Ru007's blog

I’ve just come out a very busy three weeks at work, no time to bake L It gave me a chance to make my way through all the loaves in the freezer. So now its time to stock up again!

This week’s loaf is a variation of one of my favourite loaves polenta pepita sourdough. I decided to substitute the pumpkin seeds with pecans.

Formula:

Method:

1. 3 stage levain builds (all w/w flour) from 6g of NMNF rye starter, into the fridge overnight.

2. Toast 45 g pecans and leave to cool before chopping up. 

3. Cook the polenta (50g) over a low heat in 200g of water until its fairly thick. Leave to cool overnight.

4. Make the autolyse and leave overnight in the fridge.

5. 2 hours before mixing, take everything out of the fridge

6. Mix everything plus salt. Rest for 45mins.

7. 4 S&F at 45min intervals. Bulk ferment for 3 hours or until it’s got some good bubble action going. Pre shape, 30min rest. Shape, 1 hour on the counter, then into the fridge overnight. 

8. Remove from fridge, score and bake at 240dC for 20mins with steam, then at 220dC for 25mins. 

The crumb ended up soft and moist due to the polenta, and the pecans give it a really nice nuttiness. 

This is a recipe i'll be trying again in future. 

Happy baking! 

This week’s bake was an experiment for me!  Dab suggested fermenting the porridge mix that I add to the dough. I didn’t know that was even a thing, so of course I had to try it.

Here’s the formula:

Method:

1. 3 stage levain builds (all w/w flour) from 6g of NMNF rye starter, into the fridge overnight.

2. Toast 50 g rolled oats separately from the pecan and sunflower seeds.

3. The night before mixing, cook the oats over a low heat in 200g of water, until it’s a thick/stiff porridge. Mix 170g of the porridge with the seeds and crushed pecans. Leave to cool.

Mix 6g NMMF rye starter with 12 g of water and add to the cold porridge. Leave to ferment overnight (12 hours). [In the morning, It didn’t look like the porridge had done anything but it definitely smelled like something had happened! It smelled like my starter when its hungry, a sort of sweet sharp smell.]

4. Make the autolyse and leave overnight in the fridge.

5. 2 hours before mixing, take everything out of the fridge

6. Mix everything plus salt. Rest for 45mins.

7. 4 S&F at 45min intervals. Bulk ferment for 2.5 hours or until it’s got some good bubble action going. Pre shape, 30min rest. Shape, 1 hour on the counter, then into the fridge (19 hours).

8. Remove from fridge, score and bake at 240dC for 25mins with steam, then at 220dC for 25mins, turn off oven and leave loaf in for another 5mins. 

I knew the dough was over proofed as soon as i took it out of the basket #shameface. I decided to carry on anyway. 

The loaf sprang okay, but it spread more. I cut down the amount of levain i would normally use, but I think I needed to reduce the bulk fermentation because of the extra starter in the porridge. 

The crust is nice and crunchy. 

 What i am most pleased about is the taste! I was expecting to get a really sour loaf, but i didn't. Its actually quite mellow, but it has an enhanced flavour compared to the other porridge loaves i've made. It also has a subtle nuttiness in the background from the crushed pecans. I've tried to get that background nutty flavour with crushed toasted sesame seeds, which was great too, so i thought i'd give crushed pecans a try too. 

Overall, i like this double fermenting business. I'll try this again with a few tweeks to the recipe and see how it goes. maybe i'll try a double fermented polenta porridge loaf? 

 Happy baking :)

If porridge loaves = “yum” and seeded loaves = “yum”, then porridge + seeds = “YUM” or “yum x 2”? Well, I’m not sure how mathematically sound that equation/formula/hypothesis (or whatever) is, but I decided to try it out.  

Formula: 

Method:

1.3 stage levain builds (all w/w flour) from 6g of NMNF rye starter, into the fridge overnight.

2. Toast 30 g rolled oats separately from pumpkin/black sesame/sunflower seeds and separately from the white sesame seeds. Crush the white sesame seeds

3. Cook the oats over a low heat in 140g of water, until it’s a thick/stiff porridge.

Mix 105g of the porridge and all the seeds, into the fridge overnight.

4. Make the autolyse and leave overnight in the fridge.

5. 2 hours before mixing, take everything out of the fridge

6. Mix everything plus salt. Rest for 45mins.

7. 4 S&F at 45min intervals. Bulk ferment for 3 hours or until it’s got some good bubble action going. 

Pre shape, 30min rest. Shape, 1 hour on the counter, then into the fridge (19 hours).

8. Remove from fridge, score and bake at 240dC for 30mins with steam, then at 220dC for another 15mins, turn off oven and leave loaf in for another 5mins.  

The loaf sprang and bloomed fairly well. I'm pleased with how moist and soft the crumb is. Thank you oat porridge.

 The taste of this loaf is great, it has a nice nuttiness and a very mild sourness. Definitely YUM.

This is my third seeded loaf in a row. First one, wasn’t really what I wanted. It had just black sesame seeds and steel cut oats. Here's a pic of that loaf. 

I mixed in the seeds and oats on the first fold but didn’t get the distribution of the seeds right. The crumb was alright, but I found it a bit dry. I didn’t realise that the seeds would soak up quite a bit of liquid. So i decided to tweak the formula.

Last week was just seeds. I upped the hydration, skipped the steel cut oats (figuring i should just learn how to handle just the seeds first) and mixed the seeds in at initial mixing (not with folds). That turned out better, no more dryness and better distribution. Here's a crumb shot of that loaf: 

This week, i went back to try oats again (not steel cut this time). I'm really having fun with my seeded loaf experiments, but i think i'm done messing with this formula (for now). What to try next? 

Happy baking!

The last two weeks have been busy for me, but now exams are done! Well, for now at least, one more to go in November. For now, I’m free to bake and post again :)

This weekend, I decided to try a loaf with a mix of seeds, and after seeing CedarMountains beautiful seeded loaf i was quite inspired. 

Here’s the formula:

Method:

1. Levain builds in 3 stages, refrigerate over night.

2. Autolyse over night in the fridge.

3. Two hours before mixing, take levain and dough out of the fridge and allow to come to room temperature.

4. Mix dough, seeds, levain and salt. Leave to rest for 45mins. I did at a bit more water at this point because the dough wasn't feeling as soft as i wanted it to. 

5. 4 sets of stretch and fold at 45 min intervals.

6. Allow to bulk ferment undisturbed for 2 ½ hours until, almost doubled in size and there are nice surface bubbles.

Pre shape, and allow to rest for 30 mins before shaping.

After shaping, place dough in a rice floured basket and put the basket in a plastic bag.

Leave the dough at room temp for another hour or so, before putting it in the fridge overnight.

I left the dough in the fridge for 19 hours.

7. Bake for 40 mins, at 250dC with steam for the first 20 mins and then for a further 20 mins at 220dC.

The loaf sprang pretty nicely

 The crust is thin and crackly.

The crumb came out fairly well too.

The flavour of this loaf is really good. It’s got a nice tanginess and the flavour of the toasted seeds also comes through nicely. This is one of those loaves that pretty much goes with anything!

Next time, I’m going to play around with the amount and proportions of seeds, maybe increase the % a bit. I also want to try adding some oat porridge along with seeds and see how that goes. 

Happy baking TFLers! 

I’ve been meaning to bake a bread with potatoes in it, and I got some great tips from Isand66 and Dabrownman last week for potato bread , i thought why not start with a sweet potato loaf.

My formula is based on a recipe by txfarmer "Sweet potato sourdough with walnuts" . 

I didn’t change much, except I did use a bit more water in the autolyse. Things were just feeling bit stiff and my levain was only going to be 80% hydration, instead of the 100% called for in the recipe. I skipped the maple syrup and used a combination of walnuts and pecan nuts.

Formula:

Method:

1. Levain builds in three stages (using my NMNF rye starter), all with whole wheat flour.

I retarded the levain overnight once it doubled after the 3rd feeding.

2. Boil the sweet potato, until it’s really soft, then mash it (skin and all).

I just used fork to mash it, so it wasn’t particularly smooth.

Toast the nuts, leave to cool before chopping them up.

Mix the flour and water to make a fairly stiff dough, chill for a few hours and then leave to come to room temperature overnight.

3. In the morning, remove the levain from the fridge two hours before mixing, stir down and leave to bubble up again. Mix the dough, sweet potato mash, salt and levain, using a series of stretches/slaps or whatever gets everything mixed in really well.

The sweet potato added a lot of moisture to the dough, but it wasn’t too wet for me.

4. Develop the dough using stretch and folds.

I did another 4 sets at 45 minute intervals and added the nuts on the first set after the initial mixing. Leave the dough to bulk ferment for a few hours (I left my dough undisturbed for another 3 hours) until its increased in volume and there’s some nicely visible bubbles.

5. Pre-shape and leave to rest for 30mins before shaping and retarding overnight.

I left the dough to proof for another hour before putting it in the fridge for 19 hours.

I baked this loaf for 40 mins at 230dC, with steam for the first 30mins. I left the loaf in oven for another 5 mins after i turned it off, with the door ajar. 

The loaf sprang and bloomed pretty well.

I was worried i had over proofed it, but i think i got away with the long fermentation times. The crust is thin, crispy and really quite fragile. 

The crumb turned out well, i think. It has little bits of purple in there from the walnuts, which i think looks cool. 

I really like the taste of this loaf, it has a lovely nuttiness. The crumb is really moist, probably due to the sweet potato. Just had a slice with a bit of butter and my favourite strawberry jam! It was awesome. 

I'm really happy with how my first potato loaf went :) Next time, i might up the sweet potato a bit just to see what happens. 

Happy baking every one! 

This week’s bake is my third try (in a row) at oat porridge bread. The results of the first two tries were good, but i’ve been trying to get the feel of the dough right. First time was way to wet and, second time was a bit too stiff, third time was just right!

The flour blend is also a bit different from last week, I went with a 70:30 split instead of 60:40 (thanks CedarMountain for the tip).

Formula:

Method:

1. Levain builds in three stages, all with whole wheat flour.

I retarded the levain overnight once it doubled after the 3rd feeding.

2. Toast 80g of rolled oats and then add 160g of boiling water and let that soak overnight.

Mix the flour and water to make a stiff dough, chill for a few hours and then leave to come to room temperature overnight.

The hydration of the autolyse was a bit higher than last time, so the dough wasn’t so stiff. 

3. In the morning, remove the levain from the fridge two hours before mixing, stir down and leave to bubble up again.

Mix the dough, oat porridge, salt and levain, using a series of stretches/slaps or whatever gets everything mixed in really well.

I added another 30g of water to the oat porridge at this point because the dough was feeling a little stiffer than what I wanted.

4. Develop the dough using stretch and folds.

I did another 4 sets at 45 minute intervals. Leave the dough to bulk ferment for a few hours (I left my dough undisturbed for another 3 hours and 45mins).

5. Pre-shape and leave to rest for 30mins before shaping and retarding overnight.

I left the dough to proof for another hour and a half before putting it in the fridge for 18 hours.

Bake the loaf for 50mins at 230 dC, with steam during the first 30mins.

The loaf sprang and bloomed fairly well. I may have over proofed this one a bit, but that's okay. 

The crumb is very soft and fluffy and the crust was thin and crackly. I struggled to slice it without squishing loaf in the process! 

The flavour of this loaf is the best of the three. I think having a bit less whole wheat, really allows the nutty taste of the toasted oats to come through. This one is also a bit more sour than the first two loaves, not sure what that's about, but i like it. 

Comparing the results of the three loaves, I think this has got to be my favorite. 

Happy baking 

This week’s bake is my second attempt at a SD with rolled oats. I tried similar loaf last week and  though it was a good loaf, i wanted to make some changes.

 Formula

Method:

1. Levain builds in three stages, all with whole wheat flour. I retarded the levain overnight once it had doubled after the 3rd feeding.

2. Toast 105g of rolled oats and then added 210g of boiling water and let that soak overnight. It was fairly a really stiff soaker.  

Mix the flour and water to make a stiff dough, chill for a few hours and then leave to come to room temperature overnight.

I was really concerned that the autolyse wouldn’t do what I was supposed to do because it was so stiff, but it the morning the dough had really relaxed and was nice and stretchy.

3. In the morning, mix the autolyse, salt and levain (which should be removed from the fridge two hours before, stirred down and left to bubble up again). Leave the dough to rest and relax for an hour.

I had to resist the urge to add more water, things were just feeling much stiffer than I’m used to.

Add the oats using letter folds, make sure there’s no lumps of oats in the dough.

Good thing I didn’t add more water because, the oats added more moisture to the dough. It wasn’t by any means a wet dough, but it was still stretchable.

4. Develop the dough using stretch and fold. I did another 4 at 45 minute intervals. Leave the dough to bulk ferment for a few hours (I left my dough undisturbed for another 3 hours).

5. Pre-shape and leave to rest for 30mins before shaping and retarding overnight.

I left the dough to proof for another hour before putting it in the fridge for 18 hours.

I used scissors to make a few snips across top of the dough and then baked the loaf for 50mins at 230 dC, with steam during the first 30mins.

The loaf sprang and bloomed well.

The crumb is very soft and fluffy.

I’m surprised at the crumb structure of this loaf. I didn’t think I’d get it as open with a fairly stiff dough. I still think I could get the crumb a bit better though. Any tips are welcome.

The flavour of this loaf is great, way better than the first one. I think toasting the oats and adding more salt was what did it. I really like the taste of this bread!

This loaf is a keeper, i will definitely be making it again. 

The first time I made this loaf, I didn’t toast the oats I just made a porridge using 105g of oats and 300g of water. I think the porridge was too wet because the dough I ended up with was very wet and sticky.

I put the dough in the fridge to chill and firm up before shaping, because I wasn’t confident enough to shape it. The resulting loaf was okay though and it tasted good.  The crumb was tender, but it was a bit too moist for my liking. I’m very glad I reduced the hydration, i’m happy with the amount of moisture in the crumb on this one. Here's a few shots of my first try...

Happy baking!

This week’s bake was inspired by Dab’s 3 starter Italian olive bread with rosemary and sun dried tomato. I love pizza and this loaf sounded like a pizza so I couldn’t help but try it and hope it turned out half as good.

I changed some of the proportions from the original formula (more whole grain, more sun dried tomatoes, less olives and more rosemary):

 1. The levain was built in 3 stages using 8g of my NMNF rye starter (which has now gone 7 weeks without any maintenance). I did all the builds using whole wheat flour. I put the levain into the fridge overnight before mixing day once it doubled after the 3rd feed.

2. I mixed the remaining flours and water, left in the fridge for a few hours and then let come to room temp overnight.

3. In the morning I stirred down the levain and let it bubble up again for, then added to the rest of the dough along with the salt. I mixed everything with a few folds and then left to rest for 45mins.

4. I did the first S&F after the 45mins rest. The second S&F was after another 45mins (I added the olives, sundried tomatoes and rosemary at this point).

I did two more S&F at 45 min intervals.

5. I let the dough bulk ferment for 3 hours until I could see some nice bubbles on the edges.

6. I preshaped the dough and let it rest for 30 mins before shaping and placing in a rice floured basket.

7. I left the shaped dough to proof for 90 mins at room temp before putting it in the fridge for a 19 hour retard.

The whole process took about 8 hours between first mixing and getting into the fridge. It seems like a long time, but its still cold here!

8. I baked this one straight from the fridge for 30 mins with steam at 240 dC and then a further 15 mins at 230 dC. I left the loaf in the oven for another 5 mins with the heat off and the door ajar.

The aroma while it was baking was lovely!

The loaf sprang and bloomed well.

The crust is nice and thin and crispy.

The crumb is tender chewy and packed with flavor! The rosemary really comes through and there's enough olives and sun dried tomatoes so you get some in each slice. This is one tasty bread, especially dipped in a little bit of EVOO.

This loaf is a keeper. Thanks for the inspiration Dab :)

Happy baking.

This weeks bake features sesame seeds. I hadn't tried them in a loaf yet so i decided to give it a go. I really wanted to try black sesame seeds (mainly because i think they would have looked really cool in the crumb) but i couldn't find them :( So i went ahead with regular white sesame seeds, because i like the taste :)

Formula:

1. The levain was built with all whole wheat flour starting with 8g on NMNF rye starter.

2. I mixed the flours and the water, chill for  few hours and leave to come the room temperature over night.

3. Next morning I mixed the dough, levain and salt.

4. I did 4 sets of stretch and folds over 3 hours(45mins apart), adding the sesame seeds on the 3rd set.

5. I left the dough to bulk ferment for 3 hours (until there were signs of healthy bubbles around the edges).

6. I pre shaped and rested for 30mins, before shaping and leaving to proof for about 1.5 hours and then retarding for 19 hours.

8. I brushed the dough with milk and sprinkled generously with sesame seeds.

9. The loaf was baked for an hour, 30mins with steam. I made a tent out of aluminium foil to stop the seeds from burning too quickly and then I uncovered the loaf for the last 20mins of the bake.

My original intention was to also add oat groats and then I forgot or changed my mind or both, but I ended up forgetting to increase the amount of sesame seeds to make up for it. So the flavour doesn’t come though very strongly in the crumb. So I decided to cover the loaf in sesame seeds! Next time i'll double the sesame seeds.

The loaf is still very tasty, it’s got a nice subtle sourness to it. My loaves have been getting sourer lately. I suspect its because its cold and they take longer to ferment.

The crumb ended up nice and open and the crust is so yummy with all those sesame seeds. I’m pleased they didn’t just fall off when I sliced the loaf.

I'm managing pretty consistent results at the 40% whole wheat mark, so i think its time i try a higher % of whole wheat now, maybe 50%.

Happy baking!

This week’s bake was a redo of the 70% rye SD with sunflower seeds and following my theme from the previous two weeks, I replaced the 30% white flour with whole wheat.

The formula was more or less the same, except that I increased the hydration (because I was using whole wheat flour which is a thirstier than white) and the percentage of sunflower seeds from 16% to 20%.

Here’s the formula:

 The method is really simple:

1. I did a 3 stage levain build using 8g of rye starter. The first and second builds were done with just whole wheat flour and the last build was a combination of rye and whole wheat. In the end all the whole wheat flour was in the levain.
2. Mix everything (rye flour, toasted seeds, levain, water and salt) really well. (I used my hands, just because I like getting my hands into dough no matter how sticky and messy things get.)
3. Press the dough into the tin and smooth the top with something wet. I used my fingers.
4. Wait. I had to wait 9 hours and 45 mins for the dough to just peek over the rim of the tin. It winter here, so that’s to be expected.
5. Bake a 220dC for 30mins, then reduce the heat to 200dC and bake for another 45 mins. I removed the loaf from the tin and baked it on a oven tray for the last 30 mins of the bake.
6. Cool and wrap in a linen cloth. Wait some more. I waited 20 hours to slice this one.

I did end up with a bit of a crack in the loaf, i'm not sure what that's about though (any insights are welcome...)

The crumb moist and very tender, no chewiness. The crust softened up nicely while the loaf was wrapped up.

The taste is lovely, the sunflower seeds add a nice nuttiness. It’s sourer than the white flour version, probably because the bulk ferment took about double the time.

As with my previous two loaves, I think whole grains make think better. Well, for my tastebuds at least! :)

 Happy baking