Saturday, December 19, 2015

Polly's Sourdough Bread II Adventure

It all started with cravings for sandwich made with home baked bread.  A bowl of Leaven I tried to make many times during summer proved to me that 'that is not it'. The baked bread's crumb feel wet and heavy.  This time around, I followed as close to the formulas as possible by saving only small amount of starter, then adding 50/50 of flour and water, a good pinch of yeast, then mixed thoroughly. Placing the lid and kept in dark spot of kitchen. It went on for a few days.  Checking it each day, but all I saw was large bubbles forming.  The leaven was failing the float test.  Then this week, I thought about my container with lid on vs Tartine's instruction of covering with towel. 

Even though there got to be Air during the process I have been keeping the lid on.  Why?  Because it didn't work out before in summer. My dough turned out taffy like texture and bread turned out tough. The starter did not have any power. . . But let me try again I thought.  After a few days,  Interesting. I started to notice the 'mini' bubbles forming on the top.   I continued to discard most of it, then saved 1/4 C of it and added 50/50 flour and water.   I also started another bowl of leaven mixing with flour and some rye and a pinch of yeast.   Discarding and feeding the leaven every day.  Keeping the lids of both containers loose.  Checking it each day.  Then I noticed the 'lightness' of the leaven in the jar and bowl.
It passed the floating test. It was very exciting as I have never seen this happened.  I decided to feed the the new mix for a few days also.  Eventually I added enough feed to make the required weighed amount of Poolish.  
Ingredients for Poolish:
200 g Flour
200 g water - at least 75'F
Added them to about 1 C of leaven pre-made, instead of adding dry yeast.  
Weigh and measure total of 400 g Poolish mixture after mixing the ingredients. 
Cover loosely and Set aside - overnight in 'cold' kitchen
Do the float test.  Ready?  Good.   No? Then let it stand longer.  
Prepare Leaven:  Mix 1 Tbsp of Mature Starter/Leaven that you pre-made with 220 g Flour, 220 g Water (80'F).  Cover and let stand.  Do the float test.  
Measure 400 g of leaven into a large bowl.   Keep the remaining 40 g for future starter.  Pour 500 g warm water (74'F to 76'F) into leaven and add Poolish.  Stir to disperse the ingredients.  

Add 650 g A-P Flour and 350 g Bread Flour.  Mix with hands or large wooden spoon. 

The dough is heavy and rough looking.  Transfer to heavy/thick clear plastic container and begin the bulk  fermentation.  

Cover loosely with lid and towels to keep warm.  Rest for 40 min (in cold kitchen).  Measure 25 g kosher salt and 20 g warm water.  
Start the first turn of Four turns - at first turn - Open the lid and add salt, wet your hand (from 20 g water) pull dough from bottom and over to the top, repeat each corner.   Salt will be roughly mixed in.  

Repeat the turn one or more times if your hands are small like mine.  You will still feel the salt granules here and there, but eventually the salt will get mixed in at each subsequent turn.  
Cover and rest 40 min. 
At each turn of the dough, the dough will increase in volume and feel pliable and lighter.  
Turn the container over on work surface without flour.  Let the dough slowly separate itself from the sides of container.  
(This dough looks much more structured than the Sourdough I in previous post.  The formula is different also .)

Portioning:
After the fourth turns (or 'your' estimated visual turns),  transfer the dough to a work surface without flour.  Divide the dough into portions measuring the approximate length size of the Baguette doughs your oven could hold.   I divided dough to be prepared to be shaped into three baguettes, two French Breads, and one Rondo.   Form the doughs into rectangular shape with rounded corners. If you notice the dough starts to spread then give each dough a several tucking turns.  Resting the dough in between each turn and tuck.  Once the dough can hold its shape form them into rectangular shape.
Cover and rest for 30 min. 
Shape each dough (not described here) into French Bread, Baguettes, Rondo.  Cover and let rise for 2-1/2 hrs to 3 hrs...4 hrs in cold kitchen. 

Cover to let rise till double in size.   
Preheat oven to 500'F.  For 15 min steam required for best result for crispy crust, set a roasting pan filled with water at the base of oven with towel in it to build steam.  Make sure the pan you use is deep enough to hold hot water to last at least 15 minutes.  I use my oven's roaster/grill pan that came with it.  
I used French Bread and Baguette molds for my final rise and shaping.
Score each dough.  
Have a spray bottle ready to give extra steaming action in the oven.  Place oven rack third rack from the top.  
A soon as the oven reaches 500'F, place the bread mold on third rack from the top - quickly.   Spray as you quickly close the oven door. 
Immediately lower the temp to 475'F.  Bake for 18 min and check the color of the dough. Every 5 min, Crack open oven door and quickly Spray aiming at the walls of interior oven, if your steam pan doesn't seem to be building enough steam power.  At the end of 18 minutes, check and make sure the dough is fully browned before taking them out.  Bake a few minutes longer to make sure the crust is browned thoroughly, if needed.  
Remove steamer pan after 15 min and or remove the towel in the pan that is set in it before it starts to scorch to cause unpleasant odor to the bread. 
Rondo's dough is rising in flour-coated flour cloth with seam side up.
I should have dusted off the rice flour for this one before baking. 
I am very happy with the results, however.  
Both Baguettes and Rondo turned out with great holes.  
See the differences of bread baked in well steamed oven vs lacking of it?  Baking in the well steamed oven produced shiny crusts.  While the Rondo was covered with flour/rice flour before the baking, it contributed to dull looking crust.  As for the taste of these sourdough breads, they are excellent.  I love it better than the store bought. Crumbs are soft and light with crispy crust.   

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

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.  

Sunday, December 13, 2015

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

Tuesday, December 08, 2015

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.

Monday, December 07, 2015

Teriyaki Salmon Salad from the GreenChef

This is one of the dinner menu my family member ordered from the Green Chef -online grocery.
The most interesting ingredients was the black bean noodle.  Teriyaki sauce was a bit non-conventional mixture compared to what we are used to.   The tangy cucumber salad complimented the Salmon filet overall.