Basic Sourdough Bread
Thought I should give sourdough another
go - a simpler version. I wanted to try introducing steam today but
failed. I was going to use the ice cube method but realised at the
last minute that my fridge no longer produced ice (or iced water)!
So silly that I didn't check it before. So thought I'd quickly try
to boil water - then that was taking too long so ... no steam for
bread today.
This was different compared to my previous attempt with
sourdough rye. I did encounter some problems with my firm starter -
it didn't rise for many many hours. I am suspecting that my culture
is actually dormant and I will probably need to wash and reactivate
it. So in view of the culture not working too well (although the
flavours came through), I added 1½ Tspn of Instant yeast to give it
the extra lift it needed. This was otherwise a much firmer and
manageable dough, better for newbies. I've also introduced 10% of
rye into the flour mixture. I will probably give this recipe
another attempt using refreshed culture.
Everything was less than ideal but it was quite a relief that at
least the flavours came through. It had balanced flavours with a
nutty hint of rye. It was quite a wholesome feeling. I went on and
made bruschetta with it. It was wonderful, flavourful and much
relished!
The Donut Factory - Friend's review
So one of my friends finally got in line at the express queue at Suntec City (while waiting for her window-shopping Mom) here's her review (posted with her permission) that she smsed me :
10 minutes of waiting netted me and Mom 2 donuts out of 8 sitting in a tray. Kaya and Strawberry heart. Too sweet too sweet. And if I had waited an hour, I would have said too sweet and thoroughly not worth it. It's all time, place and perception. Either I wait for my mom watching her window shop or I read my book in a queue for same amount of time for these mythic donuts. It's okay, above bad! Will not comment on texture or consistency though.
This is because I had told her that I liked it but at this point I made her tell me about her thoughts. Her reply follows...
Because it was average. I think it's the long queues and the anticipation that flavours the tastebuds.
Previous related posts here and here.
Sourdough Rye with Flaxseeds
I've finally gotten round to it, making
Sourdough Rye bread. I haven't really been spending a lot of time
baking in the last months and forgotten how long you need in
preparation for bread baking. This is my first time making
Sourdough Rye and I think I might have added just a teeny tiny bit
too much culture because the final result was a little too tart to
my liking. Then again, it might be the case that I left the
sourdough to ferment more hours than usual. I'm not too sure.
This recipe also created a very hydrated dough. I'm not very
experienced in handling wet dough so I added more flour to have it
hold up a little more and made it easier to shape. This time round
I also decided to use a thermometer to measure internal
temperatures to be certain the insides were done. I was so idiotic
too with this part too because the recipe reads in Fahrenheit and
my thermometer was in Celsius but somehow thought it was reading in
Fahrenheit and of course I thought "No no! The insides still not
done!!" The thermometer came out with tiny bits of wet dough on it
so I decided to bake it some more. I then proceeded to check the
conversions of what it should be and realised 10-15 minutes later
that my bread was already done and I'm just getting the tops of my
bread burnt!
Also what is quite lacking from this
experiment is steam - I've yet to be courageous enough to spray or
introduce water in an extremely hot oven. The last thing I need is
shattered bits of oven glass all over my kitchen and the stress
that comes with it! This was nonetheless an interesting experiment!
I need more practice! This recipe is taken from Jeffrey Hamelman's Bread: A Baker's Book of
Techniques and Recipes. Apart from the slightly over-tartness
of the bread, I quite enjoyed the flavour of rye and flax in this.
It has a lovely texture to it, not to chewy or dry - nice strong
crumb.
I'm not sure if it's fate or coincidence but I'm so glad I can now
participate in the new food blog event Bread Baking Day #03 originally created by Zorra (Goddess of
wonderful food blog events)! This time round it's hosted by
Ulrike
of Küchenlatein who is a wonderful cook and regular of
food blog events, so I am quite certain it will be a success!! I've
been meaning to take part but been too busy and only just minutes
before realising the theme for this month's Bread Baking Day is
Sourdough Rye!
Childhood Muffins
I got really excited when I first read about the theme for the
latest Muffin Monday (MM05) that Wonder Sophie
had planned. Childhood Muffins! It sounded really fun but at the
same time challenging because a lot of what I had during my
childhood is not quite the same now. But the first thought that
popped up in my mind where these wonderful bite-sized biscuits with
colourful piped dollops of icing sugar on top.
I honestly don't know if there is a formal name for these
confections. These are sold at your neighbourhood provision shops
by weight. I bought mine pre-packed for $1 for (150gm pack) - with
no formal label on the package, so it appears there still is no
formal name for these gems.
My contribution to MM05 are regular muffins filled with these bite-sized sugar surprises. I had placed a bite-sized biscuit on the top but the heat caramelised the colourful tops to something brown and not so pretty. The icing sugar made the insides of the muffin really colourful (and a bit strange), it was fun all the same to make them and everyone enjoyed it!
Read More...I know...
I will bake soon - been busy at work. It's true.
I'm taking a week off next week so there will be plenty of time to catch up with new experiments!
It's been 1 whole year since I've quit smoking!!
I've also noticed a sudden rise in people reading about the donut factory post I made some months back. The queue is still quite long even though school holidays are over. They've recently just opened another outlet at Suntec City. Location addresses for their outlets and a visual sample of their delicious range of donuts can be found on their website donutfactory.com.sg.