Cooking Cheap

I tried the over night retard method for the bread. As always, I learned something. Too soon to say about the taste being better or worse or the same. It’s the technique and starter (#3) and me that I’m testing.

1) – I knew better but I followed the directions and use a kitchen towel to cover the betard (the classic French Bread shape) for its final rise. Predictably the surface of the dough dried out. Bad. The boule was an hour behind in rise time and hadn’t gotten dried out yet.soI replace the cover with oil sprayed plastic wrap.

2) – The oven spring is very impressive. They doubled in the oven. Whether its the rising technique or I got the hydration and kneading correct is hard to say. I’m going to rise the boule a little longer than called for. Just to see what happens.

3) – Silverton is the only cookbook author or website I’ve come across that says to season your tile (baking stone) at 200F overnight to keep it from breaking. So far, it’s working since I’ve never had a tile last when it was pre-heated to 500F. You can also bake on a cracked tile too. It’s really just there for the mass.

I forgot to glaze the boule but it seems to look pretty good. I’ll bake it a little longer. Silverton bakes two loaves at 450 for 40+ minutes. I’m baking a half loaf for 25 minutes or so.

4) – My starter does have the oomph to use with either technique (the sponge or the retard) This is good to know.

5) – The boule is obviously superior in outside appearance. I could have let it rise longer on the final proof. Another experiment for another day. How long would it take to collapse. Another experiment.

—
It’s very good bread. Just enough tunneling, just enough crust, just enough chew. Strangely, the sour was not any more pronounced but every thing else was spot on. That would be like “really OK”.