It's been a while since I've posted a BBA challenge post. Partially this is because I've been stalled for about a year on the sourdough starter. I tried and failed a few times, then just forgot about it in the chaos of moving and all. However, I recently visited a friend who gave me some of her starter, so I used my baby "Zeke" to get me going on the challenge again.
However, when I started up with the sourdoughs, I realized that somehow I lost my photographs from the last four breads that I didn't remember to post when I made them! I've switched computers in the meantime, and maybe they're still here, but I haven't been able to find them. So here's a quick write-up on those four (what I remember), and my first sourdough.
#26, Poolish Baguette
This one was okay, but if I'm going to spend the time to make a poolish, I see no reason to not be making Pain a l'ancienne instead!
#27, Portuguese Sweet Bread
I'm sure I've mentioned it before, but I don't like sweet breads. However, on a TDY before I made this bread, DH had a sandwich with Kahlua pork and sweet bread, so I made the pork at the same time as I made this loaf. They went pretty well together.
#28, Potato Rosemary Bread
Without a doubt, this bread is one of the contenders for "Best Recipe in BBA!" I made two loaves and gave one to my (then pregnant) friend. It might have been the hormones, but she tore into this like there was no tomorrow! I don't think her husband got to try any, and I don't blame her, it's that good! As it happens, I finally have leftover mashed potatoes in the fridge. I'm going to make this again ASAP.
#29, Pugliese
Honestly, not particularly memorable. Maybe if I had used the durum flour it would have made a difference.
#30, Sourdough (pictured above)
Yum yum yum yum yum! Sourdough is a favorite in this house and this recipe did not let us down - apart from being even better the second day than the first! I did make a few mistakes working with my baby Zeke. I need to listen to the dough more than the timeframe given in the recipe. As a result, the bread was a little heavy and dense, but I think I can fix it next time! I also didn't get the crust and color that I'd want, but since I'm working without my best baking materials (notably, my baking stone), I figure that's not my fault!
Since Zeke is a relatively young starter (versus the starter that the author was using, which was 12 years-old), I too have found that he needs a bit more time. After a feeding, I've been leaving him at room temperature for 8-12 hours and I've started to notice some flavor improvement. He really should be quite bubbly -- and taller in his container -- before you put him in the fridge.
ReplyDeleteThis weekend, when I made my Zeke-bread, I left out all the commercial yeast. I extended the fermentation and proof by 50%, but I think I safely could have doubled each of them. It was the first time I'd ever baked a loaf using only wild yeast, and it turned out really well!