Isand66's blog

I love the rich flavor Guinness adds to bread. The combo of fresh milled Barton Mills Danko Rye and Ruby Whole Wheat was a winner. The maple syrup helped add just the right amount of sweetness and the ricotta cheese helped create a moist open crumb.

I added some toasted onions to the top of the loaves by adding them to the inside of the bannetons. I love onions so this really took this one over the top.

This bread made excellent pastrami sandwiches with melted cheese and it was pretty good toasted for breakfast as well.

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours and the Guinness together in your mixer or bowl for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain,  ricotta cheese, maple syrup and salt and mix on low for 10 minutes.  (Note: I used my Ankarsrum which mimics hand mixing so if you are using a different mixer 4-5 minutes may be sufficient).  You should end up with a cohesive dough that is slightly tacky but very manageable.  (Note:  if you are not using fresh milled flours you may want to cut back on the water). 

Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer set to 79 degrees F. I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it’s size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 540 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to it in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 455 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

This is one of my favorite breads. I used freshly ground Durum flour and bumped up the % along with a slightly higher % of fresh whole wheat.

I cooked the grits and added some butter and grated cheddar cheese just because that’s the way grits should be eaten!

I was very happy with how this one came out. I love the softness the ricotta cheese adds to the crumb and the flavor the grits impart. It’s an excellent bread to grill with some good olive oil and throw on a fresh garden tomato with some mozzarella and your good to go :).

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours, and the water for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain,  ricotta, cooked grits and salt and mix on low for 4 minutes.  (Note: with the Ankarsrum I adjusted the speed from low to medium).  You should end up with a cohesive dough that is slightly tacky but very manageable.  (Note:  if you are not using fresh milled flours you may want to cut back on the water).  Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer set to 79 degrees F. I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it’s size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 540 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to it in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 455 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

 A few photos from the summer gardens.....

This is a version of a bread I previously baked in January. I added some whole wheat in place of some of the AP flour in the original version.

I was very happy with how this one came out. The flavor was nutty with a nice moist open crumb. This was a perfect bread for grilling with some good olive oil brushed on and some melted cheese.

I really like the way the scoring came out as well :).

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours, egg yolks  and the water for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain,  cooked rice, olive oil and salt and mix on low for 4 minutes.  (Note: with the Ankarsrum I adjusted the speed from low to medium).  You should end up with a cohesive dough that is slightly tacky but very manageable.  (Note:  if you are not using fresh milled flours you may want to cut back on the water).  Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer set to 79 degrees F. I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it’s size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 540 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to it in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 455 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

It's been a while since I had a chance to post. Spring time clean-up has taken up a lot of my time and I'm almost finally caught up. Still have to get the veggies planted if it will ever stop raining. We went from 90 F last weekend to barely 50 F this weekend on Long Island, New York. At least we didn't have any hail or snow:).

My friend requested a couple of loaves for the holiday weekend so I decided to do a variation of one of my favorites with fresh milled Durum flour and Whole Wheat along with some KAF French style flour. The addition of the mashed potatoes really makes this crumb nice and moist and soft.

This is a great bread for grilling with some olive oil and also it makes a great sandwich.

Here is the link to the BreadStorm files:

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours, and the water for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain,  olive oil, potatoes and salt and mix on low for 4 minutes.  (Note: with the Ankarsrum I adjusted the speed from low to medium).  You should end up with a cohesive dough that is slightly tacky but very manageable. 

Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer set to 79 degrees F. I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it's size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 540 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to it in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 450 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

  It has been a while since I baked a porridge bread.  I am a big fan of the moist and flavorful crumb I get.  I added some onions directly into the porridge which helps impart a mild onion flavor.  I used some freshly milled whole wheat and rye along with KAF bread flour.

The cheese was a shredded sharp cheddar I picked up during my last visit to Vermont.  I think it would have been better if I added the cheese as cubes since the shredded melded into the bread more than I would have liked.  You can still see some of it melted on the top of the loaf but not enough in my opinion inside the crumb.

I used some mashed Yukon golds which had been baked and roughly mashed with the skins on.  I prefer to leave the skins on for some added flavor.

Overall, I was happy with the way this one turned out.  It was very flavorful and worth baking again.

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.  I used my proofer set at 83 degrees and it took about 4 hours.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

Porridge Directions

Add about 3/4's of the cream called for in the porridge to the dry ingredients in a small pot set to low and stir constantly until all the liquid is absorbed.  Add the remainder of the cream and keep stirring until you have a nice creamy and soft porridge.  Remove from the heat and let it come to room temperature before adding to the dough.  I put mine in the refrigerator and let it cool quicker.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours  and the water for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain, cooled porridge, potaotes, olive oil and salt and mix on low for 4minutes.  (Note: with my new Ankarsrum I mixed for about 10 minutes).  Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it's size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 545 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to put them in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 450 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

I love making bread with durum flour and especially when I can mill it myself.  Here is my most recent bake done for the current Community Bake.

I just ran out of Durum berries recently and was happy to find some at a reasonable price on Amazon.  Usually the shipping charges to New York from other sites are astronomical, but since I was able to use Amazon Prime it was free.

For this bake the durum was 39% of the total flour along with KAF Bread Flour and fresh milled whole wheat. I like to add olive oil to durum breads as I find it really makes the dough nice and silky.

I have been experimenting with some new sifting techniques and used a #40 drum sieve. I re-milled the sifted out bran and eventually ended up with an 885 extraction flour for the Durum and 84% for the whole wheat.

I probably could have left this one bake a few more minutes as the crumb was a little moister than it should have been. Overall this one came out pretty good and had tons of durum flavor, perfect for sandwiches or grilled bread.

Here is the link to the BreadStorm files:

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours, and the water for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain, olive oil and salt and mix on low for 4 minutes.  (Note: with the Ankarsrum I adjusted the speed from low to medium).  You should end up with a cohesive dough that is slightly tacky but very manageable.  (Note:  if you are not using fresh milled flours you may want to cut back on the water).  Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer set to 79 degrees F. I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it's size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 540 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to it in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 455 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

I love adding Guinness to bread dough. It really adds a distinct flavor that is worth experiencing. It doesn't taste like beer so don't worry about that part.

I used some fresh ground whole wheat Ruby Red from Barton Springs Mill, freshly ground rye and freshly ground red corn flour. The cottage cheese doesn't add any flavor but does make the crumb softer.

The combination of flours and Guinness along with a little maple syrup made for a dark, thick crusted flavorful bread with a moderate crumb. All in all a tasty bread perfect for sandwiches or topped with some good cheese.

Here is the link to the BreadStorm files:

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

 Main Dough Procedure

Since I'm now using an Ankarsurm mixer my procedures have changes slightly. You need to add the dry ingredients to the wet instead of my usual method. I added the Guinness to the mixing bowl first and then added in all the flour, mixed for a minute and let it sit for 45 minutes. I held back around 50 grams of the Guinness and added that after the autolyse along with the cottage cheese, maple syrup, salt and starter.  I mixed on low and medium speeds for around 6 minutes. Depending on your mixer you can mix more or less. You should end up with a cohesive dough that is slightly tacky but very manageable.  (Note:  if you are not using fresh milled flours you may want to cut back on the beer).  Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer set to 79 degrees F. I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it's size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 540 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to it in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 450 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees. (Note: since I made one large loaf I ended up lowering the temperature to 435 F after 20 minutes as the bread was getting too dark).

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

This is the first bread I made using my new Ankarsrum mixer.  My wife surprised me with it for a Hanukkah/Christmas present.  I have been using the Bosch Universal for many years and loved it, but a while ago a piece on the base broke off and the bowl does not seat properly.  There is no way to fix it other than buying a used one especially since they just updated the model recently.

I have always heard good things about the Ankarsrum and so far I'm not disappointed.  There is a little bit of a learning curve but I'm starting to get the hang of it.  I usually add my dry ingredients first but with the Ankarsrum you are supposed to add the water first and then add the dry ingredients.  I like to hold back some of the water and add it as needed but I forgot to do it for this maiden voyage and it worked out fine.

I am a big fan of adding cooked rice to bread as I like the texture it adds.  I had some left-over Jade rice I made for dinner the other night which had some onions mixed in.  I used some fresh milled Durum flour sifted once along with some fresh milled corn flour also sifted once with my #30 drum sieve.  The egg yolks added some extra moisture and flavor and the sesame seeds added some additional extra flavor.

All in all this one came out great with an open moist and flavorful crumb perfect for sandwiches or dipping in home made Sunday "gravy". 

Here is the link to the BreadStorm files:

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours, egg yolks  and the water for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain,  cooked rice, olive oil and salt and mix on low for 4 minutes.  (Note: with the Ankarsrum I adjusted the speed from low to medium).  You should end up with a cohesive dough that is slightly tacky but very manageable.  (Note:  if you are not using fresh milled flours you may want to cut back on the water).  Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer set to 79 degrees F. I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it's size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 540 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to it in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 455 degrees.  Bake for 35-50 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

This is my entry into the Community Deli Rye bake on the Fresh Loaf website.  This is similar to a bake I had made in honor to Eric Hanner. Eric was a frequent contributor on The Fresh Loaf website and he inspired me with his passion for baking and touched a great many people along the way.  The original formula used a Yeast Water starter as well as a rye starter.  I decided to change this up and use only a rye starter which was converted from my AP starter.  I also wanted to try using some fresh milled rye using a new variety from Barton Mills.  I sifted once using a #30 drum sifter to lighten it up a bit.  This variety is much browner in color than the usual variety I mill which tends to be on the grey side.  It’s a little sweeter in flavor as well.

I have to admit I’m a big fat liar .  I forgot to use the Guinness!  I decided to keep it in the formula because it really is worth using instead of just water.  It came out pretty good anyway, but thanks to my senior moment I won’t know until the next time I try this one.

I also decided to add some olive oil which I find helps keep the crumb moist as well.  The onions along with the oil really do provide a moist crumb.

This one came out excellent and made excellent pastrami with melted cheese sandwiches!  The crumb was nice and moist and flavorful.

Here are the Zip files for the above BreadStorm files.

Rye Sour Starter Build 1

Mix the flour, starter and water in a bowl until thoroughly combined.  Cover the bowl and let it sit at room temperature for around 4-6 hours.  The starter should almost double when ready to proceed to build 2.

Rye Sour Starter Build 2

Mix the flour and water with the sour starter from build 1.  Cover and let sit at room temperature for 4-6 hours until doubled and nice and bubbly.

Rye Sour Starter Build 3

Add the flour to the rye sour from build 2 and let it rest covered for 4-6 hours until bubbly and nearly doubled.

 Main Dough Procedure

Re-hydrate the onion in the water for 5-10 minutes.  Drain the onions out and put aside until ready to add to the dough.

Mix the flours  with 90% of the water and  for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain, salt, olive oil, onions, caraway seeds and the balance of the water and mix on low for 4 minutes.   (Note: if dough is too wet you don’t need to add all of the water).

Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it’s size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 540 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to put them in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 450 degrees.  Bake for 25-35 minutes until the crust is nice and brown and the internal temperature of the bread is 205 degrees.

Take the bread out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before for at least 2 hours before eating.

I love using potatoes in bread.  It gives the final product a nice soft and moist crumb.  It is supposed to also prevent staling, but I usually freeze half or more so I have never tested that theory out.  I've made this recipe before but this time I upped the amount of freshly ground spelt and reduced the amount of whole wheat.  I was very happy with the end result. The purple sweet potato is not as high in water content as the orange style and not as sweet, but it does add a wonderful texture to the bread that is worth trying.

These make perfect sandwich or burger buns and of course dinner rolls.  I topped mine with an egg wash and then some everything bagel topping and also some with toasted onions.

I hope you give these a try and let me know what you think.

Here are the Zip files for the above BreadStorm files.

Levain Directions

Mix all the levain ingredients together  for about 1 minute and cover with plastic wrap.  Let it sit at room temperature for around 7-8 hours or until the starter has doubled.  I used my proofer set at 83 degrees and it took about 4 hours.   You can use it immediately in the final dough or let it sit in your refrigerator overnight.

 Main Dough Procedure

Mix the flours  and the sweet potato with 90% of the water for about 1 minute.  Let the rough dough sit for about 20 minutes to an hour.  Next add the levain, olive oil, salt and the balance of the water and mix on low for 5 minutes.   Remove the dough from your bowl and place it in a lightly oiled bowl or work surface and do several stretch and folds.  Let it rest covered for 10-15 minutes and then do another stretch and fold.  Let it rest another 10-15 minutes and do one additional stretch and fold.  After a total of 2 hours place your covered bowl in the refrigerator and let it rest for 12 to 24 hours.  (Since I used my proofer I only let the dough sit out for 1.5 hours before refrigerating).

When you are ready to bake remove the bowl from the refrigerator and let it set out at room temperature still covered for 1.5 to 2 hours.  Remove the dough and shape as desired.

The dough will take 1.5 to 2 hours depending on your room temperature and will only rise about 1/3 it's size at most.  Let the dough dictate when it is read to bake not the clock.

Around 45 minutes before ready to bake, pre-heat your oven to 500 degrees F. and prepare it for steam.  I have a heavy-duty baking pan on the bottom rack of my oven with 1 baking stone on above the pan and one on the top shelf.  I pour 1 cup of boiling water in the pan right after I place the dough in the oven.

Right before you are ready to put them in the oven, score as desired and then add 1 cup of boiling water to your steam pan or follow your own steam procedure.

Lower the temperature to 445 degrees.  Bake for 25-35 minutes until the rolls are nice and brown.  You can check the internal temperature and make sure they are at least 200 degrees F.

Take the rolls out of the oven when done and let it cool on a bakers rack before  before eating if you can resist!

Below is the nice moist and colorful crumb.