sazettel - Experiments with Bread

sazettel - Experiments with Bread

sazettel

[	website	\|	My Website	]
[	userinfo	\|	livejournal userinfo	]
[	archive	\|	journal archive	]

Experiments with Bread	[Dec. 2nd, 2008\|09:56 am]
So, when I went to make my rolls for T-day, I realized my yeast was a little old. To test it, I put a pack in a bowl with some sugar and warm water. Yeast bloomed, all was well. I made rolls. But, I had this little bowl of bloomed yeast. I was going to throw it out, but then I thought, wait, why waste it? Here's the perfect opportunity to get some bread starter going. So, I consulted my Books of Mystery and Power (Joy of Cooking, Julia Child's The Way to Cook, Alton Brown's I'm Just Here for More Food) and decided to stir in a cup of water and a cup of flour and put it in the fridge. This I did. The next day, I did it again. Yesterday, I took it out and poked at it. It smelled like yeasty dough and looked, spongey. I decided on the bread recipie in Joy of Cooking and mixed and kneaded (bread hook didn't work real well, had to go back to the old fashioned method, which I find theraputic anyway). Went through the slow rises, shaped and proofed the loaves, and then decided on a trick I'd heard about for creating crusty bread and put a pan of boiling water in the oven with the loaves. (Note to Esther: method was easy, and entirely egg free) Results: Dense, tasty, really crusty bread. Was eaten with chicken soup for dinner and with honey butter at writer's group. Almost nothing left now. Except for the rest of the starter humming quietly in the back of the fridge. I know what I'm bringing to the music party on Saturday...
link	Reply