Day 5 2/26

Focaccia #2:

Pate fermente used (ciabatta from yesterday) at 20%.  Portioned in ring molds and square pastry frames.  Both look nice.  The round loaves got various herbs from the garden.  The two square ones got carrot and dill and strawberries, nasturtium and hazelnut.  Baked @ 400f for 28 min.

Carrot and dill was a great loaf.  Strawberry hazelnut nasturtium was nice but needed far more nasturtiums, and perhaps a splash of vinegar.  I should not use bronze fennel because it looks sort of like hair when it dries out in the oven.

Seeded Whole Wheat Pain de Mie #2:

20% whole wheat flour.  Sesame, flax, poppy and pumpkin seeds soaked and added to dough with butter.  Baked @ 400f for 50 min.

Nice nutty flavor and fluffy texture.  Would be great with turkey and avocado.  I baked one with a lid and one open.  The lidded one sunk way too much in the sides.  I will try a slightly larger portion as well as de-panning immediately.  Flax was a little overwhelming.

 

Almond Pain au Lait #2:

1000g bread flour

700g almond milk

12g yeast

40g barley malt syrup

20g salt

100g coconut oil

100g almond butter

This was my attempt at a vegan rich dough.  The results were far better than I had expected - buttery and slightly sweet, with a mild nuttiness.  The texture might have even been softer than a standard pain au lait.  A good option for vegan and vegetarian patrons.  As I said before, this dough can be endlessly varied.   Brushed with almond milk.

Pain au Levain #2:

Minimal mixing method (by hand.)  Mixed previous night at 6, received 2 folds and then put into retard. Taken out 9 am, baked 6.5 hours later (very cold fridge.)  68% hydration. 10% whole wheat flour.

Scores are improving.  Color ok.  Crust was a little soft.  Crumb was tighter, I believe because I took the hydration down.  Flavor exceptional.

 

Baguette #4:

Same as yesterday - half levain and half poolish.  Level of commercial yeast was reduced by half- I'm using a wild yeast culture so I don't need to dope it with all that extra.  I'm going to cut it in half again tomorrow and let it ferment longer.

Color improved from yesterday - still want a little more brownish-brick red in the crust.  Flavor and crust texture have been consistently good.  Crumb could be a touch looser.  Scores opened up very nicely.