This is one of my favourite simple loaves - Ale & Yeast Poolish from Richard Bertinet's "Crust". The flour is 85% bread flour and 15% whole wheat, and the pre-ferment is a 100% hydration poolish made with ale (in this case, my husband's home made light hoppy ale). The dough is a dream to handle and it always behaves so well! The crumb tends to be fairly open and creamy, though the bread tastes quite different from a naturally leavened (i.e. 'sourdough') bread with similar blend of flour and same hydration.
I can't post a photo of the crumb today - this loaf (and 5 of its siblings) is for the little bread shop. :)
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Nothing like baking bread with your own beer in it! Well done and happy baking ...
Looks fantastic.
Thanks guys. This is a very simple bread that would be a good one for new artisan bakers to try. If you haven't used pre-ferments before and are uncertain about free-forming loaves, try this one. It's way easier to handle than some.
And thanks for the inspiration... Made beer bread yesterday - similar method - but with 30% rye and the half a bottle of brown Bavarian beer I had left over from making steak & ale pie...
My loaf isn't nearly as pretty, but it doesn't half taste good :-)
I also make a 100% Whole Wheat bread with the DH's milder dark ale. Also yummy, especially with some onions sauteed in EVOO with rosemary, salt and pepper!
Does DH stand for Dumb Husband, Drunk Husband, Derelict Husband or Dashing Husband? I'm guessing Dashing since he makes beer for you to use in bread :-)
Haha, well it normally stands for "Dear Husband", but in this case Dashing will do. And yes, I have my own shelf of light hoppy ale and dark mild, for use specifically in bread making. :)
Maybe "Dedicated Helper" would fit too!
Hey! it looks really great and your enthusiasm for the bread makes it quite tempting. I'm not sure if you are willing to post the recipe..if you are, I would really appreciate it. If not, would you say it's similar to this :http://www.shipton-mill.com/baking/recipes/ale-and-yeast-poolish.htm
Thanks!
Hi sook. Yes, the recipe is very close to the link you posted. Sometimes I make the dough and let it bulk rise at room temperature for a couple of hours then put it in the fridge overnight. That works well too.