Homemade Bread Thread

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I'll second the tartine method (as I have previously).

It also works without the folding as well. The last bread I posted above I did not fold once until it was time to shape. I feel the shaping is the most critical step.
 
HoppyDaze said:
what is this, the metric system?
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I may as well live in Europe myself. I do all my baking measurements in metric, my blueprints at work are metric, I program in metric and I use metric inspection equipment. Even my Ecco boots are metric.
 
HoppyDaze said:
do you actually weigh your ingredients? Or just remember one cup equals so many grams?
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There are so many factors that affect what a "cup" of flour weighs, from the mill to the variety to the hydration level to how hard you packed the measuring cup. Maybe there's a big pocket of air in the corner you can't see. Volume measurements simply aren't accurate enough to get CONSISTENT results. Not that you wont get good results, but you'll always end up chasing that one really good batch you made. Measure by weight and nail it(almost) every time.
HoppyDaze said:
In college, I knew what 3.5 grams of plant material looked like.
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I learned that a nickel weighs 5 grams.
 
Since we're on the topic of measuring by weight. Does anyone have an easy way to convert from volume to weight?
 
Weight = volume*density*gravity

specific to flour, though? Nope. All depends on the flour, the concentration (air pockets as mentioned above) sifting, etc. Go by weight, its the easiest.

Just since I'm a physicist, grams = mass, not weight :) Please don't deviate from this thread, its just for laughs.
 
What I mean is, if I have a recipe that calls for a specific amount of flour in cups, how would that translate to pounds or ounces? Or would I just need to find a recipe that lists weight instead of volume?
 
MrNic said:
What I mean is, if I have a recipe that calls for a specific amount of flour in cups, how would that translate to pounds or ounces? Or would I just need to find a recipe that lists weight instead of volume?
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Most of the better cooking and baking books have all 3 - volume, english, metric. But conversions are easy, and a simple web search will give you all you need. In fact I'd be amazed if there wasn't a chart you could download and print out.
 
A little Rye and Whole wheat. 30% in both. Over night proof.
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I cut this after about 20min rest. Breakfast. Hard to beat fresh warm bread!
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LabRatBrewer said:
Watching some youtube videos re: shaping bread (I'm trying to make two toredo "pain au levain" loafs), I see that my definition of "lightly floured" surface is wasting tons of flour.
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I went through that as well. The other thing I did a couple times was fold a massive pocket of flour into my loaf, which was not a good thing to have.
 
After seeing all the wonderful breads everybody is making and knowing I have a lot to learn on my bread making, I ordered a couple books, Chad Robertson's Tartine Bread and Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day.
These two seem to be the most popular references people are using so why not learn from the best.
I have watched a few YouTube videos from both and I am in awe on the high hydration bread making process. I can't wait for the books to come in and start making this type of bread.



Dan6310
 
For those that use the Tartine method, how long did it take for your "starter" to be ready for the first batch? I've kept a French sourdough starter for several years now and I've abused it more than I'd like to admit. What is the long-term feeding regimen like for the Tartine starter?
 
This pretty much sums up what you really need from the tartine book... and its on one page rather than 48 pages. You're looking at 2-3 weeks, unless you can find someone with a starter to mail to you. I'm happy to share mine (which is actually from Tartine) if people cover shipping/handling costs.

http://www.marthastewart.com/907240/chad-robertsons-tartine-country-bread
 
Salpino said:
For those that use the Tartine method, how long did it take for your "starter" to be ready for the first batch? I've kept a French sourdough starter for several years now and I've abused it more than I'd like to admit. What is the long-term feeding regimen like for the Tartine starter?
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I've been guilty of severe starter abuse in the 6 months or so that I've been in stewardship of the starter that ChefRex sent me. Once I let it sit on top of my fridge for two weeks without and feeding. When I finally opened it it was so acidic it made my eyes and nose burn, and it had developed a thick orange skin. I dumped all but a tablespoon off the bottom, added it to some fresh flour and water, and brought it back full circle. I'm not sure what this kind of mistreatment does to the yeast/bacteria balance, but lately it's been awesome to work with.
 
bottlebomber said:
I've been guilty of severe starter abuse in the 6 months or so that I've been in stewardship of the starter that ChefRex sent me. Once I let it sit on top of my fridge for two weeks without and feeding. When I finally opened it it was so acidic it made my eyes and nose burn, and it had developed a thick orange skin. I dumped all but a tablespoon off the bottom, added it to some fresh flour and water, and brought it back full circle. I'm not sure what this kind of mistreatment does to the yeast/bacteria balance, but lately it's been awesome to work with.
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Oh my poor babys!
Kidding,it's very resiliant, I don't do a lot of baking in the heat of summer and it sometimes goes months in the back of the fridge unloved, a couple of feedings and it's good to go. I've been using the same culture for well over ten years and haven't killed it yet.
 
I thought this was cool. If you send Friends of Carl a SASE the will send you a dried starter from the 1847 Oregon Trail. Here: http://carlsfriends.net/source.html Carl who died in 2000, at 80, would give the starter to anyone who sent a SASE, now a group of volunteers keeps it going. The starter is over 150 years old. Maybe its already common knowledge, but I thought it was interesting.
 
LabRatBrewer said:
I thought this was cool. If you send Friends of Carl a SASE the will send you a dried starter from the 1847 Oregon Trail. Here: http://carlsfriends.net/source.html Carl who died in 2000, at 80, would give the starter to anyone who sent a SASE, now a group of volunteers keeps it going. The starter is over 150 years old. Maybe its already common knowledge, but I thought it was interesting.
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Not to me it isn't... that's really cool! I may have to give that a try. I'd like to do some side by sides with another great starter.
 
ChefRex said:
You would have the same strain, that was where I got mine many years ago.
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Its interesting that they send it out in dry flakes. They also tell you how to dry it out. Seems like an interesting way to store some in case I kill the "chef" or starter (still working on terminology). I have brewing yeast in a frozen yeast bank, rinsed yeast ready for quick reuse, yeast having a party on my spin plate, dry in commercial packets (US05) in case of emergency. Now I am concerned about the life and happiness of bread yeast. Yeast have cleverly used our symbiotic relationship to make me become a yeast caretaker. :mug:
 
Thanks guys!
I was a little worried about trying the 80% hydration French baguette recipe (from The Weekend Bakery) as a beginner but went for it.




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