Blog posts

This is my first time making a ciabatta shape

I really loved the way the first version of this bread came out but I wanted to change it slightly and see if I could make it even better.

The only changes I made was to build the levain using Durum flour in a 2 step build.  I also used garlic infused olive oil instead of plain olive oil.  I also used a new proofing basket I just purchased which fit the amount of dough produced perfectly.

The results were excellent.  I like the flavor and creamy texture the increased durum starter imparted on the final bread.

Hi everyone!

Figured it was time I tried a bake in a dutch oven.  We have a Le Crueset pot but it is wide and shallow and thus not suitable.  After hunting around I figured I could use this steamer pot which was sitting in a cupboard.

Nearly 2 months has passed since my last post. Since then, a few major events has happened. For anybody who doesn't know, I've been trying to open a specialty sourdough bakery in Siem Reap, Cambodia (Southeast Asia).

It ain't easy, that's for sure!

 If you read Chinese, here is the link of my blog:

Hello, everyone. I thought it was time that I should try out a new bread making process, as I've been baking a lot of tartine bread and have made enough small changes that I feel comfortable with the formula. So, I decided to scale down the formula for traditional 3 stage pain au levain from The Bread Builders to make a little over 4kg of dough.

"That's the sort of nonsense I loathe!" cried Irma, suddenly becoming passionate.  "Are we going to talk about the party, or are we going to listen to your silly souffles?  Answer me, Alfred.  Answer me at once!"
"I will talk like bread and water.  What shall I say?"
He descended from the chairback and sat on the seat.  Then he leant forward a little and, with his hands folded between his knees, he gazed expectantly at Irma through the magnifying lenses of his spectacles.

I've been experimenting a bit with rye lately and the first thing I learned is that it has this weird quality that makes the dough very extensible, but not very elastic, right? So I was thinking to myself, where, oh where could I use that specific quality? And the first answer that came to my mind was Pizza! (The second idea is laminated dough, but I haven't had the chance to try it, I wonder if anyone has).