The Bread thread
- Thread starter Timj
- Start date
Timj
Well-known member
I'm just passing on what others taught me. I'm not sure that folks know it. But, Clackamas Coot was a bread maker and a very talented one at that. He actually helped me through a mutual friend on a loaf I thought I lost. Thanks to him it turned out delicious.
goingrey
Well-known member
Looks good but the farmer must have had a pretty bad rye harvest when rye bread is so whiteToday's loaf is a Bauernbrot or farmers bread. It's a hearty rye bread. One of my favorites.
This bread make phenomenal tasting Reuben sandwiches.
mike-or-ozzy
Well-known member
I've heard a lot about Clackamas, all good things and it's great that you pass it on forward, what it's all about.
Timj
Well-known member
I actually use 2 x the caraway seed in my rye bread. I mortar and pestle grind 2 tablespoons and add it into the starter the night before I make the bread. The ratio of rye flour to bread flour is at its max for the bread to still raise correctly and form the proper crumb. I also make a Russian black bread called Cherniy Hleb which is basically a pumpernickel bread. It is easy to color the bread by simply adding some unsweetened powdered chocolate. But, I prefer the natural taste of rye bread with caraway.Looks good but the farmer must have had a pretty bad rye harvest when rye bread is so white
Timj
Well-known member
I only offer to pass on what knowledge others have taught me.
goingrey
Well-known member
In Europe you are not legally allowed to sell it as rye bread unless at least 50% of the flour is rye.
NOT BAKED BY ME (hey it's the bread thread not baking). This is what I think of as rye bread. 100% of the flour is rye, no chocolate.
Timj
Well-known member
I agree with you. We occasionally get rye bread from our local German butcher that is very dense. It feels like you're hauling a cinder block to the car. It's a wonderful bread sliced thin when serving a good liverwurst. That bread looks fantastic.
my attempts have been the same. Quick breads like Yorkshire pud, biscuits, muffins etc are all good but bread . . . ?
I love your bread pics btw @Timj
Timj
Well-known member
Making bread is just like anything else. It takes some practice.
This is a great book for beginners.
Another great book is.
The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread
Author: Peter Reinhart
Timj
Well-known member
Thank you @tobedetermined . Once you get the basics down it becomes easier. When I first started and saw 70% hydration I was lost. I made my share of very dense non-edible loaves in my journey to baking better loaves. I'd suggest looking into your flour suppliers website. Here in the USA King Arthur Flour has a great site with many easy to follow recipes and they even break down the steps. There are also great online videos that explain things as your watching and make it much easier to grasp each stage of the process. I'll drop this link for those interested.
Recipes
Discover King Arthur Flour's wide-ranging collection of thousands of recipes, covering everything you love to bake from apple pie to yeast bread.
goingrey
Well-known member
I think you just didn't let the dough rise long enough.
I have used King Arthur flour for years. They have a white whole grain I like and use sometimes. I made ciabatta for my Italian Mom for years until she died a few years back. Now I make mostly rye and white. One neighbor likes rye but hates the caraway seeds. So, I make her a special rye without caraway seeds but I also fine grind some and add it to the dough.. LOL
Funny. One of my all-time core recipe books is the Five Roses Cookbook (Canadian flour co) which my mother used and she gave me a copy when I got married and I gave my daughter a copy etc. I use it when I need a standard recipe that just works. Their bread recipe is long and involved and the only one in the book with 50s B&W pictorial instructions. But creeping arthritis is targeting my hands so kneading now requires a shitload of meds. Not that that is a bad thing particularly. I manage pasta occasionally and I am the family tarhonya master (a Hungarian pasta from my wife’s mother) so those would take precedence over bread. We have a decent French-style small factory bakery nearby that gets our business. My wife calls supermarket bread Canadian bread with disdain so we are both bread snobs. Artisanal? Not so much. My ultimate bread is a real Parisian baguette in Paris. Or a fresh Italian loaf with the crunchy exterior. Turkish bread surprised me. They have a puffy loaf that is wonderful served fresh for two with dinner . . .
We have a decent French-style small factory bakery nearby that gets our business. My wife calls supermarket bread Canadian bread with disdain so we are both bread snobs. Artisanal? Not so much. My ultimate bread is a real Parisian baguette in Paris. Or a fresh Italian loaf with the crunchy exterior. Turkish bread surprised me. They have a puffy loaf that is wonderful served fresh for two with dinner . . .
Timj
Well-known member
Sorry about your mom @Ringodoggie . Same here. King Arthur is a high quality flour. I do need to source my whole grain rye flour from Hodgson Mill. Our local markets don't sell King Arthur rye flour.
Timj
Well-known member
Not all bread requires lots of kneading. The sour dough I make is stretched in the mixing bowl. There are no knead bread recipes that are pretty good. The Pan de cristal bread is mixed. Then it's just a folding process, no kneading.Funny. One of my all-time core recipe books is the Five Roses Cookbook (Canadian flour co) which my mother used and she gave me a copy when I got married and I gave my daughter a copy etc. I use it when I need a standard recipe that just works. Their bread recipe is long and involved and the only one in the book with 50s B&W pictorial instructions. But creeping arthritis is targeting my hands so kneading now requires a shitload of meds. Not that that is a bad thing particularly. I manage pasta occasionally and I am the family tarhonya master (a Hungarian pasta from my wife’s mother) so those would take precedence over bread.
