and get on your shirt. LOL
To get a crispy, chewy crust, coat the loaves in an egg wash, then create a steam environment inside your oven by placing a cast iron pan or old cookie sheet on the floor of the oven (bottom shelf if you have electric), and pour a cup of boiling water into it right after you put the bread in the oven and quickly close the door. After 3 minutes spray the oven walls and the bread itself with water 3 times at 2 minute intervals. The steam toughens up the crust. Bakeries have steam injection for their big ovens, which is how they get that type of crust.
The quest for the perfect loaf of bread is never ending. I'm satisfied with great flavor at a bargain basement price.
On my other computer, the images showed. On a different system, no image.
Will check back on the first one I saw it to see if it's still there.
Had a similar issue with another posted image that did't show on either system(other members saw it). When I downloaded firefox on one of them, I could view the image. Don't know if that's the case here, yet.