Hi people
I am a newbie here. I used to buy some wonderful bread from a baker in Edmonton who went out of business some years ago and have been trying since then to find recipes for some of the breads he used to make so I can attempt to make these for myself. The two of my favorites were Sovital and Schinkenbrot (sp?).
Sovital I can buy a decent loaf in Vancouver where I now live but still want to make my own for a. the satisfaction of making my own and b. I get to control the ingredients. I have never been able to find a recipe that sounds right and the only one I did find included egg whites which just did not sound right.
Schinkenbrot. A German friend found me a recipe but unfortunately this included ham in the ingredients as, she explained, Schinken means ham in German. Unfortunately the bread which I had loved contained not ham or any other meat for that matter.
If anyone can help with recipes for these breads I would really appreciated hearing from you.
Thanks in advance
Sovital seems to be a soft, high hydration whole wheat loaf, with some added grains inside and on top. You should be able to come up with a recipe, seems pretty straight forward.
I am from Germany and Schinkenbrot doesn't contain ham, it's literally a slice of bread with butter and ham (usually smoked) on top. There is not a particular bread we use for it, but most common seems to be a darker sourdough bread (contains rye) with a very tight and crumbly crumb. Does that sound about right?
Okay, let me begin this by saying that like any other recipe, the recipe for bread will vary from country to country, town to town and baker to baker. This is part of what makes food so interesting and beguiling. Of course this explains why one person's experience with a specific loaf will not be the same every time they sample it from different bakers without even mentioning variations in the taster's personal condition, or the bakers supplies. For example if you ask 500 Eastern European women for their recipe to make borscht, you will get 500 different recipes all of which will most likely be excellent!
The Sovital I am used to (not saying I am right or that it is the only way it is made) i am pretty sure contains rye, perhaps in addition to whole wheat. It certainly has seeds - sunflower/flax/etc. in the loaf if not on top and it was a firm but not too dense loaf with modest air holes. I did manage to get an ingredients list from the baker who makes the local loaf I like so as I get the opportunity I will be playing with that.
The Schinkenbrot I had loved was a dense loaf, very likely seeded and not crumbly. I do not believe it was a sour loaf as someone I live with (not to mention any names) does not like sour loaves.
Thanks for responding