Blog posts

Ciabatta at 66% and 76% hydrations

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A bit of a come-on, but for comparison the lead photo is my standard 84% hydration ciabatta crumb, as is this next of a full loaf.

Friends soon visiting asked if I could bake ciabatta for them.  I had to re-aquaint myself. Rather than make my old standby ciabatta at 84% hydration, I wanted to try another option.

Mid-Autumn Festival Special: Pineapple Char Siu Buns

Toast

Mid-Autumn Festival is around the corner! In Hong Kong, lotus seed mooncakes (and other non-traditional varieties e.g. egg custard mooncakes and snowy mooncakes), stuffed glutinous rice dumplings in sweet soup and fruits like pomelo and star fruits are served. In case you’re wondering…No, we don’t celebrate it with pineapple char siu buns! The thing is, this Chinese festival triggers my craving for Chinese food.

 

Fresh Milled Spelt Sourdough

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This is my second loaf with fresh milled flour. Once again, I turned to Maurizio for inspiration and went with his Sourdough Spelt formula. My loaf used 30% fresh milled spelt, 30% fresh milled high extraction hard red spring wheat (Maurizio calls for Central Milling T85), and 40% Giusto's Artisan. I used a 40 mesh sieve to sift the whole grain red wheat down to high extraction (about 85%). This loaf was 85% hydration. It was proofed in the refrigerator in a linen-lined oblong banneton and baked in an oblong clay baker. The result: