Sour and Chewy - Delicious Overnight Sourdough Bread

In recent weeks I have been experimenting with sourdough, but without the fuss of 'the care and feeding' of a starter. True, the sourdough starters yield exceptional loaves, but really, who has the patience. Especially in the summer when I just want to bake bread and quickly! So, a while ago I developed a method (or maybe I read about it, I can't remember) for making fast, overnight sourdough. Now I am experimenting with different combinations to see how it tastes. I mean, how bad can it be. Anyway, here is my latest offering. It tastes almost like a real honest to goodness sourdough,, but without the fuss. Also, because it has the tanginess of the starter, along with rye flour it makes an exceptional loaf for sandwiches. Especially pastrami with a good sharp mustard. Yum!

Here's What You'll Need:
for the starter

1 cup rye flour
1 cup warm water
1/4 tsp. dry yeast

1. Mix together all the ingredients to form a rather wet paste. Cover with plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature, preferably overnight.

the next day...

for the bread dough

1 cup bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
or

2 cups bread flour
1 1/2 tsp. dry yeast
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. sugar
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
about 1/3 cup coarsely chopped nuts (optional)
about 1 Tbs. sesame seeds (optional)
enough water to make a soft, but firm dough

2. Mix the remaining ingredients into the starter, kneading to form a soft, firm dough. If necessary add water, 1 Tbs. at a time as needed. Knead in the nuts and sesame if using. Knead for about 5 minutes then form into a ball, turn to coat in a lightly-oiled bowl, then cover to rise until doubled in volume, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

3. Remove the dough from the bowl, form into a tight ball, by stretching the dough from the top to the bottom and place on a baking sheet , covered with baking paper, with the stretched dough down. Cover with a kitchen towel for a second rise, about 45 minutes. If you have tightened it correctly, it will not spread much.

4. About 20 minutes before baking time, heat the oven to 400F (200C). Slash the bread to make the oven spring more effective without tearing the bread, using a sharp serrated knife (or a razor blade).

5. Just before placing in the oven spray the bread with water lightly. You should also spray into the hot oven several times to introduce hot steam into the oven.

6. Bake for 35 minutes or until a deep brown crust has formed and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. If you have a baking stone, you can place the baking sheet directly on it, and place the bread on the stone for the last five minutes. Also, you can turn the oven off at the end and leave the bread on the stone for an additional 5 minutes or so, to make an even 'crustier' crust.

7. Cool on a rack.

Healthy, Healthy - Whole Wheat and Soy Artisan Bread

So, you can already figure our where this is going. I have slowly been trying to define a different approach to healthy bread. To integrate two different styles, as it were and create something new. I want to somehow preserve the healthy aspects of working with whole grains and high protein flours without sacrificing the look and feel of 'everyday artisan bread'. This bread is, therefore, experimental. And only a first try at something a little different.

What makes it a little special for me is the use of a combination of flours I don't have much experience with: 70% whole wheat flour and soy flour. The soy flour is made by roasting (or drying) soybeans then grinding them into flour. There are many advantages but he biggest for some people is that soy flour has no gluten. It is very popular with bakers producing gluten-free breads etc. but cannot be used by itself. That is because it has a distinctive taste not everybody likes. But in combination with other flours, you don't really taste the soy. So you're left with the high protein content and no gluten! Let me know what you think.

Here's What You'll Need:
about 3 cups whole wheat flour (I used 70% whole wheat sometimes called 'light' whole wheat
1 cup soy flour
1 Tbs. instant dry yeast
2 Tbs. sugar (brown sugar is OK)
about 1 1/2 cups milk at room temperature (or warm water)

Here's What You'll Need To Do:
1. Dissolve the honey and yeast in about 1/2 cup of room temperature water or milk. let this stand for about 10 minutes or until nice and bubbly.
2. In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.

3. Pour the yeast mixture into the flour mixture and stir to make a rough dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until the dough comes together and becomes smooth. It will take maybe 5 minutes.

4. Form the dough into a ball, cover and let it rise until about doubled in volume, about 2 hours. Remember the soy has no gluten, and the whole wheat is heavy so it takes longer for it to rise.
5. Before covering the dough ball, slash the top with a sharp serrated knife. This is both decorative and allows gas to escape without exploding the bread when it bakes.

Before rising:

 After rising:

6. About 20 minutes before the dough finishes rising preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). I used a baking stone placed in the center of the oven.

7. Bake for about 30 minutes. Then turn off the oven, open the door slightly, and let it start to cool off on the oven for 5 minutes before removing.
8. Cool completely on a rack before slicing.

Basic Healthy Beautiful Bread - Artisan Whole Wheat Boule

After all is said and done, sometimes what you really want is a slice of healthy, hearty bread that tastes great and is good for you at the same time. Oh, and it should be pretty, too. This bread, inspired by the Master recipe for whole wheat bread in Jeff Hertzberg's magnificent Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day, is just such a bread. It tastes great. Just as important, it has a slightly chewy crust and a soft, but strong crumb. Perfect for sandwiches loaded down with meats or cheeses and with sauces or marinades or other wet ingredients. It does not become mushy but rather is up to the job it's supposed to do, i.e., it is there for you when the going gets tough, and doesn't disintegrate into crumbs all over your clothes. It is also pretty, looking ever so much like a nice artisan loaf without the 'muss and fuss' of working with sourdough.

This is a straight dough, mixed and baked the same day, similar to a challah but not quite as enriched It is shaped like a French boule (french for ball) but of course flat on the bottom. Also, the slashing which is both functional (lets the gas escape so the bread doesn't explode sideways in the oven while baking) and decorative. I have no doubt you'll love it once you try it.

Here's What You'll Need:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups AP or bread flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbs. dry yeast
3/4 Tbs. salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
about 1 1/3 cups warm water

Here's What You Need To Do:
1. Mix the dry ingredients (the flours. sugar, salt and yeast) together in a large bowl or in the bowl of an electric mixer until evenly distributed.

2. Add the egg, oil and most of the water and mix to form a rough dough. Add water or flour to form a smooth, slightly sticky dough. Knead the dough in a mixer vigorously for about 10 minutes (or 15 minutes by hand), until the dough is very smooth and only slightly tacky.

3. Place the kneaded dough into a lightly oiled bowl, turn to coat, then cover with plastic wrap to rise until doubled. This will take about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

4. Take the dough from the bowl, and, trying desperately not to degas the dough too much, form the dough into a boule. This is best done by stretching the dough from the top away from you towards the bottom. After each stretch, turn the dough by about 45 degrees. When the dough is 'stretched, place it, folds on the bottom, onto a baking tray. Cover the boule with a damp kitchen towel to rest for about 45 minutes.

5. Start heating the oven (400 F, 205 C) about 30 minutes before baking. Just before baking, slash the bread twice or three times with a serrated knife, spray with a little water and place in the oven.

6. After about 15 minutes reduce the temperature to 350 degrees. Bake for a total of about 35 to 40 minutes. If you have a baking stone, you can move the boule from the baking sheet to the stone for the last 10 minutes of baking to give more crispiness to the crust.

7. Cool on a rack.

Seasonal Bread - Pumpkin Artisan Bread

Sooooo... It finally happened. Yesterday I decided I just had to make some bread (since it had already been since Friday - and it was already Sunday) but honestly, none of my recipes looked exciting. Not one of them did a thing for me. I debated back and forth, and finally, like I said, I just started making the recipe up myself. I had some fresh pumpkin in the refrigerator and everything else needed of course. The internal debate was whether I should make a sandwich loaf or a boule type artisan loaf. I chose the boule. I know, I know. The loaf would be more practical and be eaten faster, maybe. Also, since this was going to be an everyday bread (not a special holiday-type bread) it made sense to make a loaf. Still, the idea of a self-made (designed?) artisan loaf was enticing. I took the leap.

I knew certain things in advance. For instance, I know that I need about 1 Tablespoon of yeast to about 3 cups of flour. Whole wheat takes a little more, but this would be AP flour. Also, it would need maybe a cup of warm water. The variable, and therefore, the area of experimenting was in my surprise ingredient, i.e., the pumpkin. The added volume and even more importantly, liquid. But how much? I didn't know. Also, although I wanted the sweetness of the pumpkin to come through (and it did!) I knew it would add sweetness, just not how much. That meant I would need to adjust the amount of sugar. Oh, and I didn't want orange bread. I have recipes for sweet potato muffins, for example, that come out orange. Somehow that is ok for muffins. And yes, I know, I only recently made tomato bread that is quite reddish in color. Still, orange? I don't know. So I boiled the pumpkin to make it soft and drained it really well. Then I mashed it with a fork. The end result was whitish bread with flecks of orange, perfect.

Here's What You'll Need:
1 cup warm water
1 1/2 Tbs. sugar
1 Tbs. yeast
about 2/3 cup mashed boiled pumpkin
3 to 3 1/2 cups AP flour
1/2 Tbs. salt

Here's What You'll Need to Do:
1. Cut up the pumpkin into chunks then cover with water. Boil about 10 minutes or until soft enough to mash with a fork.

2. In the meantime, mix the sugar with the water to dissolve, then mix in the yeast. Let it stand for about 10 minutes until in becomes quite bubbly.
3. Mix in 1 cup of the flour, and stir vigorously to make a smooth slurry. Then add the pumpkin (after it has cooled so you don't kill the yeast!!).
4. Add the flour, one cup at a time mixing thoroughly each time until you have a smooth but quite sticky dough.

5. Remove the dough from the bowl onto a floured tabletop. Continue kneading in more flour to make a dough which is still soft but only slightly tacky.
6. Place this dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let it rise until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.
7. Carefully move the dough from the bowl to a greased, and floured (I used cornmeal) baking sheet. Tuck the edges underneath stretching the surface to form a ball shape. Place the dough on the board with the stretched edges down. Try to avoid de-gassing the dough as much as possible while shaping and placing it. Cover it lightly with oiled plastic wrap to rest for about 30 minutes.
8. About 15 minutes before baking time preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C). Place a baking stone, if you have one, on the middle rack of the oven and a small pan on the bottom of the oven.
9. Just before baking, pour about 2 cups of boiling water into the pan and quickly close the oven door to create a steamy atmosphere for the bread. If you want you can also spray the walls of the oven a few times to make it even steamier.
10. Bake the bread either directly on the stone or, like I did, by placing your baking sheet on the stone, for about 30 minutes. It will be a very dark brown color. If you think it is getting too dark, lightly cover it with aluminum foil during baking to slow the browning process.

11. Cool completely on a rack before slicing. The crust, will soften as it cools, but remains quite chewy. And of course, it is delicious!

Sandwich Time - Kaiser Rolls

In my last post I talked about using a 'starter' to give an added punch, so to speak, to your bread. The idea is that by forcing the dough to rise really slowly (overnight) it acquires a tangy flavor like sourdough. In fact, sourdough bread is made exactly this way with a 'starter' that ferments overnight, usually at room temperature. Another advantage of slowing down the 'proofing' time is that the texture also improves. In this case the final bread is much 'chewier' than a regular sandwich bread. This is much closer in style and substance to a European bread than an American bread. American bread in general, tends to be softer and richer (added sugar or eggs or oil). Whereas European breads, especially artisan type breads are much more frugal in their ingredient list. The pate fermentee (literally fermented dough in French) required is really a recipe for French bread and can easily be made into a baguette. In fact, if you recall that's exactly what I did last time. I simply made one batch the day before and fermented it overnight then added 'fresh' dough to the fermented dough. This resulted in exquisite baguettes, IMHO.

However, sometimes we want the full tangy flavor we get with the fermented dough without all of the chewiness that characterizes a baguette. This recipe is for a sandwich roll. It is tangy and sturdy (without being too chewy). The sturdiness will allow us to pile it high with all good things you put on sandwiches, smoked meats and cheeses, veggies and, of course, condiments and pickles. Yum!!

Here's what you'll need for the starter:
1 1/8 cups ( about 150g) AP flour
1 1/8 cups ( about 150g) bread flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp yeast
about 3/4 cups warm water


Here's what you'll need to do:
1. Stir together the flours with the yeast salt and warm water until you form a 'shaggy' dough.
2. Move the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for up to 10 minutes until the dough is smooth.
3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and let it rest and rise, covered until doubled. This will take about 2 hours at room temperature.
4. Gently de-gas the dough. Then return it to the bowl. Place the bowl, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator overnight.


The next day...
1. Remove the fermented dough from the refrigerator and cut it into about 10 pieces. Leave the pieces covered at room temperature for about an hour to warm up. 

Then add the following to 1 1/2 cups (about 230g) of the fermented dough...


2 1/4 cups (285g) AP flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp yeast
1 large egg beaten (this is what enriches the dough and reduces the chewiness)
1 1/2 Tbs vegetable oil
10 Tbs (about 150ml) warm water


1. Stir together the flour, yeast, and salt. Then add the fermented dough, the egg, oil and water. Mix to form a 'shaggy' dough,. It is right when you can easily form a ball of dough.

2. Remove the dough to a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough until you have a smooth dough that is also soft and slightly elastic. This may take as much as 10 minutes.
3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and, covered, let it ferment at room temperature for at least two hours.
4. Remove the dough from the bowl and divide it into about 8 or 9 equal sized pieces. Form them into balls of dough, lightly mist them with spray oil, then cover and let them rest for about 10 minutes. Prepare a baking tray with parchment paper, also sprayed lightly with oil and then sprinkled with semolina flour or cornmeal.
5. Prepare each piece of dough by shaping it into a Kaiser roll shape. This is essentially a 'rosette' formed by making a snake of dough and then making a simple knot and wrapping the ends around the ring of dough.

6. Place the rolls on the baking tray, and let them 'proof', covered, for 45 minutes. Then, gently, flip them over, and let them 'proof' for another 30 to 45 minutes. They will double in size.

7. Preheat the oven to 425 F (about 220 C). prepare the rolls for baking by misting them with water. If you want to cover them with seeds now is the time, otherwise just spray with water.

8. Place the bread in the oven then spray the oven walls with water and close the door. After 10 minutes rotate the tray for even baking. Lower the oven temperature to 400 F (about 200 C). Bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes. 

Cool on a rack at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.