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Bread Triangles with An Old Bread Soaker

Thursday, August 17, 2023

An exceptional bread, made with sourdough, with a fresh, smooth and tender crumb and cracking crispy crust. Using old bread to make new bread is certainly nothing new. The practice of adding an “old bread soaker” to dough has been used in Europe, especially Germany, for hundreds of years.
A soaker is when an ingredient soaks in water for a period of time. The process lasts anywhere between 2 and 20 hours before adding to the dough. It enhances the flavour of the ingredients, prevents dry ingredients from soaking up water in the dough, and allows large grains to be used for making bread. Typical ingredients that are soaked include grains (cracked, whole, flour and flakes), seeds and many more. Here I am using old bread that has been diced and toasted. It’s a great use for leftovers from previous bread and also gives a depth of flavour to the new breads with a moist crumb and helps the water absorption of the dough and thus, improve the shelf-life of the bread.
An autolyse(oh-toe-lease), aka autolyze, autolysis, or dough autolysis, is the gentle mixing of the flour and water in a bread recipe, followed by a 20 to 60 minute rest period before adding other ingredients. This hydrates the flour, which encourages enzymes to begin gluten development. Salt can be added at autolyse, along with your sourdough starter. Autolyse hydrates the flour, which encourages enzymes to begin gluten development, which makes the dough less sticky and more workable. Besides that, the bread using autholyse will look nicer, taste beter and keep longer.

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Walnut Boule with Wild Yeast Water

Thursday, June 08, 2023

Rich, wholesome with roasted walnuts, combined with medium rye flour gives this rustic, hearty artisan boule a darker colour and more robust rye flavour. It's perfect for any sandwich or toasted and slathered with butter and honey for a deliciosu and fulfilling breakfast. The bread is naturally leavened with wild yeast water - the most organic, natural and fascinating way of leavening bread. The bread has a thin, super crispy crust that crackles in your hand with even a gentle squeeze and a soft open crumb with some nutty bites.

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Saffron Spelt Knots with Poolish

Sunday, October 02, 2022

These saffron bread knots are made by plaiting together 4 strands of a soft, sweet enriched saffron dough - sprinkle the top with a mixture of white and black sesame seeds if desired. Saffron gives the knots a beautiful warm golden colour as well as a wonderful intense flavour and scent. I have used 0.3 g rams of saffron for the dough, which is a bit too much, 1 small sachet (0.1 gram) would be enough. I didn't fill the dough, but you can try to fill with nutella or nut cream for an even richer bread.

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Spelt Emmer Sourdough Wholemeal Bread using a Scalding Method

Monday, August 01, 2022

baked with seam side down	baked with seam side up

Scalding, a very common process in grain preparation and cooking, is a technique involving cooking a portion of the flour (5%-20%) for a bread dough with relatively high hydration at a specific temperature which creates a gelatinized starch which can hold a lot more water than a normal bread dough mix. It also induces chemical reactions that create a sweeter flavor and make the bread more easily digestible. Usually 5% to 20% of flour are scalded one way or another. Higher percentages usually result in poor rise. Scald hydration is usually between 200% to 400%.
Scalding has been a part of bread baking for a long time, particularly in Northern Europe and Russia for many rye breads and for some wheat breads. There are different types of scalds (Scalds by gelatinisation degree, by saccharinification degree, by flavouring additives, by preservation and fermented scalds) and multiple ways to create a scald (cool down method - flour is measured, then boiling water is added and mixed in thoroughly; heat up method, like tangzhong where the flour is mixed with cold water, then slowly heated up to 65C/150F).
This bread uses a mixture of wholemeal spelt and emmer flour, which is not only very healthy, but also aromatic and very delicious. If you don't have emmer, then replace it with regular wheat or spelt flour.

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Peter Reinhart’s Kaiser Rolls with Pâte Fermentée

Tuesday, July 12, 2022

The distinguishing characteristics of a Kaiser roll / bun (In German, it's known as a Kaisersemmel, Kaiserbrötchen or Sternsemmel) is the star pattern on the top, a thin, slightly crisp crust and a soft, dense, and chewy crumb. They are invented in Vienna, and thought to have been named to honor Emperor Franz Joseph. In the 18th century, the price and weight of the bread roll were regulated by law. In 1789, the bakers' association therefore sent a delegation to Emperor Joseph II to ask for free pricing for the roll. The emperor was so impressed with the bakers' craftsmanship that he approved the removal of the roll from the statutes and the roll was therefore called the emperor's roll / Kaisersemmel.
They are excellent for all kinds of savory and sweet breakfast toppings but also a great base for any sandwich variations. The traditional method for sharing a kaiser roll requires a series of overlappign folds, like making a paper flower. I am using Peter Reinhart’s simpler knotted roll design showed on The Bread Baker's Apprentice page 82. If you want them to be perfect, use a kaiser roll stamp or use an apple cutter to make the roll more like a rosetta.
Pâte Fermentée is the French word for ‘old dough’, a type of preferment that can either be freshly prepared or a piece of "old" bread dough separated from the last dough after bulk fermentation. It is made up of flour, water, salt and commercial baker’s yeast. It is the only yeasted pre-ferment that contains salt. It gives a complex flavour to the bread, it enhances crust colour and makes the gluten network stronger, making the resulting rolls significantly better than their commerical counterparts.

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Sourdough Bread with Old Bread and Seeds

Saturday, July 09, 2022

To keep bread fresh for longer, it really only needs one thing: more water. Easier said than done, because simply dumping more water into the dough just doesn't work. Depending on the variety, flour can only absorbs a limited amount of liquid. The higher the W-value of a flour or its protein content, the more water can be bound. For example, the most highly refined soft flour has a W index of between 90 and 180. It absorbs up to 50% of its weight in water. Plain flour has a W index of between 180 and 250 and absorbs up to 65% of water. Spelt contains less gluten than wheat, and can therefore bind less water. As a general rule, the darker the wheat flour, the better its ability to absorb liquid. The lighter the flour, the more coarse-pored, fluffy and soft the crumb of a loaf can develop. Basically, old bread porridge is just flour cooked with water, which causes some of the starch to gelatinize, very similar to 'tangzhong' method, which helps retain a lot of moisture in dough. But in this recipe I am using old bread instead to make this 'pudding or porridge-like' starter.
I love adding nuts and seeds to my bread. If you do too, then one thing to rememeber is to soak the seeds and nuts beforehand. Otherwise, they take the moisture out of the dough and the bread will become dry again. The seeds are brewed with boiling water and get swollen with water. Cool it before adding to the bread, where they provide taste, bite and great nutritional value.

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Wild Yeast Pretzel Challah

Friday, June 17, 2022

A braided pretzel bread made with a wild yeast preferment -- a slow but fun and natural way to rise the bread. A slow fermentaion with natural yeast and beneficial bactaria from the air creates a different bread, that's more flavourful, healthy, and easier to digest. The bread will also have a crisper crust, a chewier crumb and very likely to stale more slowly.
The preparation of the wild yeast is rather easy, but it takes time and patience. For this pretzel challah, I crushed 120 grams of unwashed organic grapes and mixed with 500 ml of filtered tap water. Set aside for 5 days until bubbly and active. You can use dates, figs, raisins or berries to make your own wild yeast water. Store the rest in the refrigerator and simply refresh it with fresh filtered water and fruit when you need it. (you can find more details in this post)
Dunking the pretzel challah in a baking soda bath or food grade lye bath prior to baking is what enables them to develop their distinctive deep brown colour and crispy-on-the-outside, chewy-on-the-inside texture. Natriumhydroxid (NaOH), also known as lye or caustic soda, can be dangerous if misused. So do wear eye protection and rubber gloves if you want to make lye solution for the pretzels. One much easier and safer solution is to use baked baking soda. Simply place baking soda on aluminum lined baking tray and bake for an hour at 120C/245F. When baking soda/sodium hydrogen carbonate/NaHCO3 is heated, it becomes the more concentrated sodium carbonate/soda/Na2CO3, which ensures a darker lye colour when dissolved in water, and better taste than baking soda could.

Wild Yeast Preferment	Dough
120 g Organic bread flour 120 g Active wild yeast water	Wild yeast preferment 420 g Organic bread flour 180 g Lukewarm water 1 tbsp Olive oil 1 tbsp Coconut sugar 6 g Sea salt 90 g Baked baking soda 2L Hot boiling water Coarse salt for topping 1 tsp Sesame seeds, optional

How To Braid a 5-Strand Challah w/ Michael Kalanty

In a large bowl, stir together the flour and yeast water until well combined. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature overnight. It should be bubbly and double in size when ready to use for main dough.
Combine the wild preferment, bread flour, water, olive oil, coconut sugar and salt in the bowl of your mixer. Knead for 12-15 minutes, until dough becomes soft and smooth. The dough will be a bit sticky. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside to rise in a warm place for approx. 2 hours until almost doubled in size.
Divide the dough into 5 equal portions, each about 175 grams. Roll each into a log, approx. 40 cm long, making sure they are all the same size and length. Braid in a 5-strand loaf. Transfer to a lined baking sheet.
Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rise in a warm spot for 2-3 hours. You’ll know the dough is ready to bake when you press your finger into the dough and the indentation stays, rather than bouncing back. Uncover and refrigerate for 1 more hour.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 120C/245F and bake the baking soda for one hour. Allow to cool. Increase the oven temperature to 200C/400F.
In a large tray, mix the baked baking soda and 2 liter boiling water, until baking soda is dissolved. Gently dunk the challah in the baking soda bath and let soak for 20-30 seconds. Carefully remove the bread onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle the top with coarse salt and sesame seeds if using. You can brush the top with an egg wash for a more shiny finish if desired. Bake for 40 minutes, until golden brown and crispy.