alfanso's blog

"Ciabatta are like geodes, their true beauty is hidden until you slice them.".  Don, our superb baker MTloaf, provided this wise comment recently.  

The Community Bake posting can be found here

Perhaps to stimulate some thoughts about what you wish to try, here are five breads I’ve recently baked and which ventured into my own no comfort zone.  Keep in mind that this is my personal version of this CB, and merely here to give examples of what took me out of my own personal comfort zone.   If it provides some ideas for you, all the better.

Posted my first experience with the Kingdom Bakery Ciabatta the other day, and was pleased with the results, but tinker I must.

Changes this time employed a trifecta of pro baker's techniques, starting with the Kingdom mixing and BF, followed by the Ciril Hitz method of divide, and then the Scott MeGee method of shaping. 

The final three folds were performed on a watered bench-top with no flour. And I ensured that after each fold I returned the dough to the vessel seam side down.  

Now my second post of a bread from the Kingdom Bakery videos.  The prior was for a polenta based bread.  And his method of mixing and folding this dough had me curious enough.  Also this employs a poolish, something I hadn't done before with ciabatta, as it was always either biga or levain.  

Came across this  YT video and thought I'd give it a whirl.  Trying to spreadsheet a formula from the video's posted percentages and amounts, and nothing really meshed, so I had to massage the spreadsheet for a while to get the amounts into percentages.  And he is off by more than a very small amount on the hydration and minor amounts elsewhere.  

Here you will find all five breads that I’m promoting for the current CB.  All of the “rules” and general instructions can be found in the CB.

============== the first three ===================

 

Here you will find the three formulae for the three NY Jewish Bakery/Deli Rye Breads from the Community Bake for rye breads. Refer to the CB for details.

Aviso! For the first two breads do not proof the loaves directly on a couche.  They will stick mercilessly, the clean-up will be significant and may ruin your couche.  I have no experience using a dutch oven type of vessel with these, so I cannot advise what you should or shouldn't do.

Last week Stephen (Brotkraft) posted his first blog entry.  A short video on how he recommends getting an open crumb.  Okay, after a very few back and forth Qs & As with the engaging Signore Brotkraft, I decided to take the plunge.

A second run at Danni's semolina cranberry/wild rice levain.  With some obvious changes afoot compared to my first attempt.  The wild rice didn't float my boat so I 86'ed it.  The quick and dirty on this version's mods: