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Hi TFLers! I hope you are all doing fine. Work has multiplied exponentially that is why I have posted and even baked and cooked less and less. I baked this quite some time ago but only managed to post it now. This is inspired by another baked sushi flavor that I make for the family.

Instead of rolling it "maki style" like last time I decided to shape it like the famous Korean sausage bread. The dough is just my usual enriched sourdough with milk and egg as liquids with a bit of butter. After bulk fermentation overnight, I divided the dough into six rolls and stuffed each one with  whole crab stick as replacement for the sausage. I used scissors to cut the dough and make the design.

After three hours of proofing, I then topped each roll with a kani salad made with shredded kani, mayonnaise, cream cheese, and thinly sliced red onions. The topping, I think, is a little similar to crab rangoon filling so maybe we can also call these as crab rangoon rolls. I then drizzled extra mayonnaise on top before baking them at 180C for 20 minutes finished with a 1-2 minute broil as close to the heating element as possible.



The rolls were soft and fluffy on the inside but crispy on the outside. The onion softened and cooked to a gooey but crunchy sweetness. The caramelized mayonnaise also added a special something to the rolls.


 
All of these combined with the cream cheese and the buttery bread create an exquisite though different taste sensation which we really loved.



Full of kani goodness inside and out!



My parents were asking for a repeat but still haven't done so because of a lack of time, I think this was the last bread that I made and after this, it was just all cakes and quick breads.

I really miss baking and posting here. I hope I can do it again more often in the future. I hope you enjoyed this post and I wish all of us good health and blessings always!

Cherry breads make me think of cherry cake. I do love a good Madeira cake. They're super sweet and very much a cake. And yet, we had a box of cherries in the fridge, probably too much for us to eat. Which made them just too tempting to use as a regular inclusion in a bread, not a cake.

It was surprising to me, but this worked quite well. I really enjoyed eating this bread, and although the cherries lost some of their flavour they were still great to eat in a bread, especially when they were used together with a pecan inclusion.

This is also the first bread with both yeast water and sourdough that worked for me (previously I'd tried yeast water as the liquid for feeding the sourdough which wasn't all that different to using just plain water). This time I made both a yeast water build and a sourdough levain at the same time and used them both 9 hours later in the final dough.

These two photographs taken through the bottom of the glass containers illustrate the different degrees of development of these two preferments after this period of time (photos are actually from a later bread, but looked very similar for this loaf). Clearly the yeast water build (top pic) is much more advanced than the sourdough levain (bottom pic), which still looks relatively 'young' even after 9 hours. I'm assuming the levain was young because of the high ratio feed (1:8:12, starter:water:flour) and also that it was a stiff starter.

Using the two preferments together seems to have been a success. Fermentation was fast and the total time from adding the preferments to baking was 3 hours (2 hours bulk plus 1 hour final proof). The aliquot showed 30% at end of bulk and 80% at time of baking.

This was a lovely quick bread to make. There was good oven spring and a crispy crust with an interesting pattern from allowing the seams to open.

Dec. 29-30, 2021.

Goals:

• About 1200 g of mostly whole grain dough to fill an 8" inner diameter banneton which matches well with the pot of the 3.2 quart Lodge Combo-cooker.  This is also the maximum size that fits in a 1-gallon zipper seal plastic bag. After the loaf cools (2 hrs), I like to keep it in a plastic bag to soften the crust.
• 25% Malsena brand (Lithuanian) whole rye, 55% BRM stone-ground whole wheat, 5% whole grain durum (roller milled, Sher Brar Fiber Wala), 15% white flour (AP + bread).

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Dec. 29, 2021. Wednesday.

Soaker:

• 12 g whole dry chia. 
• 40 g water. 
• 1-1/8 tsp whole dry raw (untoasted) caraway. 

This time I implemented two new-to-me things:  1) adding flour to the water, as the Italian bakers and the Ankarsrum users do.  2) sifting the flours into the water to aerate and minimize clumping.

• 508 g bottled spring water in the main mixing bowl. 
• Weighed the following into separate bowls/cups, then sifted them into the main bowl with a #12 sieve: 
• 31 g whole grain roller-milled durum, Sher Brar brand Fiber Wala. I lost my love affair with whole grain durum, and just need to use this up bit by bit.
• 155 g whole rye flour, Malsena brand from Lithuania, purchased from a nearby Russian grocery store. 
• 341 g Bob's Red Mill stone-ground WW hard red wheat. 
• 30 g Arrowhead Mills organic AP flour.  I'm not enamored of this flour either. I only bought it because it was on close-out and ridiculously cheap. But I need to use it up. Just FYI, it is not malted, and my starter did not grow well with it 
• 41.5 g Gold Medal Bread flour. 
• 10.5 g salt. I decided to go lower than 2% due to getting flavoring from the bread spice.  It's a mixture of 2/3 Himalayan pink salt, and 1/3 iodized table salt.
• ---
• Hand mixed to homogeneity. It was rather sticky. 
• Let soak/autolyse from 2:35 pm to about 3:30 pm.
• Around 3:30 pm worked in the soaker. 
• Worked in 44 g of cold 100% hydration starter from 3 sources. 20 g was from a rye starter that I made using my Cultures For Health San Fran Sourdough starter as a seed.  Was going to just use the rye starter and the CHF San Fran starter, but ran too low on the latter. 
• The dough felt a little too loose, so I added 10 g of corn meal when I folded in the 1.5 tsp of bread spice*. I wanted to use 1.75 tsp, but ran out.
• Kneaded some, let ferment, and kneaded every once in a while. Added a little bread flour each time I kneaded because it was sticky.
• 7:30 pm, fold, shape, and put in lined and dusted 8" inner diameter, 8.5" outer diameter banneton. Used a 50/50 mix of AP flour and rice flour for dusting banneton. 

Total calculated weight should be 1213 grams. Less what stuck to hands, plastic gloves, spatula, and bowls. And not counting caraway seeds, bread spice, and bread flour added during kneading. I forgot to weigh dough when I put it in the banneton, and when I took it out of banneton to bake.

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Dec. 30, 2021.

To be continued.

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* Bread spice: 2 parts by volume whole coriander seed, 1 part fennel seed, 1 part caraway. Roast in a dry pan on stove-top burner until fragant, let cool, grind in a coffee/spice grinder.

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Note: the paper plate is 9" in diameter.

Gonna try wating 22 hours before cutting open.

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No bread today (sorry, Benny, didn't get to the Hokkaido bread today), but still had some fun with flour......  I feel like I've got my pasta dough down pretty pat at this point......

400g Caputo Antimo 00

3 large eggs

Tomato paste (to make the liquid equal 230g)

EDIT: Oops!  My (minimal steps after the ingredients didn't paste!  I use the "well" method for making pasta because I'm lazy and would rather clean a bowl than my food processor set up.  I have a wide/shallow bowl that is perfect, so I don't have to do this directly on the counter.  I pour the whisked egg/tomato paste mixture into a well created in the middle of my flour.  Slowly pull flour into the mixture with a fork until it becomes very thick, then I switch to hand mixing/kneading.  It will take some time to knead all the dry flour in, but resist the temptation to add moisture! Total kneading time should be able 10 minutes.  Wrap in plastic wrap, and rest at RT for at least 30 minutes, or in the fridge for several hours.  At this point, follow the directions for your pasta machine, or roll out by and and cut your pasta shapes.  Cook (quickly) and eat!

I received a new set of cutters for my Marcato Atlas 150 pasta "machine", and I tested out the Linguine cutter today.  I think due to the rain today, my dough needed about 30 minutes after rolling to dry a bit to be ready for the cutter, but after that, it went smooth as silk......

I sautéed some crimini mushrooms with butter, olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  When they were tender, I mixed in some chopped parsley, half a cup of pasta water, and about 1/2-1 cup of parmesan cheese.  Tossed with the pasta, then served with some grilled chicken breast and roasted zucchini......super tasty stuff!!!

.....and plenty of leftovers! :)

Rich

I received a 2 kg bag of Anita’s Organic Mill sprouted whole spelt last week and was excited to try working with more spelt than I have in the past. I haven’t had the best of results with spelt. As you know The gliadin/glutenin ratio is significantly higher in spelt at 3.5, than in wheat at 2. As a result spelt’s gluten is more extensible and less elastic. This typically results in spelt loaves spreading and not achieving good oven spring. That has been my experience with whole spelt. To try to counter this one can combine spelt with a stronger flour, reduce the hydration, bake in a pan or add vital wheat gluten. I’m sure there are other things one can do, but I tried three of these four things to see if I could bake a good 100% whole spelt loaf. I did alright, but think that more VWG might still be helpful.

Sweet Stiff Levain
• 53g whole spelt flour (stoneground)
• 24g water
• 18g light brown sugar
• 18g sourdough starter ~100% hydration
1:1.33:2.9:1 starter:water:flour:sugar

Tangzhong classic 1:5 ratio
• 89g milk
• 18g Whole Spelt flour (Stoneground)

Dough Dry Ingredients
• 15 g vital wheat gluten
· 424 g whole spelt four (Sprouted)
• 30 g sugar
• 7g salt 1.6%

Dough Wet Ingredients
• 180g milk (I added 181 g)
• 50g egg beaten (about 1 lg egg)
• 60g butter melted

Pre-bake Wash
• 1 egg beaten
• 1 Tbsp milk

Post-bake Wash
• 1 Tbsp butter (optional)

Instructions
Levain
Mix the levain ingredients in a jar or pyrex container with space for at least 300% growth.
Press down with your knuckles to create a uniform surface and to push out air.
At a temperature of 76ºF, it typically takes up to 10-12 hours for this sweet stiff levain to be at peak.
Tangzhong
In a sauce pan set on med-low heat, whisk the milk and flour until blended. Then cook for several minutes until thickened, stirring regularly with a spoon or heat-resistant spatula. Let cool in the pan or, for faster results, in a new bowl. Theoretically it should reach 65ºC (149ºF) but I don’t find I need to measure the temperature as this gelatinizes at this temperature.

Dough
In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the milk, egg, tangzhong, salt, sugar and levain. Mix and then break up the levain into smaller pieces. Next add the flour and vital wheat gluten. Mix on low speed and drizzle in the melted butter. Once incorporated increase the speed gradually to medium. Mix at medium until the gluten is moderately well developed, approximately 10 mins. Add the sesame seeds gradually and then continue to mix until the dough is fully developed about 10 mins. You should be able to pull a good windowpane, not quite as good as a white flour because the bran will interrupt the windowpane somewhat.

Shape the dough into a tight ball, cover in the bowl and ferment for 2.5-3.5 hours at 82ºF. There may be some rise visible at this stage.
You can next place the dough into the fridge to chill the dough for about 1.5 hours, this makes rolling the dough easier, remember if you do so they final proof will take longer. Alternatively, you can do a cold retard in the fridge overnight.

Prepare your pans by greasing them or line with parchment paper. Scrape the dough out onto a clean counter top. Lightly flour the bench. Transfer the dough onto the bench and divide it into four. I like to weigh them to have equal sized lobes. Shape each tightly into a boule, allow to rest 5 mins. Using a rolling pin roll each ball out and then letterfold. Turn 90* and using a rolling pin roll each out to at least 8”. Letterfold again from the sides so you have a long narrow dough. Then using a rolling pin, roll flatter but keeping the dough relatively narrow. The reason to so this extra letterfold is that the shorter fatter rolls when placed in the pan will not touch the sides of the pan. This allows the swirled ends to rise during final proof. Next roll each into a tight roll with some tension. Arrange the rolls of dough inside your lined pan alternating the direction of the swirls. This should allow a greater rise during proof and in the oven.

Cover and let proof for 6-8 hours, longer time if you chilled your dough for shaping. I proof until the top of the dough comes to within 1 cm of the top edge of the pan.

Preheat the oven to 350F and brush the dough with the egg-milk wash. Just prior to baking brush with the egg-milk wash again.

Bake the loaves for 50 minutes or until the internal temperature is at least 190ºF, rotating as needed to get even browning. Shield your loaf if it gets brown early in the baking process. After 50 mins remove the bread from the pan and bake a further 10 mins by placing the loaf directly in the oven on the rack with the oven turned down to 325ºF. You can brush the top of the loaf with butter if you wish at this point while the bread is still hot to keep the top crust soft.

This loaf isn’t too bad for a first try with 100% whole spelt. What do you think I can do to improve it? I’m thinking of using a bit more VWG say increase it to 20 g.

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I'll preface this blog post with a big THANK YOU for the input, insights, and recommendations from my prior thread about needing to find my way back to the right timing for my regular loaves.  I think I've got it (pending a look at the crumb, but I'm pretty confident from the exterior and the heft (or lack thereof)) of my most recent bake.

430g AP

430g Bread

116g WW

116g Durum

58g Rye

240g levain

794g water

26g salt

The breakdown on the process this time was.......

• 0:00 - Autolyze whole wheat flours w/equal amount of water (290g)
• 1:00 - Mix remaining flour, water, and levain until dry bits incorporated, rest 30 minutes
• 1:30 - Mix in salt, then develop dough in Ankarsrum for about 12-14 minutes on speed 3/3.5
• 1:45 - Move dough to bulk container and into proofer @ 82F
• 2:15 - Stretch/fold, rest 30
• 2:45 - Stretch/fold, finish proof
• 5:00 - Divide, pre-shape, rest, shape
• 5:15 - Loaves in bannetons back into proofer @ 82F
• 5:45 - Loaves into fridge
• 6:45 - Preheat oven to 550F
• 7:45 - Bake loaf #1 (smaller banneton) - oven down to 475F, 20 covered on stone, 25 uncovered on stone
• 8:30 - Re-heat oven to 550F
• 8:45 - Bake loaf #2

I did try to use the aliquot method again, but I was getting only minimal apparent rise in my spice jar, and the dough had surface bubbles and was jiggly.  I think I didn't remove air from the sample well, so my reference point was off.....I forged ahead.  Loaf #1 didn't spring as much as loaf #2, so on my next batch, I'll extend the fridge proof an hour, and bake loaf #1 @ 8:45 on the "clock".

Overall, I'm very happy with the progress on this batch, and, if the crumb on Loaf #2 matches the nice exterior, then I will consider this my new procedure (until, of course, I change something else.)  Being able to use the proofer to control the temp variable across batches will help with consistency, and I'll work on a better procedure with my aliquot jar to use as reference.

Ok, a couple of pics.....

Loaf #1 on the left, loaf #2 on the right:

....and a close up of that proud ear on loaf #2!! :)

Again, my thanks for the help from the TFL collective, and I'll update with a crumb shot when I cut into a loaf for my toast in the morning.

Rich

I had some leftover chocolate babka slices in the freezer that needed to be used up. When deciding what to do with it, I found this recipe:

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/7177/bread-pudding-ii/

I decided to make my own version and used that as the base. 😉

Babka was cubed and put into an 8x8 in pyrex. The dark chocolate was broken up into small chunks and distributed throughout the bread cubes. The pudding recipe was mixed as described, though I used just a little less sugar and left out the cinnamon. I thought about including it, I like Mexican cocoa etc. But I am bringing this to a holiday gathering, and wasn't sure if others would appreciate the combination. After pouring the mixture over the bread and chocolate, I used a fork to gently push the babka chunks down into the mix. I had a little leftover Nutella to use up,so at the last minute I dolloped some on top of the concoction for good measure.

This was soooo decadent, soooo good! It was a hit. One person who said he doesn't care for bread pudding had 2 servings, lol. Highly recommended if you ever want to use up leftover babka. 

Ready for the oven

Still hot and bubbling, the smell is amazing!

 They liked it!

 Merry Christmas!! 🎄

Take 1 - Following(?) the recipe

This did not end up being the greatest example of following a recipe as written, but that was the guiding intent.

Changes to formula:

- Reduce sugar to 15.%
- Increase salt from 1.0% to 1.5%

- Use non-osmotolerant yeast (SAF instant red) and reduce to 1.0%

- Replace 5.0% instant potato flakes with 4.0% potato starch
- Substitute 50.% milk for 5.0% dry milk, omitting water
- Replace citrus extracts with citrus zest
- Replace vanilla extract with vanilla sugar

I reduced the sugar. 28% is a mind-boggling amount of sugar. 

I only had SAF instant red yeast on hand and used that. Since I reduced the sugar, I also reduced the yeast. 

The remaining substitutions are for my convenience. I believe the instant potato flakes, nonfat milk powder, and extracts are also tailored to the convenience of the recipe writer and not integral to the formula. Tapioca starch or cornstarch should also work. 

Changes to process:

- Incorporate creamed butter/sugar mixture at the end of mixing

This recipe is optimised for the mechanical method. I did think about following the original order of butter/sugar->flour/yeast->liquids->remaining flour. But when hand-kneading enriched doughs, one is generally working against the clock to achieve sufficient gluten development before the yeast gets going. Unfortunately there are no explanatory notes to the original text. Most probably the reason for adding 40% flour directly to the butter is to 'shorten' the dough, resulting in a less chewy and more tender texture. But is this really necessary without the machine? In the end I went with conventional logic.

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Baking Log:

1) Whisk together milk and potato starch in saucepan. Cook until thickened. Cover and set aside to cool.

2) Combine flour, salt, yeast, nutmeg, and lemon zest. Add eggs and potato/milk roux. Weigh the latter and add water to compensate for any lost weight. Mix until dough just forms.

3) Rest dough for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, cream together butter and sugar with a wooden spoon. [Note: In theory butter is best creamed within its plastic range, ~18-20 degrees C.]

4) Turn dough out onto counter and knead for 10 minutes. Incorporate butter/sugar mixture in 3-4 additions over the next 5 minutes. Carry on kneading for another 10 minutes for a total of 25 minutes. Dough after kneading:

Set aside to ferment. Ambient temperature 23-24 degrees C.

5) End first fermentation after 2 hours 20 minutes (2 hours 55 min after initial mixing). Divide into 10 pieces and shape into rounds. Arrange in 20 cm round tin. 

Set aside to ferment. Ambient temperature 23-24 C.

7) Preheat oven to 170 C convection.

Dough at end of second proof:

8) Egg wash thinly. Bake for 25 minutes, tenting with foil after 10 minutes. Internal temperature 94 C.

Notes on process:

- Dough was initially (before adding butter/sugar) a pain to knead. The hydration is not quite high enough for slap and fold, but too high for conventional kneading. 
- Kneading could have gone on for another 5-10 min. I only stopped because the dough was obviously fermenting under my hands. 

Tasting/appearance notes:

- Good colour, excellent oven spring.
- Aroma exemplary
- Texture good, soft and shreddable if burgeoning on just so ever slightly dry
- Taste very good. 15% sugar is plenty sweet. 1% nutmeg is absolutely necessary. Perhaps the taste lacks some complexity, but I'm really nitpicking here.

Changes for next time:

- This time I tried to honour the original recipe by creaming the butter and sugar and incorporating halfway through kneading. It was a novel experience and I'm glad I tried it. But having tried it, I can sense this is not optimal. Instead, after mixing and briefly resting the dough to let the flour hydrate, incorporate the sugar before kneading. This should a) make the dough more fluid for easier kneading, and b) slow down yeast activity. When gluten is well-developed, then incorporate butter. Plan to knead for 30-35 minutes in total.
- Decrease baking time by 3-4 minutes. Colour is not a reliable indicator of doneness. Aim for 88 C internal temperature. 
- Add 0.5 g mace
- Add the zest of half an orange
- Divide into 11 buns

Final thoughts:

The most special aspect of this bread is the nutmeg-citrus-vanilla combination. Reminds me of fiori di Sicilia. I strongly recommend not omitting any of the flavourings. If using pre-ground nutmeg then increase the amount. The texture was in every way satisfactory if not mind-blowing. But it's difficult for me to comment on the texture per se having a) substantially reduced the sugar, and b) not followed the recipe instructions. If anyone tries the recipe as written but by hand I'd be very interested in the results. 

2 hours 20 min at 23-24 degrees C for first fermentation was a result of my schedule. The dough was definitely ready before that.

If/when I get some SAF instant gold yeast it would be interesting to see what impact that makes.

Actually, it's odd that this bread is apparently prone to dryness and quick staling. The roux and sugar should effectively counteract both. 

Recipe:

Total dough weight 548 g
Total flour weight 250 g
Hydration 68.%

10 buns in a 20 cm round tin

125 g milk (50.%)
10 g potato starch (4.0%)

250 g strong white flour
135 g potato-milk roux
73 g eggs, about one and a half (29.%); reserve remainder for egg wash
3.8 g salt (1.5%)
2.5 g yeast, SAF instant red (1.0%)
2.5 g nutmeg, grated (1.0%); about half a nutmeg 
zest of one lemon
38 g butter (15.%)
25 g caster sugar
13 g vanilla sugar (15.% in total)

Dec 23 - 24, 2021.

Goals:  500 g final dough flour, 60 % BRM WW, 20% whole rye, 20% AP/bread flour.  7% direct starter (not a levain), 3 days since fed. Bulk ferment at room temp. Overnight proof in fridge.

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12/23/2021.

12:45 pm:  Start soak/autolyse of flour/water/salt.

• 300 g Bob's Red Mill stone-ground WW. 
• 100 g whole rye from Lithuania. 
• 40 g Arrowhead Mills Organic AP. 
• 60 g Gold Medal bread flour. 
• 10 g salt. Mix of Himalayan pink salt and iodized table salt. 
• 425 g spring water. 

Made soaker:

• 10 g whole dry chia seed. 
• 40 g spring water. 
• 1 tsp whole dry raw (ie, not roasted) caraway seed. 

1:30 pm: added, kneaded in, 35 g cold/refrigerated starter, fed 3 days ago. GM bread flour, 100% hydration. 

Total flour: 300 + 100 + 40 + 60 + 17 (starter) = 517 g.

% Whole grain: 400 / 517 = 77%. 

% rye: 100 / 517 = 19%.  

Dough weight: 1020 g, not counting caraway, bread spice, and flax seed.

1:38 pm, kneaded in 1.5 tsp ground roasted bread spice. (by volume, 2 parts whole coriander, 1 part whole caraway, 1 part whole fennel. First roasted in a dry frying pan on stovetop, then cooled, then ground.) 

1:44 pm: kneaded in chia/caraway soaker. 

1:53 pm: kneaded in 1.5 tsp ground flax seed.

3:23 pm: stretch and fold. 

4:30 pm: stretch and fold. 

5:30-ish pm: stretch and fold. 

6:00 pm: Shape, put in dusted/lined banneton, 8" inner diameter at rim. 

6:05 pm: cover banneton with plastic film and rubber band, put in plastic grocery sack, and into fridge.

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12/24/2021.

Oven and 3.2 qt Lodge combo-cooker preheated to 470 F.  Baked in the deep part.

Did not warm up the dough, baked it cold. 

9:33am: bake covered, 450 F, 10 min. 

9:43am: bake covered, 425 F, 10 min. 

9:53am:  bake covered, 400 F, 10 min. 

10:03am: uncover and bake uncovered, 375 F, 10 min. 

10:13am: internal temp 208.0 F, bake uncovered, 375 F, 10 min. 

10:23am: internal temp 209.4 F, bake uncovered, 375 F, 8 min. 

10:31am: intenral temp 209.1 F.  Bottom thumps well. Call it done. 

Let it cool 1.5 hours. Then put in plastic bag for the rest of the day. 

7:47 pm. Was going to let it sit overnight too, but I couldn't resist. Crumb was overly moist, but taste was great.  Other than the moisture, the crumb is perfect for me.

12/25/2021. 

AM: Tastes even better. Wow. Still a tad too moist. Should have let it sit more prior to bagging, and maybe baked longer, or let it sit in the cooling-down oven with door open.   

The soaked chia seeds added too much water, as the dough seemed about at a good hydration at the time I added the soaker.

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