Tag Archives: seeded bread

FIVE GRAIN SOURDOUGH BREAD

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Before I even start talking about last weekend’s bread, I urge you to visit Joanna’s blog to see her wonderful article about one of my favorite bread baking books, Bread.  Her post is a  must-read for anyone who might feel intimidated by  Hamelman’s masterpiece.  Great job, Joanna!

After the cracked wheat sandwich bread, our cravings for bread with grains incorporated in the dough only intensified.  As usual, on Thursday evenings I start considering the possibilities for baking in the weekend, so I grabbed Hamelman’s book, and opened it at random.  To my delight, the recipe on that particular page read: Five Grain Levain.  Seemed too fitting to ignore.  Plus, for a sourdough bread, the recipe could not be much simpler, the secret behind its simplicity lying in the use of commercial yeast to speed up fermentation.   All I had to do the day before was soak the grains, and give a final feeding to my starter.

FIVE GRAIN LEVAIN
(adapted from Hamelman’s Bread)

for the liquid levain
4 oz bread flour
5 oz water
2 Tbs mature sourdough starter

for the grains mixture
1.5 oz cracked rye
1.5 oz flaxseeds
1.2 oz sunflower seeds
1.2 oz oats
6.5 oz boiling water
1/2 tsp salt

for the final dough
8 oz bread flour
4 oz whole-wheat flour
4.2 oz water
1/2 Tbs salt
1/2 tsp instant yeast
all soaker prepared
all liquid starter prepared

Prepare the liquid levain 12 to 16 hours before you plan to start the dough.  Let it stand at room temperature, preferably around 70 F.  When you make the levain, prepare the grains too, by pouring boiling water over the grains and the salt in a small bowl.  Leave at room temperature.

Make the dough by adding all the ingredients into the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer, knead on first speed for 3 minutes, then increase the speed to the second level and mix for 5 minutes.  Place the dough in a slightly oiled bowl, cover, and let it ferment for 1.5 hs, folding the dough on itself three times after 45 minutes to increase elasticity.

Shape the dough as a boule or batard, place in a banetton or appropriate container of your choice, and let it rise for 1 hour.

Bake at 460 F for 40 to 45 minutes, generating steam in the beginning, by either covering the dough with an inverted roasting pan, or adding ice cubes to an empty pan at the bottom of your oven.   Allow it to cool completely before slicing.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments:   This loaf of bread lasted 5 days, and held up pretty well up to its end.  Usually, after the second day we opt for toasting, but this particular loaf was good enough with a very brief warming in our electric oven.  We kept it at room temperature over the cutting board with the cut side down, and sliced only what we were going to consume right away.  It goes well with pretty much anything, from ham to turkey, jam to peanut butter, or butter with paper thin slices of radishes and a little sea salt… delicious!

I am submitting this post to Susan’s Yeastspotting event…

ONE YEAR AGO: The Nano-Kitchen

TWO YEARS AGO:  Kaiser Rolls

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PAIN DE MIE AU LEVAIN

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Just for a change, here’s a bread that’s not part of the BBA Challenge…  😉

Who doesn’t love a good bread? But, while some people prefer a hearty crust, uneven holes and an assertive taste, others like a tight, smooth crumb enveloped in a soft crust.  This  “pain de mie” joins the best of both worlds: it’s leavened with sourdough starter, but it’s moderate hydration produces a surprisingly closed crumb, especially if you bake it contained in a loaf pan. It’s a perfect sandwich bread, with more “pizzazz” than anything you’ll find at the grocery store.

I discovered this recipe in a wonderful French blog called Makanai: Bio, Bon, Simple. When a French woman (who has superb boulangeries on every corner) bakes bread at home, then I pay attention: she must be an outstanding baker! You can read Flo’s detailed description here.

PAIN DE MIE AU LEVAIN
(adapted from Makanai’s blog)

210 g  sourdough starter (mine was at 80% hydration)
420 g water
500 g bread flour
130 g rye flour
11.5 g fine sea salt (13 g if using unsalted seeds)
30-35 g seeds of your choice
(I used flax seeds and roasted, salted sunflower seeds)

Mix the flours, water, and sourdough starter until they form a shaggy mass.  Let it stand at room temperature, covered, for 30-45 minutes (autolyse).  Add the salt and mix it with either using a Kitchen Aid-type mixer for a few minutes, or by hand.  Add the seeds and knead with the machine for about 7 minutes at low speed.  Alternatively, mix gently by hand to incorporate the seeds and knead the dough by folding 4 times during the first hour, at 15 minute intervals.  Let the dough rise undisturbed for another full hour, in a warm place, covered.

Refrigerate the dough for 12 to 24 hours (very important step!), misting the surface lightly with olive oil, and covering with a plastic wrap.

The next morning remove the dough from the fridge, remove the plastic and cover it with a towel, to rest at room temperature for 2 hours before shaping.  Meanwhile, prepare a loaf pan by lightly coating it with olive oil and sprinkling flour, especially in the corners. You can make a single large loaf or divide it half depending on the size of your pan.  Mine was a 9×5 loaf pan, so I divided the dough in uneven pieces, placed the larger one in the loaf pan, and shaped the smaller one as a “batard“.   Ideally, the dough should fill 2/3 of the height of your pan.

Allow the shaped bread to rise 2 hours at room temperature, slash it with a blade, sprinkle some flour on top and bake it in a 435F oven for about 45 minutes, with an initial burst of steam.  Check the internal temperature: the bread will be done when it reaches at least 200F.

If you are patient enough, let the bread cool for a couple of hours before slicing it. Good luck with that… 😉

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This was a fun bread recipe. If you’re a novice baker, then incorporating the seeds and folding by hand might be a little intimidating, so use a mixer instead. If you are experienced with minimal kneading and folding, then by all means use the technique here.

For the sandwich bread, I slashed the dough slightly off-center, as Flo did in her blog.

The same dough, baked in the loaf or free form, produced breads with different characteristics. The “batard” browned more, and the crumb was more open, reminiscent of a levain bread with a heartier crust.

My favorite method to create steam is to fill a large roasting pan (like this one) with hot water, and empty it before inverting it on top of the bread.  These affordable roasting pans, sold for cooking outdoors, effectively mimic a “steam oven.” Bake the bread covered in this way for the first 30 minutes, then remove the cover to promote full browning of the crust.  I used this method for both the breads in this post.

The textures and flavors of this bread were outstanding! Its slices stood out in ham and cheese sandwiches, and were hearty with a thin spread of fig jam. I normally don’t even care for bread with jam, but my husband twisted my arm and I’m glad that he did!

I am submitting this post to this week’s Yeastspotting, to join Susan’s fun on Friday….