It feels good to be over the hump of the first loaf. Having done a little tasting, I'm very pleased with myself, but not sure where to go next. I see 4 logical next steps...
- try the no knead bread again
- make the first loaf again with bread flour instead of all purpose to see how it changes
- make another easyish white loaf that's more french/italian in style
- make another sandwich loaf that uses wheat flour too
So I'm asking my friends who bake bread (probably the only people who will read this blog), what do you think will help me learn baking technique best? What sounds like the obvious next loaf to you? Comments and suggestions please!
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Hi Karen,
ReplyDeleteJust catching up with the bread baking blog now---love it! I haven't baked yeast breads a lot and I'm not into the kneading so much. My Kitchen Aid mixer does a great job at that. But here's my two cents...baking is more scientific than cooking. It is important to be more precise, so your measuring technique (how you fill the cups with flour, for example) is important. Temp is important (get that instant read thermometer, girl). Protein content in your flour is important. As for resources, I love Cook's Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen...worth the subscription price! They have a very scientific approach. A co-worker recommends a new cookbook called Bakewise. My "Baking with Julia" book has a pumpernickel recipe--you can borrow it and/or browse the rest of my cookbook library if you like. Good luck!
Aimee
I'll have to check out the Cook Illustrated angle. Good idea. Their process is always very clearly spelled out.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'll check out the Bakewise book too.