Weekend Projects: Sourdough Bread, Sightseeing, and Meals Recap

Sunday, March 12, 2017

The multigrain bread and muesli morning rounds clone has been delayed again. I was planning on baking at least the multigrain bread but on Friday morning, I took my sourdough starter out to feed. I stuck it back in the fridge on Friday night because I didn't believe I started refreshing the starter early enough to have a healthy starter ready for baking during the weekend. I took it back out on Saturday morning and fed it again because I really wanted to make sourdough bread. 

The Tartine method calls for building a levain 12 hours before starting the dough.  It was Saturday morning and according to the timelines I read about, I should have mixed the levain before going to bed on Friday and since my starter has been in the fridge since Sunday, I really should have taken the starter out of the fridge and fed it twice a day for several days before mixing the levain. 

I watched videos and read articles about sourdough. Maybe it wasn't too late for sourdough using a different method even if it was too late for Tartine. I noticed that my starter is extremely vigorous, bubbling up and doubling in volume in just a few hours. Maybe my starter didn't need 12 hours for the levain. 

The Tartine method says 12 hours and to do a float test. I read several posts on perfectloaf.com. The author makes beautiful bread and has baked many loaves using the Tartine method. His best sourdough recipe post looks like it's based on the Tartine method. His recipe mentions the 12 hour build time but also a 5-6 hour time frame for levain built in the morning and kept in warmer 78-80 degree temperature. 

I decided to forge ahead. I was pretty confident my starter would make a floating levain in a few hours but for extra insurance, I placed the container of levain in the garage where it was warmer. It was one of our first warm days this month but the house was still relatively cool but not cold enough for the heater to kick on.  

I'm glad a decided to go ahead and not wait until next weekend. There were moments when this recipe tested my patience and I thought I screwed up a step by rushing ahead but in the end, the bread turned out a lot better than I expected.  When I went to bed on Saturday night, I was sure I rushed the bulk fermentation and I knew for sure I botched the shaping and rounding. I was really nervous.  

I only have one french oven with a metal knob. I replaced the plastic knob with a metal knob during my no knead bread days. I didn't want to burn the plastic knob so I bought a metal knob at the Le Creuset store in Silverthorne. I think the 5.5 quart round is the most versatile size. It's the one I leave inside the house and gets the most use. The oval is a smaller size. I also have a larger round and a larger oval that I seldomly use. I almost used a bare cast iron rectangular dutch oven that came with my Camp Chef but at 13", it was too large to fit next to the French oven.

After 20 minutes at 500 degrees, I took off the lid and baked about 25 minutes longer at 450 degrees.

I put the dough on a pizza peel and did my slashing but when I slid it off the peel, it landed off-centered and on its side in the pot. Instead of ruining it more by trying to re-center it, I let it be. I just added more slashed on the top.

I checked for doneness by tapping the bottom of the loaves for the hollow sound. They were done so I stopped the baking at 25 minutes. I actually prefer a lighter color crust. I would have baked longer and compromised with a darker crust if they were not done. With these high hydration breads baked in enclosed pots, the texture and crumb ends up really wet and gummy if underdone or cut before completely cooling.

The crumb could be better but considering the fact that I screwed up a few of the steps, the crumb ain't half bad.

Here's my starter late on Sunday evening. It was last fed on Saturday morning, allowed to get all bubbly on the counter before it went in the fridge. This starter is even better than my 2 previous starters from a few years ago.  I started one on Friday, February 24 by attempting to grind up some whole wheat berries. The berries were too hard for the food processor so I used all purpose flour, a few spoonfuls of wheat berries/wheat berry dust, and filtered water. When I went to feed it again, late on Sunday, it was already bubbly and started smelling like starter.  It look less than two days.  We've been baking a lot of bread lately. In the old house, it took almost an entire week. On Sunday morning, before my discovery, I thought I might have better luck with a starter made with the water from soaking raisins. I made a second starter with the raisin water, all purpose flour, and more of the wheat berries. Both starters were equally active and ended up looking very similar so almost two weeks after starting both, I combined the two starters on Friday morning, kept about two spoonfuls in the jar, and dumped everything into the compost pail.

Sourdough Bread 

Adapted from Recipes and Techniques Adapted from Tartine Bread by Chad Robertson

INGREDIENTS

For the Levain:

1 tablespoon active sourdough starter

75 grams all purpose flour (approximately 1/2 cup )

75 grams bottled water (approximately 1/3 cup)

For the Dough:

800 grams King Arthur bread flour

75 grams Wheat Montana whole wheat flour

725-750 grams water - heated to 90 degrees

18 grams salt (I used flaked Kosher salt from Penzey's only because it was the first container I grabbed)

150 grams levain (I was aiming for 150 grams but I had just a tad more.)

I've made sourdough starter before and already had one going so I proceeded to the steps for building a levain using an active starter. Refer to the recipe for Tartine's Country Bread found on the NYT website for instructions for a sourdough starter using Chad Robertson's method. 

The amounts for the levain makes just over 150 grams of starter. The Tartine recipe makes just over 400 grams of levain.  Some people build their levain, measure out what they need, and put away the remaining as their starter. The only problem with this method is forgetting and using the entire amount for the dough. I like to treat my starter as I treat my container of instant yeast.  

I basically followed the method for Tartine Bread except for a few changes based on comments from The Fresh Loaf discussion boards, a post on the Kitchn, various YouTube videos, and the many sourdough posts on the Perfect Loaf. 

A few of the changes:

- Shortened levain build time due to increased temperature versus cooler overnight temps.

- Reversed the autolyse step and increased the time by starting the autolyse by mixing the flours with 700 grams water before the levain was ready. The levain was almost ready but not quite and it looked like it had about an hour left to go.

- The flours and water was autolysed for 1 hour before the levain was mixed it. The mixture was then allowed to sit another 30 minutes before salt and 25 grams of reserved water was mixed in. At this point I still had approximately 25 grams of water left. The dough looked really wet so I didn't add the rest of the water.

- I followed the bulk fermentation schedule outlined by Perfect loaf - a total of 6 sets of folds with 3 spaced 15 minutes apart and another 3 spaced 30 minutes apart. 

- The dough was then divided, bench rested for 30 minutes for shaped, placed in baskets that were lined with clean towels and sprinkled generously with rice flour.  I didn't mix rice flour with wheat flour and used straight rice flour. More rice flour was sprinkled on the top of the dough, covered with plastic wrap, left on the counter for another half hour or so and then they went into the refrigerator for 15 hours

- It took a good 1.5 hours before the dough came to room temperature and it didn't appear to have adequately proofed even though I allowed them to proof in the warm garage. I let it proof a little longer (about 3.5 hours) before I baked them at 500 degrees inside dutch oven for 20 minutes and another 25 minutes at 450 degrees with the lids removed.

I think I'll test other variations and maybe one day I'll make the recipe as written. Overall, this is a great recipe/method for making this style of high hydration dutch oven sourdough.

The sourdough took a lot of time and required a lot of attention but I didn't spend the entire weekend on it. I did manage to take a road trip out to Anza Borrego Desert to see the Super Bloom I've been hearing so much about. We couldn't find the Super Bloom and apparently we were not the only ones. We had several people come up to us, asking if we knew where the flowers were at. Everyone was looking for the magnificent display of flowers. 

If you look closely, you can see a few yellow and purple flowers. We even climbed up to the top of  scenic overlook and scanned the landscape and still couldn't find the flowers.

There were flowers but I was expecting to see a carpet of flowers on the desert floor like I've seen in pictures.

This one is kind of pretty.

A lone flower on the desert floor.

This is kind of pretty.

I'm like, "What the hell? Where are the flowers? It's hot out here and I didn't grab a hair tie from my purse!"

And here are a few more lunches and snacks I prepped for work.

The piece of toast was breakfast.  Eggs are usually for mid-morning.  I prepped this for two days because I spent Sunday night peeling and removing the pith from the pomelo.

I was a little out of it on Wednesday morning. I really needed probiotics and did not have any kefir or yogurt made. (Because I've been baking bread and making soap.) I threw a few things into a bag and ran to Sprouts to by some Lifeway kefir while I waited for my kefir to refresh.

My kefir didn't take very long to refresh because I did two milk changes a day instead of my usual 1x per day schedule. I made a quick berry kefir smoothie and chugged it before I left the house. I wanted hummus so I made some when I got home one night. I'll have to post a recipe. This time, I pureed the chickpeas immediately after cooking and did not remove the skins.

I packed my usual snacking lunch but I ended up with a California Roll from Costco. They were giving out samples and I think it was the crispy onions that got me. I only ate half.

A few dinners we had this week:

Wahoo fish with a simple soy, garlic, and ginger marinade. I tried a different recipe but forgot to add the sesame oil.

Instant Pot Turkey chilli made with tomatoes and peppers we grew in the garden last season and froze. 

Fluffy Milk Cinnamon Raisin Rolls and Coconut Custard Bread Using Tangzhong Water Roux

This wasn't the bread I was planning on baking when I got up on Sunday morning. I spent the entire week formulating a recipe to replicate the Muesli Morning Rounds from Ozery Bakery.  You know that small piece of yummy flat bread Starbucks includes in their Protein Bistro Boxes? I picked up a bag of it from Sprouts and as I bit into one, I thought "this can't be too difficult to make." I read the ingredients and I started jotting down a recipe. 

I knew it was too late on Sunday evening to start baking bread. The forecast called for rain again over the weekend. I spent the week researching substitutes for a few ingredients I knew I would not be able to get. The ingredients were mainly natural dough enhancers and preservatives.  I wanted the fluffy texture of the Ozery bread but I couldn't find cultured wheat starch anywhere.  During my search I ran across a recipe for fluffy Asian bread using water roux called tangzhong.

I remember using the tangzhong water roux method  a few times but it's been a few years.  I dug up an old recipe for Hokkaido milk bread.  You can basically use tangzhong in almost any bread recipe by calculating a percentage of flour and water for the water roux. I started off baking hamburger buns on Saturday because we needed buns for our turkey burgers. It turned out really well, except I was impatient and didn't let the first batch rise enough before baking.  I was hoping for more oven spring.

I bookmarked three bread recipes.  Two were healthy and the third was decadent. On Sunday morning, I woke up undecided.  I asked hubby which of the three I should bake. Cook's Illustrated multigrain bread using 7 grain cereal, my untested Ozery muesli morning rounds recipe, or a cinnamon raisin milk bread using the split braid/twist method that Chris Kimball used for his cinnamon raisin bread. I guess cinnamon raisin sounds a lot better than multigrain and muesli.

I had healthy intentions all week. I even did the whole meal prep thing all week.  I have about 5 pounds that I want to lose and bread is one of my greatest weaknesses.  I did manage to give half of it to my dad and this morning I ate two hard boiled eggs and gave the bread I packed to one of my coworkers.

I forgot how much I love soft and fluffy Asian bread.  Make this milk bread.  Make it plain without any filling and without any complicated rolling or braiding.  It is amazing eaten warm out of the oven or toasted over the next few days. Or be a little adventurous and fill it with taro, azuki beans, coconut, ube, cinnamon raisins, or just raisins. Wrap pieces of the dough around a hot dog.

In my house, the cinnamon raisin has better label appeal.  The grandparents prefer it filled with taro paste. My favorite is coconut. The coconut filling is yummy.  The recipe below makes a smaller amount of coconut filling that adds a subtle coconut flavor. It can easily be doubled or tripled. It is basically equal amounts by weight of egg, coconut, sugar, and butter with a touch of salt and powdered milk.

The cinnamon raisin filling is from Cook's Illustrated. I'm not sure I like the powdered sugar.  I much prefer my cinnabon filling but I think the powdered sugar works best for this split twist method.

This recipe is measured in volume rather than weight.  I find that it's not as crucial to have exact measurements. Even when weighing flour, the amount of liquid needed varies a tad. I usually make dough by the feel of the dough, starting with a slightly more wet dough and adding a little flour to get the right texture.

Milk Bread with Coconut Custard or Cinnamon Raising Filling

Tangzhong Water Roux:
1/3 cup bread flour
1 cup water (or replace with milk for richer bread)

Milk Bread Dough:
1/2 cup milk
half of tangzhong made from above
1 large egg, whisked
1 tablespoon milk powder
2 1/2 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons instant yeast
3 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

Coconut Filling:
1 ounce egg (use half an egg and reserve the other half for egg wash)
1 ounce flaked coconut (either sweetened or unsweetened; adjust sugar if using unsweetened)
1 ounce sugar
1 ounce butter
pinch salt
1 teaspoon powdered milk
few drops of half & half or milk to make filling slightly moist

Cinnamon Raisin Filling:
3/4 cup raisins, soaked in water and drained
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons Saigon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt

Egg Wash:
Whisk reserved egg with half & half or milk.

Directions for Tangzhong:

Mix flour with liquid. Cook mixture over medium heat while stirring until mixture thickens.  Do not overcook tangzhong.  The tangzhong should come to a trace but still be slightly fluid.  Allow tangzhong to cool to room temperature before using. Only half of the tangzhong mixture is used for one recipe of milk bread but is difficult to properly cook smaller amounts. Make a double recipe of bread, using different fillings, or store tangzhong in refrigerator for up to three days.

Directions for Dough Using Bread Machine:

1. Add all milk bread dough ingredients except butter to bread machine. Select dough cycle on bread machine.  Once machine forms smooth dough, add in butter and allow machine to finish dough cycle. If dough looks too dry as it is kneading, add a little more liquid. If it is too wet, add a little more flour. Resist the urge to add too much flour.  The dough should be slightly wet and will continue to absorb more water.

2. Once dough cycle is complete, transfer dough to lightly floured surface and deflate dough.

To make one braided coconut custard loaf:
3. If making one braided loaf, shape dough into a rounded ball. Cover with moist flour sack towel and allow to rest for 15 to 20 minutes. Once dough has rested, roll dough into a 7x18 inch rectangle. Spread with filling, leaving a 1/4 inch border.  Starting from longer length of dough, roll dough like a cinnamon roll, seal seams by pinching close. Dough will shrink slightly in length after rolling.  Massage and stretch dough to 14 inches in length.  Cut the roll of dough in half lengthwise, turn halves with exposed filling facing up. Braid (twist) the two halves and place in 9 inch glass or light colored  aluminum loaf pan lined with parchments paper.Cover with moist flour sack towel and proof until doubled in size in a warm, draft-free spot. Brush with egg wash. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for approximately 15 minutes and then tent the top of loaf with aluminum foil and continue to bake another 25-30 minutes. Remove from pan immediately and cool on wire rack.  Allow loaf to cool before slicing.

To make braided cinnamon raisin buns:
3.  If making braided buns, divide dough into 8 equal pieces.  This can be done by first weighing the dough and dividing the weight by 8 and shaping into balls. Cover with moist flour sack towel and allow to rest for 15 to 20 minutes. Once dough has rested, roll out each portion into a 4x8 inch rectangle. Sprinkle dough with raisins and gently press raisins into dough using rolling pin or back of spoon. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar mixture over raisins. Roll each piece of dough, sealing seams by pinch. Cut each piece almost in half lengthwise, leaving about an inch of the dough attached. Twist the cut pieces together, keeping exposed filling side facing up. Create a round bun by bringing the two ends together, gently pressing and tucking ends under.  Place each bun on a baking sheet lined with silpat or parchment. Cover buns with moist flour sack towel and proof buns until doubled in size in a warm, draft-free spot. Brush with egg wash. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for approximately 20-30 minutes. Cool on wire rack.

Tangzhong Water Roux Starter 

Ingredients 

I can't figure out how to rotate pictures. I'm not going to worry about it right now.

Dough cycle is complete and ready to be shaped.

I made a double batch to use up all of the tangzhong. Divide dough in half.

I then divided the dough into 8 equal pieces by weight.

Cover with moist flour sack towel.

Roll out dough into rectangle.

Spread coconut mixture.

Roll dough and seal seams by pinching.

Cut in half.

Turn the halves with exposed filling facing up.

Twist two halve together.

Arrange the twist in parchment lined baking pan.

Cover and proof in warm spot until doubled in size.

Bake until done.

I baked in a glass loaf pan since the dough is very rich and I didn't want it to brown too much.

Roll dough into smaller rectangles for Cinnamon Raisin Twisted Buns.

I used a half regular and half golden raisins.

Sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture.

Roll

Split but leave about an inch attached.

Twist together and tuck ends underneath.

I baked 5 out of the 8 rolls separately.

3 of the buns were place in a parchment lined mini loaf pan.

Once doubled in size, brush with egg wash and bake.

They're not perfect.

The color is beautiful once baked.

Still can't figure out how to rotate these photos.

The mini cinnamon raisin loaf sliced up.

I tried using a bread slicing guide to help cut even slices.  It took too long so I tossed it aside.

I really tried doing the meal prepping thing but I have a problem with eating old food. I've come a long way with leftovers.  I can now eat leftovers the next day but I still cannot bring myself to cook on Sundays and prep meals for the entire week.

I cooked two small chicken breast in the toaster oven. It's enough for two meals. 

I cubed the chicken breast, tossed with melted coconut oil, and seasoned with a bbq rub I premixed in a container. It has both smoked Spanish and sweet Hungarian paprika.

I packed each container with steamed asparagus and a tricolor quinoa, kale, and butternut squash salad. I ate it cold because I don't like the smell of reheated chicken.

Most days, I boil two eggs in the morning and grab items from the fridge. I sometimes make yogurt on Sundays and divvy it up into glass containers. I add a spoonful of homemade jam, frozen fruit, or honey. If I'm feeling it, I'll top it with some Kashi Go Lean Crunch instead of granola. 

No fruit but I keep a container of dried plums in my drawer at work.

I prepped these in advance. Jalapeno havarti cheese, hardboiled eggs (I don't usually boil eggs the night before because I prefer them warm and freshly boiled), sliced pears, grapes, and Ozery Muesli Morning Rounds.

The dill havarti from Trader Joe's is delicious. I really like dill havarti and since they are hard to find, I pick up a package whenever I find them. There's currently 3 packages in the fridge. 

On this day it's butterfly shaped butter cracker. The day before were heart shaped lavosh crackers. The caramel dip was a bad idea.  It was too much sugar and I felt the crash before the end of the day.

I didn't eat all this. I burnt my crumpet in the morning and was out of Morning Rounds so I left early and stopped at the store. I bought a new package of morning rounds, some Madhava raw unfiltered honey, and a box of Justin's  honey peanut butter.  Sprouts does not sell it by the box so the cashier had to open the box and ring up each package. I remembered I had medjool dates in the cupboard and packed a few before leaving the house.

I wanted pasta for dinner one night. I couldn't sub all the spaghetti noodles with zucchini. I cooked up some bronze cut spaghetti al dente and then boiled the zucchini "noodles" for about a minute. We make out pasta with turkey because I don't like the taste of beef.

It's okay to have pasta twice in one week because I used half zucchini noodles. I made a quick alfredo sauce with heavy cream and butter. I baked the no knead bread dough too soon. I should have waited the full three days before baking because it was a little bland. I still have more dough in the fridge so I'll bake the rest tomorrow.

Donut Day at work. I met the donut guy outside my office. He delivers about 25 boxes of donuts to us every month. I only ate 2.

I opened up a box and this was stamp on the inside of the box.