Croissant Adventure in Winter

This is another photo journal of my croissant adventure. I never get tired of taking pictures of croissants.  It is very satisfying even if I had to wake up at 2:30 am in the morning to complete the baking.

Ingredients/formula is in previously posted blog.

Hmmm... I see my slight mistake.   I seemed to have ignored my own rule - do not egg wash sliced edges of each roll.  It sealed the layers and have kept them from rising during the baking period.  

The taste of 'Euro-Style' Unsalted Butter is more flavorful than the normal Kirkland unsalted butter I always use. 

This one below shows the layer separation and rise where egg wash is carefully applied only to the top of the rolled layer avoiding the sliced edges.  

Baked at 475'F on baking sheet on Silpat.  3rd rack from the top in GE Large gas oven.  Maximum 12 minutes baking time. Keep a close watch.  

Polly's Sourdough Bread

This is another adventure in baking bread at home.  The recipe for the preferment dough turned out pretty interesting.  Nothing special.  It's the same old Flour, water, yeast, Kosher salt. The bread proofed and rose and baked to my satisfaction in my ordinary home gas oven.   
Ingredients
Preferment Dough Overnight:
Bread Flour 14.06 oz
Water 9.125 oz
Yeast 0.0625 oz
Salt 0.25 oz

Final Dough:
Bread Flour 32.375 oz
Water 19.4375
Yeast 0.0625
Salt 0.3125
Honey 0.125
Preferment we Dough 11.75
Poppyseeds 1 Tbsp

KABOCHA POTATO Soup with Tabasco Sauce

Ha!  Wonderful spicy heat to warm me up.

Preroast your favorite KABOCHA.

Dice half a onion.

Dice a peeled potato.

Make a mirepoix. 

Heat sauteuse and add 2 tsp of EVOO. 

Sauté onion for 30 seconds, then add potato and sauté for 2 min without browning onion or the potato.

Add 1 C organic chicken stock

Add 1/2 C water

Add mirepoix.

Cook to Reduce.  

Scoop 1 C of cooked KABOCHA and add to soup.

Add salt and black pepper to taste

Add to a blender to blend.

When smoothly blended put it through the sieve over a bowl.

Serve in soup bowl with sprinkles of Tabasco Sauce.

Enjoy.