Everyone said such lovely things about our Lucy in my previous post, so I thought I'd post this picture I took a couple days ago of her showing off how much she can E X T E N D. What silly dogs these sighthounds are.
The recipe I followed is from Bake with Jack's Youtube channel here:
https://youtu.be/IyLy4ZPli0A?si=HxLQTM_Ajpa6AfUf
This bread is really good. Not overly sweet, subtle banana flavour and the chocolate chips make it taste a little bit like a denser sort of pain au chocolat. Highly recommend.
I've read a few threads discussing manual folding vs stand mixers and the results on the resulting loaf, so I decided to do a very simple test to see if it made much difference in my own home baking. I mixed up enough dough for 2 loaves, separated it into two after the initial 30 minute rest and then used two different methods for the initial gluten development.
The results are quite interesting as you can see in the photos. The loaf on the left is the hand-folded one and the loaf on the right was mixed in the stand mixer.
The hand-folded loaf felt like it had more structure and elasticity at the time of shaping, whereas the stand-mixed loaf felt more limp and made me worried it might be over-proofed.
The hand-folded loaf had significantly better oven-spring, a nicer ear and a more open crumb, whereas the stand-mixed loaf was somewhat denser (although still looks perfectly good to me for sandwiches and such).
I'm going to do another test next time I bake and this time, I'll follow up the stand mixing with a couple of sets of coil folds or slap-and-folds as I think it definitely missed out on some good layering and structuring that the hand-folded loaf got.
Interested to hear other people's thoughts!
Ingredients:
- 1000g white bread flour (14% protein content)
- 644g room-temperature water
- 22g salt
- 222g wholemeal rye starter
Method:
Whisk the starter into the water until dissolved and then add the rest of the ingredients. Mix together with a dough whisk initially and then by hand to ensure everything is incorporated. Rest for 30 minutes.
Separate the dough into two equal pieces.
For dough A, perform 4 sets of stretch-and-folds 30 minutes apart for the first 2 hours, returning it to the bowl and covering with a clean towel after each set
For dough B, mix in the stand mixer using a dough hook for 8 minutes and then transfer to a straight-sided container with the lid loosely on top
Leave to bulk ferment until about 60-70% volume increase is observed (judged using dough B in the straight-sided container as it's more accurate)
Pre-shape both doughs into a ball and rest for 30 minutes
Do final shape and place into a floured banneton to cold-proof overnight (about 12 hours)
Pre-heat oven with a baking stone to 230C for 40 minutes with a baking tray in the bottom and a baking sheet at the top to help retain/circulate steam
Turn out both doughs onto a floured baking peel and score
Transfer both doughs to the baking stone and pour boiling water into the baking tray to create steam
Bake at 230C for 15 minutes, then turn oven down to 190C for a further 25 minutes
Cool on a wire rack for 90 minutes before cutting
I got into making my own bread at the beginning of this year and decided to try creating my own starter. I got a lot of my early advice from the Bake With Jack Youtube channel and I used his suggestion for a robust wholegrain rye starter, which has been really easy to work with.
His sourdough recipe is a good starting point, but I had to make a few adjustments based on my available ingredients/kitchen temperature etc. The biggest impact for me was switching from strong white bread flour (12% protein) to very strong (14% protein) of the same brand, as well as slightly lowering the hydration from 72% to 68%. This made a huge difference in both how easy the dough was to work with and how well it maintained its shape during baking.
I feel like I've finally reached the point where I am getting the result I want and feel proud of how my loaves look and taste, so thought I'd share.
The recipe/process I've arrived at is:
450g very strong white bread flour
290g room-temperature water
8g salt
100g of "Rykard" starter (1:1 ratio of wholegrain rye flour and water)
Whisk starter into water and then add the rest of the ingredients, mix roughly and rest for 30 minutes for flour to hydrate
Do four sets of stretch & folds in 30-minute intervals for the first 2 hours
Leave dough until increased in size by around 60-70% (I use a straight-sided, clear plastic tub to make this easier to judge)
Pre-shape into a ball and bench rest for 30 minutes
Shape into a batard and cold-proof in a banneton overnight (I dust with rice flour to prevent sticking)
Pre-heat oven and baking stone to 230C for 30 minutes with a metal tray in the bottom of the oven
Turn out dough onto a wooden peel, score, and transfer to baking stone. Pour boiling water into the metal tray to create steam and bake for 40 minutes. Optionally remove the water tray after about 25 minutes