Mebake's blog

Last week marked the return of ARTE Dubai, following a summer break in August. A week earlier, I’ve baked three breads  in 3 days. The first was Rye Sourdough with multigrain, and then a new recipe of mine: Date sesame bread, and finally the all too popular: Roasted garlic bread from Hamelman's book :BREAD. As expected, the garlic bread sold out in 3 hours,  while the date sesame came in second, and finally the Rye multigrain; the word rye multigrain may have mislead many visitors into thinking that the bread is hefty and dense , whereas it has only 20%  rye.

Odd as it may sound, I did not decide yet what my “go to bread” recipe is , and to rectify that I searched all bread books that I own to sort out the favorite recipe, and came across one I haven’t tried: Whole Wheat Bread from Tartine. I followed the recipe, including cold overnight fermentation of the shaped loaves.  The loaves spent their night in a floured couche in the fridge, but ended up sticking so I had to pry them out the next morning (Note to self: do not underestimate the importance of rice flour while dusting your couche).

This is my take on Karin’s challenge bread. I’ve used 3 freshly milled whole grain flours, which all happened to be from Germany: Whole Wheat, Whole Spelt, Whole Rye; all organic.  The flours account for 60% of the total, while 40% was regular Bread flour for extra lift and lightness. The raisin mush lends a sweet undertone that really pairs well with the nutty/ roasty/ soury flavors.

Recipe: 

I’ve been away from TFL for some time, and that is mostly due to my father death. He passed away two weeks ago, and I had been busy with his funeral arrangements and dealing with the aftermath of his demise. As it happens, he was also my boss at work for 12 years. I will miss his kind heart. May he rest in peace.

Hi,

It has been a while since i last posted. I've been away for a 3 week "vacation", so i missed June's crafts market in Dubai. I've returned, though, and began baking for the July Market and my lone client. 

I chose to bake the fastest selling breads: Hamelman's roasted garlic bread, and Olive levain. The third variety is 5 grain Rye sourdough also from Hamelman. I do realize i have to break free from Hamelman's book for the Market bread, and start using recipes of my own. 

Hi, fellow and dear TFL'ers

The thoughts and plans of starting a bakery in Dubai have been broiling in my mind for over a year now. As many of you already know, I began taking pastry classes some few months back as I believe that knowing how to make bread alone just won’t cut it. So, I took the classes and collected my certificate and now I think that the natural choice here is to seek an internship / apprenticeship in some bakery.

I've finally jumped into the 36 hour sourdough bandwagon. I had some ripe Rye sour on hand, as I created a preferment out of a starter for no certain recipe  (Happens to me often), and decided to give the 36 hour sourdough a trial. With all the rave on TFL, I knew that the method will yield excellent bread.

The Recipe:

It was time for the much anticipated Arts and crafts market – Times Square, Dubai.  On Friday, the 9th, I had prepared my display gear, packed and loaded my bread, and head to the Market.

Some of you may remember the new flour I picked up from the local mill last month, and didn't have the chance to try it in some bread; I’m now glad I did. Since the flour is French style, I decided to use it to make a Miche.  

RECIPE:

INSTRUCTIONS

It has been a while since I last posted here on TFL. I have been quite busy, and there was much in my life to take care of, that I hadn’t had spare time to follow the wonderful bread adventures of TFL members.

As some of you may remember, I had missed my chocolate class back in January this year, and planned for a makeup class in order to complete my amateur pastry course. Yes, I’ve finally done it. Enjoyable, could have been. Messy?, you bet, but it is over now. One more theoretical exam in baked goods, and I’ll be officially done.