Looks great, how did you do the ripples?
The bakers' thread
- Thread starter glasgowcyclist
- Start date
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Aaaah, you shouldn't have told me, now I need more tools!
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Nice
Higher hydration and a very gentle degassing, I presume? Always satisfying to get a nice open crumb, but if I'm to be honest, I prefer a tighter crumb as it's mighty difficult to stop your marmalade falling through the holes otherwise.
Nice
Always satisfying to get a nice open crumb, but if I'm to be honest, I prefer a tighter crumb as it's mighty difficult to stop your marmalade falling through the holes otherwise.
Yes, and I found using a higher than normal temperature at the beginning helped.
Actually, I want to thank you, I believe you mentioned baking cloches upthread, I got myself one and have been very pleased with the results, alot more predictable ....
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Cloches make the world of difference, don't they?
IIRC @glasgowcyclist uses a dutch oven or something of that ilk.Here's what I use - worth every penny.
Am thinking in investing in a pullman pan as I want square slices that will fit into the toaster.
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Right, am having a crack at tiger bread. Dough has almost finished its bulk ferment, and it's about to be degassed, shaped and left to prove - it's just my bog standard "everyday-bread-in-a-bit-of-a-hurry-with-some-rolled-oats-chucked-in-because-I-got-the-hydration-wrong" kind of loaf.
Will make the paste while its proving. BTW, ground rice / rice flour is a PITA to find. Only place I could get it was Holland & Barrett, and they charge through the nose. If this works, will look for a cheaper source.
Update to follow later in the evening xxx
Will make the paste while its proving. BTW, ground rice / rice flour is a PITA to find. Only place I could get it was Holland & Barrett, and they charge through the nose. If this works, will look for a cheaper source.
Update to follow later in the evening xxx
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Well, we have a loaf of tiger bread 
It looks right at any rate, and smells pretty good.
Not as much oven spring as I was expecting. Not sure whether that's down to my making a mess of the hydration (the dough was softer and slacker than I normally have it), the thickness of the paste or the fact that you don't score the bread.
Paste is easy to make and easy to apply (I used a pastry brush), but I do need to reduce the quantity. I slapped it on fairly thickly not to waste it as I made too much - the recipe I found (Allinsons website) was for a single loaf and I'd already made less as it *looked* like too much. I also think I need to cut some of the sugar in the mix to stop the loaf from getting too dark.
Looking at the raft of different recipes for the paste, it looks like there's definitely room for tweakage.
Will see what the bread's like tomorrow.
It looks right at any rate, and smells pretty good.Not as much oven spring as I was expecting. Not sure whether that's down to my making a mess of the hydration (the dough was softer and slacker than I normally have it), the thickness of the paste or the fact that you don't score the bread.
Paste is easy to make and easy to apply (I used a pastry brush), but I do need to reduce the quantity. I slapped it on fairly thickly not to waste it as I made too much - the recipe I found (Allinsons website) was for a single loaf and I'd already made less as it *looked* like too much. I also think I need to cut some of the sugar in the mix to stop the loaf from getting too dark.
Looking at the raft of different recipes for the paste, it looks like there's definitely room for tweakage.
Will see what the bread's like tomorrow.
OP
OP
glasgowcyclist
Charming but somewhat feckless
- Location
- Scotland
Yes, I use an enamelled cast-iron pot with lid as my dutch oven. From time to time you can get them at Lidl for about £15 - £20 depending on the size. I'll need to check its size when I get home but this is the pot I use for all my big loaves (the distortion of the photo makes it look tall and narrow when it's not; it's a standard big, broad, casserole pot):
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Oh, I'll have to keep an eye out for one of those in Lidl then. For large loaves I use a steel stock pot upended over my terracotta baking stone. It works, but it's not ideal.
BTW, the tiger bread ended up tasting like a basic sourdough, which wasn't what I was looking for. Will have another crack at it with a proper white loaf.
OP
OP
glasgowcyclist
Charming but somewhat feckless
- Location
- Scotland
Having checked the Lidl pot, there's no capacity marked on it so I measured it and it's a little over 3.5 litres. We've had it about 5 years and when I took it out of the oven tonight to put my sourdough in, the handle for the lid snapped off in my hand. Oh well, it had shown signs of blistering lately; maybe it's not meant to be used at 250°C.
My oval casserole pot that I use for longer loaves is marked as 3.2 litres. Handle on that is fine but it was a lot more expensive and is Le Creuset.
I've got two loaves in right now, pictures to follow in the morning (if I haven't eaten them by then).
Tonight
My oval casserole pot that I use for longer loaves is marked as 3.2 litres. Handle on that is fine but it was a lot more expensive and is Le Creuset.
I've got two loaves in right now, pictures to follow in the morning (if I haven't eaten them by then).
Tonight
Reynard
Guru
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
Drat. What a shame.
Mind, my oven only goes up to 220C. So may still be worth a punt from my perspective...
OP
OP
glasgowcyclist
Charming but somewhat feckless
- Location
- Scotland
Drat. What a shame.
Mind, my oven only goes up to 220C. So may still be worth a punt from my perspective...
I'll find a replacement handle that can, er, handle the temperature.
It's a standard screw fitting.
It is half term so the monkeys and I made apple pie and custard. We cheated for the apple pie and used ready rolled pastry, but the custard was made from scratch, as the monkeys say that the ones from the shop, even the expensive ones, taste too much like the one at school.
As I had a lot of egg whites left I thought I would have a go at a pavlova. This was the meringue, I think the oven was still too hot, so it browned a bit
This is the final result
And this was it after 20 minutes, I call it success
As I had a lot of egg whites left I thought I would have a go at a pavlova. This was the meringue, I think the oven was still too hot, so it browned a bit
This is the final result
And this was it after 20 minutes, I call it success
