Currently the room temperature where I feed my starter, do bulk fermentation and dough proofing is around 18-19º C. How does that affect my baking? Is it hopeless? Should I put everything away until the weather improves and room temperature rises to say, 25º C (or even higher)?
You can do one or more of 1) increase time, 2) increase inoculation or 3) use a proofing box. Then, you must “watch the dough instead of the clock” to tell when to move from stage to stage. It takes some experimentation. Don’t give up- winter is a great time for fresh handmade bread.
There are lots of ideas for improvised proofing boxes if you do a search. lately i use my microwave (turned off) with a cup of boiling water in it ( the water stays in the cup, the dough is in its own separate container). That stays moist and warm for quite awhile. Occasionally i reheat the water. As i said, there are many other ideas floating around.
Thank you for the suggestions, I must decide what to do. I did look briefly into the idea of using a proofing box and I saw on the Internet a few alternative methods being proposed or used by others. For me an effective working solution would have to include a thermostat of some sort so that I won't have to guess how long to proof the dough in a proofing box. So, it's either finding someone who can build one for me or buying one. For practical reasons neither option is available to me until after the December.
Until then I'll try and follow either the first or the second of your suggestions.
http://www.wraithnj.com/breadpics/rise_time_table/bread_model_bwraith.htm
Baking bread is definitely well possible at a temperature of 18-19°C, just the fermentation will be a little slower/longer. You can avoid waiting forever by manipulating the process in many ways:
- use warmer water to bring up the dough temperature
- use a proofing box or anything with a lid, the dough will keep its temp better and create its own "ecosystem" in a way
- add a little yeast. Yeast is more active/faster than starter, so adding a little should accelerate fermentation.
One thing that I haven’t learned yet with baking, and I really should, is to be patient with time! I’m going to try keeping the dough in a more closed space and also maybe use water a few degrees higher.
Agreed you'll have to pay more attention to the dough than the clock if you're in a slightly cooler than usual situation. That said, Peter Reinhart, in his book "The Bread Baker's Apprentice", also has this rule of thumb to give you at least a rough guide for timings -- maybe useful as a starting point.
It’s an interesting observation. I’ll verify it in my next starter feeding and baking!