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From disaster to happy mistake...
Just wanted to share what I thought was a disaster...I have been perfecting my white sandwich loaf and all has been going well. Today I thought I would change the way I shape my loaf. So made my dough 500g flour 2.25 yeast 1.5 salt 300 ml milk 2 tbl sp honey. All went great rise 40 min... | Keep calm,carry on
Very lovely loaf! There is usually a fix for bread if you don't panic. |
Can I put egg wash on Rye Sandwich Bread?
Hi guys,As the subject, can I put egg wash on Rye Sandwich Bread before bake? (The flour is used 80% of T55 and 20% of rye flour). I am appreciated for your help. | Suit yourself
If you want an egg wash, do it!Ford |
Baking Time/Temp Differences in Commercial Oven vs Dutch Oven at Home
Hi TFL,Long time lurker here - have had great success baking artisan loaves for myself and for friends and family, and this site really helped me get started. I have been baking with a cast Iron dutch oven at home, and the result is excellent.I've be... | Why change?
However every oven is different - you're going to have to do a test bake to see how the big oven works and compare it to your home one.For me - an oven is just a box with heat - I have a standard UK domestic fan oven - bread goes in at 250°C and I reduce it to 210°C after 12-15 minutes (No 'DO', Cloche, etc... |
open crumb and fermentation
just wondering if anyone knows if a slow fermentation increases openness of crumb. I recently made a oat and multi seeded sandwich loaf (using instant dry yeast) with a 50% poolish and i got a great tasting loaf with an open crumb which i wasnt really expecting as there was butter in it too ... | I really don't know
but I wanted to tell you that is one nice slice of bread. Looks delicious! Mind sharing the recipe? |
scoring issues
just a quick question; are you better off scoring rye breads and breads with alot of seeds, nuts, wholegrains with a straight blade as you wont get an ear as you would with a curved blade on a white baguette, batard, etc.The reason i ask is that the last three breads ive made - a carrot, sesame bread and... | Depending on how much rye
You won't get the same effect with scoring. I never score 100% rye breads. I wait till a few holes start appearing on top (not too many as it'll over proof just a few) then bake. Comes out the oven just right. Docking is done with Rye instead of scoring as the low gluten doesn't support scorin... |
OH MY GOSH what's the secret to getting pita to puff correctly?
Holy hell! I thought I had perfected pita making during the winter. Now that it's summer, it seems much harder to get it to puff. It's driving me nuts! I dont know what to do! | The trick with pita is forming a skin.
Break off a piece of dough, shape into a ball and let it rest and rise and then roll it out flat without reshaping the ball, just flatten it. Let it rise a little bit then bake. The skin will act like a balloon and the trapped gasses inside will make it expand and puff up. Has ... |
Yeast - do i need to modify amount during winter
I've been baking some bread and its turned out well all summer and fall. Now its winter (in australia) and I'm finding the bread doesn't rise as much (in fact not very much at all) and the result after baking is its hard as a stone!I'm not sure whether my dry active yea... | yeast like it warm
and in order to test the yeast, it might be a good idea to warm up water a wee bit and to find a warm spot for the dough to rise. Warming the mixer bowl is also an option. Check to see if your oven has a proofing temperature. Another quick fix is to boil a mug of water in the microwave, turn off t... |
Cheese to Compliment Rye Bread
After working in the garden, I came in for a quick lunch. I was thinking maybe a piece of pickled bologna, a slice or two of rye bread and a piece of cheese. Unfortunately, I didn't have any cheese on hand, and vowed that my next trip to my local "Cheese Lady" (importer of fine cheeses) w... | Preference but...
It really is what you like at the end of the day but Swiss cheeses with rye do seem to be popular. I'm fussy when it comes to dairy stuff and the cheeses I prefer tend to be medium hard and not too pungent. One cheese that fits all these categories and is one of my favourites is Emmenthal. A lovely nu... |
need help troubleshoot my breads
i've been using the breadmachine panasonic yd250 for a few years now, i generally only do white french bread mode. generally like it, crust could be crisper, but the rest is great.I wanted to get the nicer crust, so i've been playing with the french bread dough mode (3h35min) , but havi... | Just from reading the recipe
i get the impression one loaf would bake up nicely. I wouldn't divide the dough into two unless you wanted long baguettes. Three and a half hours seems long to me for the recipe. I might remove the dough when it has only doubled in volume (to the top might be way too much) then pat it ou... |
Help, Why is my bread so chewy?
I have been baking the overnight with levan. I use Bakers flour from Costco. I believe it is 13.5% Everything is great about my bread except that It is farm more chewy than any breads I am used to. I did a search in the forums and found that it seams people like this, and actually a... | High protein flour
A flour that is 13.5% protein will usually make a chewier bread. Try half and half bread flour and all-purpose flour and see if you like the results better. |
Highly recommended cha siu (Cantonese BBQ pork) recipe
If anyone is interested in making authentic cha siu at home, I HIGHLY, HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend the following recipe from retired Chef Du. It's the easiest and most authentic cha siu recipe I've ever tried. It's so delicious that I dare to say my cha siu is better ... | food night?
Hi Yippee, I love following all the food you cook up- I can imagine eating all the yummy dishes, especially sweet and sour in the lard link. :)I'll be sure to try the bbq. Thanks! I just boiled up clas brown sweet rice /white wheat noodle (13%;87%) but no sides for them :(. |
Preferments doesnt make sense??
I don't really get preferments. Why only ferment a portion of the dough, instead of all of it? It makes a little bit of sense with for example a poolish, because you need to get the right hydration (but even then, I don't get why only ferment like 30%), but a biga? The hydration is withi... | A few reasons
One which immediately is obvious is that preferments are rarely the same hydration as the final dough. Poolish is too hydrated and biga is very low hydration. A true biga is 50% hydration or lower. And even if higher it's still not often within the range of the final dough. If you want to go straight into... |
Italian bread - classic taste and texture
HI all, Here is the classic Italian bread. I followed Peter Reinhart recipe.Here is the link:https://www.thespicedlife.com/italian-bread/Those who try different recipes to make classic Italian bread. These are the texture and the flavor of the authentic bread you are looking fo... | Just tried this...
...and the result was superb. I may leave out the sugar next time though. Just thought I'd let you know :-) |
What does n/a beside a post mean ?
wondering if I did something wrong. I posted in general and n/a appeared beside it. Does this mean it didn't post.... | The n/a is in the "Last Reply
The n/a is in the "Last Reply" column, so presumably that means no one has replied yet. |
light wheat bread
My wife doesn't like straight whole wheat. I tried to make a light wheat or to be exact half and half. She likes that it is lighter and makes better sandwich bread except the taste is a bit bland. I use 50% bread flour, 50% whole wheat, 1 Tbl dry milk powder and 2 Tbl honey along with the standard... | Time and patience
Bread gets its flavor from fermentation by-products as well as good ingredients and being a high percentage whole wheat, needs time for all those branny bits to absorb the water so it doesn't crumble after it is baked. Soft, flavorful whole wheat sandwich loaf is achievable if some simple rules are fo... |
Bavarian style soft pretzels and pretzel bread
HI all, Here is my first try at soft pretzels and pretzel rolls.I followed the recipe by Louisa Weiss for the most part, here is the link.http://www.dw.com/en/luisa-weiss-recipe-for-traditional-german-soft-pretzels/a-36588742What I changed is I did not use white sugar, ins... | Wow!
Those are amazing Alexandra. Just perfect! Don't know how you do it. Just been admiring your Challah too. Some great bakes this week and your family sure is eating well. If I lived closer I'd put in a standing order. Lovely. |
Kneeding with a mixer
Hello there,for quite sometime I kneaded bread by hand. To avoid the kitchen mess, and reduce time needed for the bread, I bought a kitchen mixer with a hook.How does mixing affect the process? For example I usually mix 40% WW with 60% AP flour in around 67-70% hydration with 15-20% starter. I do ... | What I Do....
I use a mixer to shorten the overall time that I am involved in the preparation as I have other things to do. I have a six quart KitchenAid Pro Mixer. For sourdough bread I mix everything other than salt until it is in the typical "shaggy mix" shape which is usually about 1 1/2 minutes. After a 30 minu... |
Amish recipe HELP
Hello! Locally we have a large Amish population and they have a weekly market. At the market I found the most delicious bread I have ever tasted. I am moving to Japan soon so I would never get to buy it again oh no! Luckily I sent the baker a letter and she sent me the recipe, however I am a little co... | Yes, definitely you'll need
Yes, definitely you'll need some yeast.How much? Umm... my rule of thumb is about 2 teaspoons instant yeast with 3 cups of flour to make a loaf of sandwich bread, so this looks about triple or quadruple that. So 2 Tablespoons maybe? |
Panini recipe
Just back from Sicily after sampling some delicious sandwiches using panini. We had had some tasty treats in paninis including prosciutto and paper-thin cheese with sun-dried tomatoes and olives, spread with olive oil rather than butter. The panini had a lovely open crumb too.I would love to try making my... | Not tried it
But a quick Google found this with favourable reviews if it helps, http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/panini-bread-recipe |
Beginners Tweaking...
Have just tried a small amount of tweaking on my sandwich loaf....I have been using the same basic recipe for awhile with sucesss but decided to change a couple of things....it worked a treat I think it is an improvement and am delighted so in case it never happens again I decide to show it off...... | That is one heck of a lovely
crust and crumb. A perfect sandwich loaf.Bon Appetit. |
This challah bread is amazing!
HI all, Here is my challah bread that tastes amazing! I follow the recipe by Tori Avey. It is so fluffy, so flavorful, and looks incredibly appetizing!Here is the link to the recipe:http://toriavey.com/how-to/2010/08/challah-bread-part-1-the-blessing-and-the-dough/Next time will experimen... | Looks wonderful!
Thanks for the link to the recipe! |
Extended rising doughs with eggs & milk– reducing risks
Hi,I am currently adapting my New Zealand “template food control plan” to my business in which I need to show that I am minimalising risk. I am trying to fit it into making Kolache dough with raw egg and pasteurised milk in the dough. There is general rules for ho... | Pasteurized Eggs
I place the eggs in a saucepan and cover them with an inch of warm water, heat the water to a temperature between 135°F and 139°F (57° to 59°C), and hold it in that temperature range for ten minutes. I then pour off the hot water, run cold water over the eggs, and then add ice to chill them.A thermome... |
Transitioning to Gas Deck Oven from Home Oven
Hello TFL! Glad to be a part of this community and hope to learn a lot from you guys!Anyway, I have been baking country loaves for around 8 months now since this pandemic started. I can say that I have been consistent with what Im doing and been getting good results in my b... | Deck Oven Parameters
I recommend the following:15 minutes at 240c (top) / 230c (bottom) with 6 seconds of steam and damper closed. Plus 27 minutes with damper open, first 2 minutes and last 2 minutes of the 27 minutes with door slightly ajar to fully release steam.Also check the temperature of your boiler for the stea... |
sandwich loaf splitting in oven
Im hoping someone can help me with this recurring problem. Everytime i put a wholemeal sandwich loaf into the oven im getting a split whether its scored or not. I dont think its underproofed - if anything it could be over proofed. This split only happened on one side of the bread as you ... | Looks like
It has crusted over too quickly on top so the side burst due to steam escaping through the weakest spot. |
Doughnut deflating after frying, need help!
Hi I'm making a donut that I like the flavor and texture, but it deflates right after frying. There's an air pocket in the top and bottom.The recipe:400g bread flour1 Cup of whole milk (237g)30 g sugar2.5g salt3 Egg yolks57g butter 22g instant yeastTake 15g of yeast, 2/3 cup ... | might be an issue with proofing?
10-15 minutes seems pretty fast for dough coming out of the fridge. I usually let my cut donuts proof for a good 30 minutes. When you place them in the oil do they float and rest on the surface of the dough? or does it take them a moment before they rise up to the surface? underproofed ... |
Bread With Swet Potato
I have a recipe that makes two loaves of bread Liquid amounts to 16 ounces for the dough, and 9.6 oz for poolish. I want t add 1 baked sweet potato to the mix. The potato after baking and peeling weighs 176 grams. Flour I use for the dough is 724 grams. Flour for poolish is 9.6 ounces. Do I ... | Find a potato bread recipe
And stick to the same ratios. I'm sure there is a formula but that's what I do when in doubt. |
Right dough amount for loaf tins
this is a stupid question but up until now my dough has been too small for my 2 pound loaf tins so I want to scale up. I have a recipe that has 350g flour, 100g seeds, 50g oats, 60g water and 325g water (150g is for soaker). I have been told that a 2 pound (900g) tin is designed to hold... | Calculating amount of dough
Hi I have read somewhere how to calculate the correct amount of dough. Put your empty tin on the weighing scale and putit to 0. Fill with water Divide the amount by 1.9 and this will give you the correct amount of dough for your tin. You will then be able to look at your recipe and use ba... |
Croissant help and results
I posted some time back about croissant troubles. After multiple tries and advice here, I am getting the results I want. So, thank you - this forum has helped me immensely. | Wow
Hard to imagine much better. Nicely done. |
HELP with some bread baking/crumb structure knowledge
Hey there, everyone!First time poster. Super amateur baker here, educating myself about the science of baking. I have a few questions about crumb structure that have been plaguing me for quite a while.I've always been a gigantic lover of breads with a crumb like thi... | Could be a number of things
But I think flour and hydration plays the biggest part to the differing crumb.Top one looks like a higher hydration durum flour bread and the bottom photo looks like a lower hydration AP flour bread. |
live beer
So i've been experimenting with live beer for the past week and i've had some not so great results. But this is by far the best that i can come up with but I'm still having some issues. for this loaf i tried to increase the hydration but after i proofed over night and in my proofing box for 4 hours it was sti... | Are you making a poolish
With the live beer and proceeding onto the dough when the poolish is bubbly and active? |
Bagel happy dance!
Made from Hamelman recipe in Bread, without boards. So good--and so easy! Only made half the recipe as I've had a number of disappointments (with other recipes) recently. Plan to make again for Tuesday lunch...--Heidi | Lovely
Perfect bagels there. And lovely colour too.Enjoy! |
Struggling with wholemeal texture
Hi all! Great forum, I hope a 'help!' Post is okay for my first? I'm firmly in the amateur camp of baking and have been spending a few weeks trying to prefect a wholemeal recipe. A lot of my early attempts were quite flat and VERY dense. Now I'm having the opposite problem - good rise ... | Welcome!
I think your bread looks great! I see a lovely looking wholegrain loaf with a great crumb. You've got to remember that a wholegrain loaf will never be the same as a bread flour loaf. That aside I think this is very well done. To play around with texture and crumb you can incorporate a tangzhong. Take 5% of the... |
Water Chemistry and Gluten Development
I'm curious how much water chemistry plays a roll in how well gluten develops. I can produce a beautifully developed dough in less than 10 minutes at home, but if I use the exact same dough recipe and ingredients in the bakeshop the gluten struggles to develop at all sometimes tak... | Bring a jug of water from
Bring a jug of water from home and see if it make a difference. |
BBA cinnamon raisin walnut bread
I made this bread and it turned out great! Even though it hardly rose after I rolled it out to add the cinnamon sugar swirl. Oh well, one loaf had walnuts and the other without but both were good, sweet, and extra tasty toasted. | Beautiful! Is the recipe
Beautiful! Is the recipe posted here? |
shaping pain rustique
just a quick query. Are there any advantages to even pre-shaping a pain rustique and putting it into a banneton for proofing? Im following the Hamelman recipe which is great but weekend bakery have a hybrid version (uses sourdough as well) @ https://www.weekendbakery.com/posts/our-version-of-a-pai... | Better oven spring
is what I got when I started doing a preshape. It also knocks out all the large bubbles and you don't end up with huge caverns. I used to be super gentle when shaping, but no more. I give it a good stretch before pulling the dough to the middle. Hope this helps! |
No-knead bread in LeCreuset Pate Terrine Pan
I am being gifted with a cast iron LeCreuset Pate Terrine pan. It is approximately 4" x 12" x 3" and holds about 1.5 quarts. I am hoping to make no-knead breads in this lidded pan. i am relatively new to bread baking and no-knead breads. So far I have tried the Cook's Il... | Hi Ina,
What a great question! I was wondering almost the same thing a few days ago...smaller NKB loaves; sesame NKB 'bread rolls' for lunch...I'm sure you know what I mean! I haven't done this yet, but my idea was:
STEP 1: to shape one batch of NKB into 5-6 sesame or poppy-seed 'rolls' ('orange-size') and baking them ... |
rye beer bread
I would like to make my husband a beer bread (stout) with rye. Anyone have a great recipe? I don't have a started yet. I live in the north so we don't have fancy items at home. Anyone willing to share?Thanks ! | Sourdough or...
yeasted? EDIT... silly me, you said you don't have a starter yet. If you can get hold of kefir or live beer then you can make a starter quite quickly. |
advice needed on new bake
just a newbie looking for advice.I have here a 45% wholegrain sourdough (69% water, 22% levain (100% hydration), 55% bread flour, 30% whole spelt, 10% wholemeal, 5% whole rye) and am wondering what people think of crumb and colour. It tastes and smells good.Procedure was:mix in levain then res... | Looks Good
Your loaf looks good to me. Perhaps a little tightening during the shaping of the loaf would not be amiss, and then slash after the final rise. I find no fault with the crumb appearance. Keep baking!Ford |
Donut techniques
I made some successful brrioche dough into donuts yesterday, for the first time, but I have questions for anyone with more frying experience.Is there a way to get a stronger crust without overcooking it? It is very easy to put a finger through the outside of these while icing, and I can't go darker wi... | The pale ring is a good thing
otherwise the donuts would be under proofed. How soon after frying are you icing them? We found when icing them with fondant they really needed to cool for 45 minutes or so otherwise we had the same issue as you describe. The other thing is if the fondant is too cool it has trouble stic... |
German bakery in need of a assistance with a New York style bagels
Hey all,I am having no luck with my attempt at making New York style bagels in a commercial environment. I am using Jerffrey Hamelman's bagel recipe from the "A Baker's book of techniques and recipes, 2nd edition". I have attempted the "home" recipe w... | New York style bagels
Hello, sweetclouds, sorry you are having trouble with your bagels. Are you doing a bulk ferment only in the refrigerator? I think you would do better to bulk ferment at room temperature, unless your dough temperature after mixing is more than 80 degrees Fahrenheit (I would still let the dough sit ... |
Croissant Help
I got a bit full of myself the other day and tried to make croisants. The fact that I can't spell croissant should be a clue that I have no business making them. Anyhow, I got a recipe off the food network, followed it to the t, and ended up with a beautiful multilayered piece of dough. I cut out the cro... | Croissant Help
Hi.
I have made Croissants, (never mind about the spelling, if its right or wrong,) But I never put them in a warm place to rise.
I just let the "puff" in a cold place, and baked them from cold.
All these "layered doughs / pastry are best kept cold.
I have a good Danish pastry recipe recipe tried ... |
Hydration difference between European and American flours
I realise the answer to this question is as long as a piece of string but i was just interested on what people thought the hydration difference was between European and US/Canadian flours. When reading american recipes im always aware that there is a discrepancy... | I thonk a rough rule of thumb is 5-7% less water
is needed for European flours from the Fresh Loafians postings from both sides of the Atlantic. |
Lye in the UK
Hallo! :-)Is there anybody on here in the UK with a supply of lye they would consider selling me a bit of?I am after proper food grade lye not lab grade or technical grade.I have found some for sale from German delis but (perhaps stupidly) I am a bit loathe to pay €16 postage on top of the product cost.ma... | Tried Amazon?
I bought my lye through Amazon. I imagine Amazon UK will will have a similar product/affiliate merchant.Shipping may still be high as it is classified a hazardous material.gary |
Storage of yeast
i brought a new pack of yeast recently and I just transferred it into a clean airtight jar.i was told previously by a baker that there is no need to put yeast in the fridge however the packaging on the packet says to keep in fridge. Is this necessarily?its winter now, and I find that my dough isn't ri... | If your yeast is healthy
then it is the temperature of the dough. If you proof the yeast in warm water with a little sugar and it froths then the yeast is not the problem.I'm assuming you're talking about fresh yeast. I prefer to keep fresh yeast in a tupperware container (or any other plastic container) in the fridge. |
Wheat flour 15.78%
Hi all. Recently been bought 5 kilos of wheat flour with 15.78% protein.Will I have to increase hydration with this? Are there specific recipes any one can point to for this % of protein?Or do I just go ahead using it as replacement for strong bread flour?Any help very welcome. Cheers | Sounds like WW
or whole wheat flour. |
Question about rolls...
Hi to all, I wanted to make some crusty dinner rolls. Would like to ask if I have a sandwich loaf recipe I like can I just turn it into rolls and would the cooking time and temp. have to change. For the loaf the temp is 175 and time is 35 mins. The batch will be using 500g flour not sure of roll... | anything by Dan Lepard at The
anything by Dan Lepard at The Guardian works a treat - just google... |
Where to post job openings
Hey I'm new here and I can't find the place to post baker positions on the forum. Please help | I'd say the Professional Concerns forum,
under Advanced Topics. Everything shows up on the front page, regardless of the selected forum, so it isn't as though you'll commit a mortal sin if you don't use that one. Post away!Paul |
looking for advice on first wholemeal spelt bread
hi there - just looking for some constructive criticism...or what you all basically think. This is my first multigrain spelt bread made with 30% wholemeal spelt, 15% wholemeal wheat and 55% bread flour. I also added in a tablespoon (4%) of honey - not enough to make it ... | Looks perfect to me!
That's a lovely crumb. I'd be very happy with that. And from what I can see a great! crust. |
Converting straight dough to poolish
Can I just take the water and equal weight of flour for it (plus the yeast obviously) or is there a proper way to do it? My sandwich loaves have always been a straight lean dough but I want to try something different. I've read 30% of the flour but should I a for 100% hydration or s... | Poolish is 100% hydration
according to Hamelman's book. The goal with any pre-ferment is to improve the flavor of the bread. As too how much of the bread dough comes from the Poolish, that depends on the recipe. I've seen some recipes where 1/2 the flour comes from the Poolish an some where it is 1/3. |
Bread not soft once cools down and crust issues
I have two problems, they are sort of the same issue so I've lumped it to the same post:1. I've been trying to make soft buns with fillings. However, every time, the top of the bun turns out crusty and hard, not the soft texture I was expecting. The body is soft, just a h... | I think the oven is too cold.
try raising the temp to 200°C or 210°C With the fan try 175°C. See if you can bake the first five minutes without the fan with a higher oven temp. Are you using any steam in the oven?Four more questions: exactly what flours are being used? In what part of the world are you baking? Th... |
need a bread recipe for challenging conditions
Hi,I am finding myself in a kitchen with one sheet pan, an oven that will not go over 350 degrees, and a store that only sells soft wheat flour.I have yeast (fast acting) which I brought with me.I *really* want to bake bread but all my tried and true recipes are not workin... | Lean breads
Are baked at high temperatures. If bread has sugar in it then it'll be baked at a lower temperature for longer. According to this website http://www.tasteofhome.com/cooking-tips/breads---rolls/oven-temperatures-for-baking-bread up to 1/2 cup of sugar breads are baked at 375F and more than 1/2 a cup 350F. Tr... |
How to get more hydration to old fashion breads
Good morning :I am not new in bread making and successfully make the sourdough breads. Lately, I wanted to make Whole Grain breads the old fashion way with yeast, hand knead , raised 3 times....I made Oatmeal wholewheat bread( I cheated here by mixing 1/2 bread flour here... | perhaps making a tangzhong
from part of the oatmeal. That might also help with the stickiness. |
BBA Potato Rosemary coverting to sourdough question
Hello,I am wondering if anyone has a rule of thumb or some advice about converting a recipe to sourdough rather than commercial yeast. I like to make Peter Reinhart's Potato Rosemary formula (baked focaccia style rather than in boules) but would like to use my starter... | Conversion of yeasted to sourdough
Here are the "rules of thumb:"1. Keep the total amount of ingredients constant (flour, water, salt) except eliminate the commercial yeast.2. Decide on the percentage of the flour you want to pre-ferment. If the formula includes a biga, you could use that as a guideline. In general, 20... |
A Second Loaf
New member -- beginner baker -- easy questionsDo (most; all) bread recipes linearly scale, so if I want to bake a second loaf I just double all ingredient amounts? Is it better to mix a double batch and divide the kneaded dough, or mix a single batch twice?Any need to increase the mixer time for twice th... | I'll give it a go...
Do (most; all) bread recipes linearly scale, so if I want to bake a second loaf I just double all ingredient amounts? YES if using a scale.Is it better to mix a double batch and divide the kneaded dough, or mix a single batch twice? Depends on your mixer or mixing arm and the size of your b... |
Crazy lop-sided oven spring - What can I do?
Hey All, I'm in a rent trailer for the present time and have to use an old, horrible, bottom-of-the-line gas range from the 80s. I'm just making sandwich loaves with about 30% WW and Bread Flour, both KA. Everything is working fine, great oven spring, but the oven spring ... | Scoring?
If you are not scoring the loaf, try scoring it quite deeply right down the centre of the loaf. And rotate it halfway through the bake. It sounds like it might be trying to 'unroll' (assuming you've rolled the dough during shaping to put it in the pan) and springing as close to the seam as it can get. |
base density
None | Base density
Just getting my normal bread sorted and observed an issue. Near the base the crumb it is dense with some tiny holes. I bake in bread tins that just sit on the metal grid shelves. If I used a stone or a cast iron pot would the problem diminsh or go away? Cheers for any thoughts.
bread112.jpg
... |
Will multiple rise times change the flavor of the bread?
Also, will letting it rise on the counter, length of rise times, ambient temperature, make differences in flavor?Can one let it rise too many or too few times? | yes
:) |
Crumb Query
Hi All,I've been working my way through Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast for a while now and have become pretty familiar with a lot of the recipes. I've started experimenting with different flour blends, hydratations and ideas but a common thread I've found throughout my loaves is that the crumb is never as open i... | Very Common
This happens with most loaves, regardless of shaping. And while it's certainly possible to over-compress the crumb while shaping, thus causing an even tighter center, even a gently shaped and well-formed loaf will exhibit this phenomenon to one degree or another.As I see it, it's mainly a matter of compress... |
Would these bags make a good couche?
Just purchased one of these bags of flour because of cloth bag. I was thinking that I might be able to use it as a couche. Anyone ever see or touch these bags of flour? What do you think?Is there anything special about the cloth of a real couche? | Is it cotton?
If it is, then it's obviously a tight enough wave to keep the flour in, so it should work OK.I have one cotton couche and while it's lighter than ny linen ones, it works OK.Give it wash (mild detergent, don't use a fabric conditioner) - make sure the dye is fast and see what happens..-Gordon |
window pane
i have been making bread for a while, mostly sourdough and i have never been able to achieve the window pane test. it does not matter how much i kneed or not (mechanical or hand). I don't know how to fix it. I've had some good breads but never passed the test... thoughts? Ideas? tricks? thanks! | How are your breads?
If they have good crumb structure and are tasty, that's what matters.The window pane is an indication of gluten development. It is a way of judging how developed the gluten is. It is not an end in itself. Being able to demonstrate a gluten window requires some manual technique. It is neither trivia... |
No bannetons around...
I let my instant dry yeast bread proof in an oiled steel bowl. It never really stuck to it. But I'm having problems with my sourdough bread sticking everywhere I proof it, especially because of its slack nature and especially long proofing times.I've tried proofing it in a plastic container lined... | You could try with rice flour
Hi Vince, I was having similar problems with my sourdough, as I regularly make Tartine style country loaves. At first, I followed the reccomendation from the book and dusted the bannetons with the mix of AP flour and rice flour, but the dough would stick to the banneton when I tried to tra... |
Whole wheat 1/3 mix..vs..white
i have made my first w/w sandwich loaf. I used the exact same recipe I use for white loaf to compare , everything is the same except a substitute 1/3 w/w flour. Any ideas as to what went wrong please. It tastes fine, just wish I had a bigger rise. 500g Strong white flour1.5 teaspoons salt... | Will try a dedicated w/w
Will try a dedicated w/w recipe next time...just thought a small flour swap might be ok. Will try again.... |
Gluten-free diet carries increased obesity risk, warn experts
I haven't managed to get hold of the research paper yet, but, for once, this appears to be a decent study with a large sample size.
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/may/11/gluten-free-diet-carries-increased-obesity-risk-warn-experts
Any thoughts... | thoughts on gluten
I personally think there are real issues, obviously including celiac disease, but perhaps beyond that, involving gluten. Fine...let's understand them and how best to deal with them...letting the evidence guide us. However, I think MUCH of the current wheat belly, anti-gluten fad is just that, and i... |
Beginners Joy
Just made my first flat bread....such joy. This one has yeast in it,lovely and soft .Next is my whole wheat mix bread, just going to try 1/3 whole wheat and 2/3 strong white flour, hoping I can do this without changing the recipe, do not know if it affects the liquid amount. I really hope it's as good as... | Those look beautiful!
Did you bake on a stone? Love the nice looking crust! |
Dough is too elastic today
hi, I was wondering what the factors for an elastic dough might be?could be too much yeast?too much high gluten flour?not enough salt or sugar?does temperature effect?i made a batch of dough today and when I tried working with it, it would just not hold its shape and keep stretching back. I c... | rest time!
Putting it in the fridge would make it easier to work with cause usually dough is placed in the fridge to relax.Too much high gluten flour is the obvious factor BUT even an all bread flour dough can be stretched/rolled out thin as long as it's given an adequate rest period. If the dough is extra tough, roll ... |
True or false? No need to slash when baking in cast iron?
Not sure where but I was reading a internet article that stated there is no need to slash the dough when baking a bread in a cast iron pot. The article stated that the bread would naturally break apart creating it's all natural slash within the humid cast iron. ... | true AND false
True when you load the dough into the pot seam side up. That will be the weak point for the dough to start its bloom. False if you load the dough seam side down. The dough will then look for the weakest exposed point to expand and bloom wherever that is. |
Maple Milk Bread...Delicious but a few mishaps
I made Maple Milk Bread using Eric Kim from NYT Cooking's recipe. The bread turned out really light, sweet and delicious, and it made my house smell so good. But I did have a few challenges, below, so I will definitely return to this bread and try my hand at making it agai... | Paywall
The loaf looks pretty good from the outside, despite the visible IDY. I actually prefer a more straight-sided loaf. How's the crumb?The recipe is behind a paywall so I cannot see the instructions. Did you check the temperature of the mixture before adding the IDY? It may not have been too cold. It could have be... |
Video: Quels sont les secrets d’une baguette parfaite?
A nice little video on Le Monde today:Quels sont les secrets d’une baguette parfaite? | Lovely bread
Those are definitely beautiful baguettes! However, it seems that the secret is a whole lot of machinery and suspiciously moldy couches! :) |
Yeast packets
After opening a yeast packet does the yeast start to degrade? I don't always use all of it and just fold it up and clip it. | Hi there, I live in the
Hi there, I live in the tropics and it seems that heat does slow down activity over time. I usually keep it in the freezer and haven't had problems for at least 18 months. Cheers,Sander |
My Daily Bread: Pita
This is a recipe I found on the internet several year's ago for something called Olga bread. I believe Olga's is a restaurant chain in the midwest (I live in the PNW). In any case, it's been our go-to for pita ever since.The bread is dry-fried on a cast-iron pan.I'm not so good at shaping them p... | Nice Pita!
Looks delicious to me. I have never made pita. Do you use leavening or is it unleavened bread? |
An alien came out of my oven
I'm not sure if the pictures will load, but my bread seems to have exploded in the oven. Out of the bottom of the dough (where the seam was sitting FLAT on the baking paper) has come a bulbous tumor that looks like an alien.I thought I had over-kneaded the dough before baking, so could this... | It looks as if you did not
It looks as if you did not score the top of the loaf before you baked it.When the loaf starts to bake, it seeks out the weakest point to expand, hence the result as shown.Hope that helps ;-) |
Dough handling success
After my recent over-hydrated rye fiasco I was a bit skittish about my next batch. I decided to go back to basics, a nice beginner-friendly sourdough recipe. I found a nice new blog post from Maurizzio regarding weekend baking schedules and starter maintenance, and I found a recipe from Eric at B... | The proof...
...of the proof! Pretty happy with this result. Did not score it, the opening on the top was au naturel! Decent rise, but not as large of a loaf as I was anticipating. Still, best looking result *by far* since I started baking bread. Very pleased. :) |
Pane di Altamura success!!
After five bakes that began with a cryptic recipe from Daniel Leader's book, "Local Breads" and then working with numerous people on this site along with other bakers who maintain youtube channels and a few local bakers, I have figured out the Pane di Altamura bread! This has literally taken ... | Lovely crumb
And a nice oven spring. This is a huge improvement and your patience has paid off. My best Altamura bread to date has had a flavoursome salty crust and a sweet crumb. |
ICC Artisanal Bread course
Has anyone taken the 5-day Artisanal Bread Baking class as the International Culinary Center in NYC? (The ICC used to be the called French Culinary Institute). If so, any feedback would be greatly appreciated! I see a lot of good feedback for the SFBI courses, but I'd rather take a class on t... | King Arthur Training
I don't know much about the ICC or SFBI but I can personally recommend the King Arthur training series. Training takes place at their corporate offices, baker's store and bakery in Norwich, Vermont.The KAF staff bakers are EXCELLENT and if you time it right, you might get to train with some great g... |
German flat bread
https://www.bakersandlarners.co.uk/delba-organic-three-grain-bread-500g-pid5387.htmlI found in the supermarket in Greece this bread (a lot cheaper than this) and I would like to find a recipe. It is tasty and filling I hope someone on the board can point me to a recipe with any advice welcome as I am... | Had to wonder... Vollkorn bread (not flat bread)
Look under: Vollkornbrot :)You've been bitten by a rye bug, welcome to the rye-t place! Looks like a very high % rye to me. Don't know how they figure the %, maybe including the water? |
Rosemary bread
Hey, hope that you all are having a healthy breakfast. Do you follow any particular diet plan? Breakfast should be the most beneficial and rich in supplements as we get vitality for the entire day from breakfast.Well, I used to have cornflakes with a cup of milk. But when I saw this delicious recipe for ... | Sounds like an ad to me
And I grow my own rosemary, thanks. |
Poolish success BUT
For medical reasons my wife needs slow/long fermented bread. So after a fair number of years I put the old bread making utensils back into action. Now I had some success but could do with a few suggestions on how to improve what I have.I went for poolish white loaves. 500grams each of water and stro... | Perhaps...
So that's a 75% hydration dough... It should be somewhat loose but tighten up a bit as you work it. My first thought is that you need to build more strength during bulk, perhaps through more stretch and folds. Don't follow a set number for those, but S&F until the dough resists noticeably. You say you used s... |
Making The Leap
Hey guys, I have just recently acquired a Garland Deck oven.I have been baking bread for awhile now using techniques outlined by Chad Robertson in his book 'Tartine Bread'. Cast-Iron pots, standard oven and the like.I am finding the deck oven a bit more challenging. The oven has an element for the sto... | Sorry, I guess you will get
Sorry, I guess you will get help soon. I am not familiar with all these. |
Costco ConAgra Harvest Flour
OK so I've been having an AWFUL time trying to make my bread come out right and I finally found out what's wrong.
ConAgra Harvest All Purpose Flour is about the same protein content as biscuit mix. It's barely above a cake flour. At least what's available in MY area is.
I had to call ConA... | ConAgra Harvest
Keep in mind, I don't work for ConAgra. However, this is what I understand about their Harvest flour:
-it's called 'Harvest Flour' as in 'sounds like Gold Medal brand 'Harvest King'-it has almost identical specs to 'Harvest King' ie., 11.8% protein vs. 11.9%-it's actually their 'Minnesota Girl' flour r... |
Italian Bread Trouble Shooting
As I mentioned in my post over at the 'Introductions and Ideas' section, I am brand new to bread making. There is no other bread that I can eat like I can eat Italian bread. I can easily eat an entire loaf from Publix in one sitting.So I looked up on Google a Publix Italian bread copycat ... | Experimenting with Italian-style bread
Looks like you did a fair amount of research, and good on ya for tweaking and changing things. That's part of the fun of baking bread! Here are a couple of comments / things to try next:For improving the flavour, try using a pre-ferment (that is, part of the flour, water and a sma... |
Best yeast for refrigerator rise?
Which yeasts do you think are best and worst for refrigerator fermentation?I bake GF and I like to ferment my breads overnight in the fridge for several reasons (better flavor, less grittiness, more cohesive dough.) I typically use instant yeast.When I first started out I bought a jar ... | For a long fermentation
I use either/or SAF Red and Fleishman's Rapid Rise in GF.I find GF requires more yeast and some sugar. I typically use between 10g- 12g for every 500g GF in my recipe. And if you are using xanthan gum, it needs to be pretty fresh. If it's a year old, it just doesn't work. Personally, I try t... |
Robin Hood Flour recall
in Canada because of e.coli contamination, this seems limited to the 10kg bags. Would there still be a potential of illness even when used to bake bread and has been fully cooked. For me it is just a hypothetical question but non of the news seems to answer it.Gerhard | The danger is not just the
possibility of contamination in the flour itself, but in all of the things that it can come in to contact with and contaminate on the way to the oven.Realistically, flour is one of the most difficult items to try to isolate, since there are always small particles which become airborne and wil... |
Cornmeal-Wheat bread with biga
I developed this loaf as a compromise between my partner and I. He likes soft sandwich breads that are either white or have a small percentage of whole grain - light, soft, fluffy. I like big country loaves at >50% whole grain - strong crusts and a hearty crumb. Between us, we've eaten 3/... | mix 180 grams AP flour, 70 grams coarse yellow cornmeal, 170 ml water (80 degrees F), .5 g of yeast until incorporated. Cover and let ferment at room temperature until tripled in volume. On a warm day, this took 11 hours, but in colder weather, I imagine could be as long as 14.For the final dough: mix 250 grams whole w... |
Sandwich loaf - proofing problem vs shaping?
Hi everyone,I made a loaf of white sandwich bread today (the recipe is from Rose Levy-Berenbaum's The Bread Bible). Overall it turned out pretty nicely, but I did notice a small area of denser crumb along the bottom/the bottom left-hand side of the loaf. Could this be due to... | the crumb will tell you a lot
The patterns in the crumb is what you look at to help determine the problem. See how there's areas of denser crumb mixed in with large irregular holes?When there's a mix of dense uniform holes with a splattering of irregular holes randomly spread throughout the crumb thats usually a sign ... |
French bread altitude change?
I have a Panasonic bread maker that made excellent French bread in the Colorado Rockies. However, since moving to sea level in the Pacific Northwest, the same breadmaker using the same ingredients just doesn't work -- the dough doesn't rise and the bread comes out heavy as a brick. What gi... | Have you tried adding more yeast?
You may need to play around with the amount of yeast until you hit the sweet spot. I hope others will come in with more suggestions as this was the only thing I could think of. |
Gerard Rubaud
I've been baking for years but just stumbled upon the existence of Mr. Rubaud. His bakery happens to be quite close to where I live and I'd love to go see it. The bakery is out of his home and there is no web presence and I'm concerned about reaching out to him directly. I know several members on here hav... | Call first
I did a short apprenticeship with Gerard a couple years ago, and he definitely accepts visitors. I would suggest calling first rather than just stopping in. That way he can give you a good day and time that is convenient for him. It's a great place to visit, I'm sure you'll love it.Cheers!Trevor |
Rye-spelt-wheat sourdough, recipe in the making.
Hello All,I've been around for a bit, mostly reading. I've been baking for around three years, and around two for real. Since I enjoy it, but at the same time enjoy sharing my experiences, I started writing about it. The greatest effort is doing it in two languages and I... | Spelt is wheat
a very old variety. :) |
Scalding Experiment with Spelt Sourdough
There is an interesting article on scalding over at Breadtopia.Scalding Experiment with Spelt Sourdough | Scalding is catching on
Gary,Thanks for the link. A few weeks ago I went to a small demonstration at Tartine Bakery in San Francisco. Chad Robertson shared that his current formula includes a small percentage of scalded flour to increase the moisture in the crumb. I’ve since tried it and was able to get a lovely loaf a... |
Croissant questions
I worked on croissants from the first Tartine book yesterday. They came out very pretty, but the interiors are not really layered - more like normal bread.I'm thinking that I rolled too soon after removal from the fridge / rolled too hard and the butter layers broke up. My solution would be to let... | I'm no expert in croissants
Never even tried to make them but very interested in your question and what the answer might be. Sorry about not being able to help you but wish to comment and hopefully we'll see an answer before long.Best of luck! And keep trying :) |
Cooling before slicing
I like my bread fresh and ready in the morning. I usually do the refrigerator proof overnight and bake when I wake up, but I just don't know the right amount of time to wait before cutting in to it. Would it be wiser to bake it in the evening and then cool it overnight in order to be ready in t... | Yes and No
They say you should wait at least an hour, preferably two, after bread has come out of the oven before cutting it open. This allows the flavors to fully develop and for the bread's structure to settle in. Having said that, there's also something wonderful about fresh bread still warm from the oven. If you'... |
Marriage Bread
Hello everyone.
Has anyone heard of these marriage breads before? They're specifically made in Crete, Greece, but maybe in other places as well? They're decorative breads that are traditionally given as a gift to the married couple. I don't know much more about them, and the recipes I find do not explain... | a constant dry climate
and don't add any leavening or salt to the dough for longer life. Google: dead doughhttp://www.breadhitz.com/pdfdvd/pro3nonyeastdecdoughsyrup.pdf |
Ok.. I'm really not going to like..
.. putting a suit on to go to the office tomorrow morning after watching this..https://vimeo.com/188942035?utm_source=Bread+Magazine&utm_campaign=f42cffd8b8-EMAIL_NEWSLETTER_7&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_f584c366f4-f42cffd8b8-118... | Yep! I wouldn't want too either!
Thank you for sharing this too! |
Sourdough bread bowls
Hi all,I am very new to the baking world, but it's been an absolutely amazing experience for me learning about baking bread. I have a quick question, I have a sourdough recipe that I have been baking for the past several weeks that I really enjoy, no qualms with that, But I was wondering, any sugg... | I don't recall the answer
but I know the question has been discussed previously. Try using the Search tool in the upper right corner and see what comes up. Paul |
Advice on shaping these rolls
I tried making these poppy seed buns, but when it came to shaping them I had a hard time understanding what to do. The image above is what the buns are supposed to look like. The buns were tasty but they didn't look anything like what they were supposed to.the instructions sayroll out the ... | Being somewhat lazy and not especially dexterous,
I'd just roll up the dough from each side towards the middle after spreading the filling, then slice. That would completely eliminate Step 5. Paul |
Brioche - it's heavenly!
HI all,I started here on TFL from the lean sourdough breads in about October last year. I never ever baked any bread before then. I fell in love with this hobby and since then, I've baked a variety of yummy sourdough loaves, variety of shapes and fours, added seeds, made aromatic rye bread, 100... | Wow
Beautiful. Can't wait to see your SD version next! |
Daily Bread: Ciabatta
This Ciabatta is our bread of choice for morning toast. It's the Cooks Illustrated recipe, although I have modified the mixing speeds/times to accommodate our KA Professional 5 Plus mixer (the recipe as written works well for the KA Artisan with original blade).Also, I add a dollop of unfed sourd... | Lovely!
You did an awesome job! Well done! |
Sandwich Bread
Does anyone have a good sandwich bread recipe they can suggest? I've tried a recipe that's around 85% whole wheat and had issues with it in terms of oven spring and taste (too "wheaty" for lack of a better term). | Go the other way...
80% white, 20% stoneground wholemeal...My best selling tin loaf is 50/50 though.-Gordon |
How is this being scored to expand in this way
Hello, I am trying to recreate the expansion in the scoring of the bread following linkhttps://www.dicamillobakery.com/products/niagara-native-fresh-bread-3-small-baked?variant=329033083 I have a nice crusty italian recipe that I will put below and I even form the dough in... | Hmmmm....
There seems to be a couple of different sets of instructions in your post, so it's hard to say what might need changing. I think 400F seems too low for baking an un-enriched (no fat, dairy or sweetener) bread, but the 450F should work. Or you might try pre-heating to 475F, leave it there for five minutes afte... |
flour for enriched bread
Does anybody have any experience with Costco's Ardent Mills Minnesota Girl Bakers Flour? Up until now I used King Arthur Unbleached for my enriched dough, but it's pricey. Couple of times I used Harvest King. But I'am wondering how Costco's Minnesota Girl would perform with enriched doughs. | Ive not used it but...
from the page here https://www.ardentmills.com/products/traditional-flours/high-protein-bread/ it looks to be roughly the same protein as an AP (about 12%) so I'd imagine it would work well. |
Recipe of this dish please
Hi all,I would like to know if anyone has tried this dish called New England Clambake. I read about the dish here, https://www.blountsmallshipadventures.com/the-classic-new-england-clam-bake/. It is a seafood dish, and its main ingredients are Mussels and crabs, Potatoes, onions, carrots, and... | Being from New England, but
Being from New England, but hating shellfish, never tried it, but have seen it plenty. It's a simple dish as I recall. Not much to it. Google it - I'm sure you'll find many recipes. |
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