Simple Bread

[rwsaunders]

Simple, country white bread that I made for a dinner party that we're having tomorrow evening at home. Nobody else likes whole wheat...heathens...so I went with the basics. I couldn't wait for tomorrow though, as it smelled so good, so here's today's lunch.

[dgaddis]

BOOM, I kindasortamostly got the Jack-O-Lantern I was hoping for!

Loaf #1 is out of the oven, #2 is in. More pics tomorrow.

#1 scored



#1 Out of the oven

[dgaddis]

I lied. Here's #2 .

[dgaddis]

Well they had 11 people competing, and once again I was the only bread. I didn't make the judges top 3, but I won the 'fan favorite' which was voted on by people who came to try stuff - total surprise! But I can now add 'Award Winning Baker' to my resume.

[dgaddis]

Not my worst work. All all-purpose flour, 80% hydration. I've gotten so used to doing 70-75% hydration with either some bread flour or some type of whole wheat flour as part of the mix, this loaf was difficult. Didn't get as much structure as I wanted, and it was soooo sticky and hard to work with, I couldn't really shape it - you can see how it flattened out so fast after coming out of the banneton. But it looks to have turned out alright anyhow. I'll slice it in a bit once it's cooled.

[sk_tle]

I've been making my own bread for almost two decades but somehow I never quite took attention to this thread.

Way to go Dustin.

[Too Tall]

I'd eat that. Nicely done and thanks for the bump.
Timely comment D.G. I'm making the simplest AP no fuss loaf for tomorrow to go with butternut squash soup. Just AP, time and minced rosemary at 450F on parchment. Will share a pic. when done.

[dgaddis]

Not bad at all.

[slwrnu]

i am enjoying the high quality bread knife. it is nice to cut through it rather than saw away and scrunch it all up.

[guido]

Fine looking slice Dustin!

[Too Tall]

Did a small test run. Will let this dough do it's thing in the fridge for another day.

bre.jpg

[dgaddis]

Had a great weekend visiting with friends and family to celebrate Christmas. I made some bread. It turned out well, and all got ate.

[mnoble485]

Dustin,
When I look at your bread all I can think about are French Toast, grown up grilled cheese or a plate of really good EVOO with spices.

Mike

[rwsaunders]

Simple bread, simple soup...favorite lunch on a sunny, Winter day.

[dgaddis]

Swing and a miss here in Macon, GA today.

Friday I mixed up enough cranberry and walnut dough for two loaves. When I divided the dough I didn't divide it evenly, one pan had a more than the other, and this proved to be a critical mistake. The small one I baked last night for my wife to take to her work today. No problems with it. The larger one I baked today at my work, I took it out when the top was dark and just shy of burnt. When I sliced it I found raw dough in the center. The bits on the end cooked through and are good to go, but about 2/3rds went into the trash.

[rwsaunders]

Dustin...are you using a baking pan or a ceramic cloche?

[dgaddis]

Dustin...are you using a baking pan or a ceramic cloche?

This one was baked in a tin, which I just sat on the oven rack. I put a pot of boiling water in with it for 20mins for some steam, then remove the pot. I've done this half a dozen times with good results.

The one posted before that (the oval shapped loaf) was baked on a stone, with a pot of boiling water also in the oven the first 20mins. It was too big to fit in a dutch oven.

The one posted before that (the round boule) was baked in a dutch oven, lid closed for 20mins, then open the rest of the time.

[rwsaunders]

Dinner party tomorrow and another "we don't like whole wheat/grain bread" crowd, so here's Ken Forkish's basic white bread. Will post cut photos tomorrow and I'm interested to see the crumb, based on the amount of gas that this puppy was generating during the proof.

Flour Water Salt Yeast — Ken's Artisan

[guido]

Nice looking loaf RW!

[rwsaunders]

Nice looking loaf RW!

Thanks Guy...I'm new to Ken's way of proofing and baking as he bakes his bread with the seam side up with no cutting or slashing. We shall see about the crumb and more importantly, the taste tomorrow. I like the cutting part so if this tastes good, I might go rogue and slash the next one. If you get a chance, watch his videos on bread making and pizza making...there are videos on the link that I posted.