I've been using the Tartine country bread recipe for awhile now with my 2012-created sourdough starter... I had a couple of beautiful loaves and really tried to be loose with the baking process, so as to find a way to work baking into my daily/weekly routine. However, my recent efforts have been real crap - despite trying to record every step I followed in my successful bake.
I make a levain from my mature starter (using the float test to determine its readiness, which is about 6 hrs), a short bulk ferment (5 hrs tops- turning as instructed - at 78-80 degrees, and an overnight cold proof of the shaped loaves. Admittedly, sometimes I miss a few turns of the dough in the bulk proof - but I thought extending the proof would help. The dough definitely seems under developed. But at some point I figure that it shouldn't continue the bulk ferment because the yeast will probably be exhausted with a long final proof also...? Is my logic correct?
The greatest problem is getting the shaped round out of the brotform... inevitably, it sticks to the liner (I use rice & bread flour, mixed)... and then it deflates as I put it into the cast iron pan.
I've ready some posts that say you should (or don't need to) do an overnight proof for a sourdough. But even the "failed" loaves taste great! Spongy and distinctly sour. So I HAVE had success in developing flavor. Also, I'm following a recipe that suggests exactly this - a cold overnight proof.
I am really trying to make this recipe work on a regular basis, and I know a good baker haas to adjust according to the weather, or temp, etc... but I can't believe I had one great bake and then consistently bad ones there after! Plus - this is basically a 36 hr process
Thanks all for your suggestion and help!
Amy
A sure sign. Perhaps your current weather is speeding things up. Watch the dough and not the clock.
Amy, after months of successful baking runs (all winter) I am finding myself chasing similar issues. I attribute it COMPLETELY to higher environmental temperatures now that summer is upon us. While I have been able to bring the desired dough temperatures up to 76 F by adding 81 F water all winter, I am now plopping ice cubes into my 66 F tap water to get my 81 F preferments and ingredients down into familiar territory.
Small changes in temperature really do play havoc on some formulas, while others are a bit more forgiving. Pay attention to temperature and timing and adjust accordingly. Maybe the formula you are using is very temperature-sensitive.
Another thing to consider is the temperature of your cold ferment chiller (refrigerator?). Measure it and don't guess. My very powerful chiller has risen 4 F since the onset of the warm weather so I am having to adjust the temperature downward as well. Repeating a comment I made in another post, the residential refrigerator is pretty good at keeping things cold but not very good at MAKING things cold. If your shaped dough is 5 - 10 degrees warmer than it was a few months ago, it might take your chiller hours longer to drop the DDT to the preferred cold proof temperature. So, your ferment is racing along because of higher environmental temperatures and your chiller is taking longer to slow things down.
My learning curve is teaching me to stay ahead of the temperature curve because it is hard to correct once it gets out of hand.
Jim
When you incorporate the levain with the rest of the flour+water, how are you mixing?
Personally, I've noticed that I'm under developing gluten in my initial mix when I'm using the higher protein flours. Sometimes I'm in a rush to start fermentation because of a tight schedule during the day, and I hope that my stretch and folds and proofing will take care if it on it's own... only to watch my loaves flatten out during shaping or in the oven.
How long has the oven and cast iron pre-heated?
As far as sticking goes, I haven't had any issues with high hydration dough sticking using only rice flour. I haven't tried mixing it with bread flour. But I used to have a sticky mess when I used cotton kitchen towels... with my linen cloths (big ol' napkin I cut in half) I've been sticky free.
Kitchen temperature and humidity have been my biggest obstacles baking in TX. All that to say, keep working at it! I find the challenge of fine tuning variables and adapting what keeps me going loaf after loaf!
Thank guys - I am def suspect that I have not dealt with each of theses elements properly. I realized that my "successful" loaves were done in March! And here it is 80+ in the North East... I think that is a big factor - one that I thought I could use to my advantage (i.e. shortening up the the whole process and therefore making this recipe more encouraging to do on a daily basis).
In March, I would proof on my porch overnight, and the temp was prob in the mid 30's-40. Proofing in my fridge is tough bc there's rarely enough space, but I have done it. I probably should invest in the wine fridge...
I have tried the brotforms lined with the "shower cap" liners (which I think are cotton?) and unlined. Unlined def seemed better, less sticky. I try to heat my cast iron pan at 500 for at least 30 min, to 1 hr...
Should I be bringing the loaf out of the fridge before baking? And do you think the overnight proof is too long (at about 7-8 hrs)?
Also - I mix my initial dough by hand - turning it, slapping it for about 2-3 min. The Tartine recipe doesn't say how long to mix, or that you should use a mixer...
I bake a lot (for sale), so I have an old fridge in the basement that is just the bread fridge. I normally do a bulk ferment in the fridge but Saturday morning is pretty busy for baking so I now shape and proof some of the loaves overnight in the fridge. I'm finding that yes, the weather is changing the length of time that dough tolerates a fridge proof without over-proofing, and also that there are definitely warmer and cooler spots in the fridge. Loaves proofed on the top shelf are fine overnight while ones on the bottom shelf overproof.