Another problem I often have is planning out the bake times when I'm making several loaves. Yesterday I ended up with five loaves of bread (three different types) that needed to bake at the same time. I put the focaccia on top at 400 degrees and sort of crammed the honey-wheat loaves onto the bottom rack (sort of around my pizza stone). I don't know why I spend so much time preparing the dough if at the end I'm just going to say "Okay, whatever!" and screw up the actual baking. The focaccia turned out well (see previous post), but the honey-wheat suffered. It baked unevenly and browned too much on the bottom.
As soon as the honey-wheat came out of the oven I raised the temperature to 425 and baked the rosemary bread. It would have been perfect, but I forgot about it and didn't hear the timer. Oops. Fortunately, I didn't forget about it for too long and was able to save it. It's a bit too brown and isn't quite as moist as I would like it to be, but it's still pretty tasty.
Rosemary Bread (note the rosemary leaf pattern on top of the loaf. Cutting that is one of my favorite parts of baking this particular bread. I think it's quite pretty.)
I think it may be time for me to invest in a few egg timers so I can get the rise time right. Also, I am going to have to do a little more planning so I can work out the bake times.
Jasper is impresed with your bread. :) I love this new blog! You are definitely your mother's daughter.
ReplyDelete-Jasmine
Thanks Jasmine. :) Tell Jasper I'll bake some for him the next time we're around one another
ReplyDeleteoh man. i stink at making bread. i use mark bittman's no knead recipe, but i haven't mastered a real one. tips?
ReplyDeleteFirst and foremost, follow the recipe very carefully. Make sure to measure properly and add ingredients at the correct temperature. Also, trust your senses. If the recipe says the dough should be smooth and elastic after 10 minutes of kneading, but it's still lumpy and wet after 10 minutes -- keep kneading!
ReplyDeleteLike anything else, the more you practice the better you will get.