Rustic Pain de Pecan for BBD#69

The theme for Bread Baking Day #69 is Regionale Brote / Local breads. The host of this month’s challenge, Thomas from Der Gourmet, invited us to bake modern breads with adventurous names, or old classics, or perhaps breads that have been forgotten.

He reminded us that each region has its own charm and this brings with it great breads. He mentioned breads like Paderborner, Basel bread, Munich house bread, and SF Sourdough as examples. 

None of those breads are from my region. In the Southern region of the U.S., we are known for biscuits and cornbread, both charming in their own rite, but not too adventurous, or yeasted for that matter. It was time to get creative.

As I was pondering what bread to make for this challenge, I remembered that Pain de Pecan was the BOM (Bread of the Month) for the Artisan Bread Bread Bakers FB Group. Well now, if there is anything more local to Georgia than pecans, I don’t know what it is, except maybe peaches.

I grew up in metro Atlanta, but both of my parents are from South Georgia. My grandparents on my dad’s side had huge pecan trees growing in their yard. When we visited them, we would gather the nuts that were scattered around the yard and bring home big brown grocery bags full of pecans. They were whole pecans so we had to shell them, but that was part of the fun. We didn’t know how good we had it back then getting loads of pecans so cheaply.

Rustic Pain de Pecan with Homemade Spicy Peach Butter

 

I wanted this loaf to be a truly local/regional bread so in addition to the pecans, I used Bolted Red Fife Bread Flour milled at Anson Mills in South Carolina, and Hard Red Spring Wheat milled in my kitchen. I think flour milled in your own kitchen is about as local as you can get unless of course, I grew the wheat myself.

 

Rustic Pain de Pecan

Makes: One Loaf

Adapted from: David of Hearthbakedtunes 75% hydration loaf

Sourdough Build:

• 120g Water *
• 114g Home-milled whole wheat flour (from Hard Red Spring Wheat)
• 22g Levain (sourdough) **

Final Dough:

• 277g Water, hold back 25g for mixing with salt after autolyse *
• 228g Red Fife Wheat Bread Flour (hand milled style rustic)
• 114g Home-milled Whole Wheat Flour
• 9g Salt
• 90g Pecans, toasted until fragrant
  

* Home-milled flour absorbs more water so if you make this bread using commercially-milled whole wheat and bread flour, you’ll probably need less water.  The original recipe is 75% hydration, my version is more like 87% hydration.

** I used my apple starter, but you can use any kind of sourdough starter for this bread. Just make sure it’s been fed and ready to go.  Refer to this post on how to activate a starter or feed your starter according to your feeding schedule.

 

Make the Sourdough Build:

Combine the water and levain and mix until combined, add the whole wheat flour and mix again until a single consistency is formed. Cover, and allow to rest in a warm place 8-10 hours.

It can take up to 12 hours for the sourdough build to be ready to use. To test for doneness, take a spoonful of the levain and drop it in a glass of water.  If it floats, it’s ready, if it sinks to the bottom, let it ferment a little longer.

Autolyse:

Combine the flour and water and starter and stir until combined but still somewhat shaggy. Allow to rest for 30-40 minutes.

Add the salt and 25 grams water. Knead it into the dough by hand for about 8-10 minutes. After about 6-7 minutes add the pecans and knead until combined. Place the dough in a clean bowl, cover and let rest for 2.5 hours. Fold the dough in thirty minutes increments (four folds total).

Proof the Loaf

Ease the dough out of the bowl onto a floured working surface. Preshape the dough into a boule, let it rest 30 minutes. Then shape the dough into a tight round loaf and place it seam side up in a lined or unlined floured banneton basket. Allow the loaf to proof for two hours.

 

Score and Bake the Loaf

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. for 40 minutes with the Emile Henry Bread Cloche on the bottom rack.

Take the cloche (lid and bottom) out of the oven and place them both on surfaces where they won’t crack. I use cloth-covered bread boards for this purpose.

Sprinkle the bottom of the cloche heavily with corn meal or corn flour. Gently flip the loaf out of the basket and onto the bottom of the bread cloche. 

Score the loaf using the pattern of your choice. Place the cloche bottom in the oven and cover it with the lid. Immediately reduce the oven temperature to 450 degrees F.

Bake the bread with the lid on for 25 minutes. Remove the lid and finish baking 10-15 or until desired crust is produced.

Let it cool completely on a wire rack.

This bread has been Yeastspotted.

 

 

Thanks to Thomas from Der Gourmet, for choosing Regionale Brote / Local breads as the theme for Bread Baking Day #69.  And many thanks to Zorra for creating this event many years ago.

Happy Baking!

Cathy

 

Sprouted Sorghum Crackers for BBD#67

When I tasted some gluten-free Sprouted Sorghum Crackers at the Asheville Bread Festival, I wasn’t expecting to actually enjoy them.  I was pleasantly surprised. I took a bite and exclaimed “Oh! these are good!” 

The sample test worked. I bought some of the sprouted sorghum flour to make crackers myself. I also bought some other sprouted flours to test.

I’ve had the flour sitting on my counter for the past couple of weeks just waiting for the right opportunity to bake these crackers.

 

As it happens, the challenge for Bread Baking Day (BBD #67), hosted by Kathys Kuechenkampf was to make Brot für Allergiker or Bread for Allergic Persons.

The criteria for the challenge was to: 

Bake a bread with less histamine WITHOUT:
- wheat, durum wheat, buckwheat
- barm or leaven
- any kind of nuts and seeds

Or bake a bread without gluten WITHOUT:
- wheat, spelt, rye, kamut, emmer, einkorn and durum wheat
- oats and barley are okay, but it's better to use teff, millet, corn, rice, quinoa, amaranth or buckwheat

Or both combined.

I thought about making crackers with buckwheat, but I really wanted to try my hand at making the sorghum crackers.  So the buckwheat will have to wait.

Sorghum is gluten-free and since this particular flour was sprouted before it was ground into flour, it has lots of vitamins and nutrients that you won’t find in unsprouted flour.  Plus, sprouting makes it easier to digest.

To Your Health Sprouted Flour Co., the company that makes this sprouted flour, has returned to the traditional practice of sprouting grains in order to render them more nutritious and digestible. They nurture the grains in their facility, allow them to sprout, then dry them at a very low temperature, to maintain precious vitamins, minerals, and enzymes.

Note: This is not a sponsored post.  I bought the flour myself. I just wanted to share my experience with you.

Keep in mind that although these crackers are gluten-free, they do include dairy and leavening in the form of non-aluminum baking powder. They also include organic butter.

The crackers call for buttermilk. I didn’t have any buttermilk and I’ve been on a kefir kick lately so I used kefir milk instead. That’s kefir in the jar in the background of the photo above.  I’ve been feeding and taking care of it like I do my sourdough pets.

 

Sprouted Sorghum Crackers

Adapted from: TYH’s Sprouted Crackers by To Your Health Sprouted Flour Co.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups sprouted Sorghum flour
• 1 1/4 cups organic whole buttermilk or yogurt (I used Kefir)
• 1/4 cup + 1 T organic unsalted butter, melted
• 1/2 tablespoon aluminum-free baking powder
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

Place the flour and milk in a large bowl and mix with a Danish dough whisk or wooden spoon until a stiff dough forms. Add the melted butter, baking powder, and salt. Mix well.

Divide the dough in half and roll out each half to about 1/8 inch thickness on a piece parchment paper sprinkled with flour. My dough was a bit sticky so I found it helped to put water on the rolling pin before I rolled out the dough. This helped keep the dough from sticking to the rolling pin. I tried sprinkling flour over the top of the dough, but the water worked better for me.

Using a pizza wheel, cut the crackers into squares (on the parchment paper).

 

Slide a baking sheet under the crackers on the parchment paper and place the baking sheet in the oven. Set the oven on the lowest possible setting (around 150-200 degrees). The lowest temperature setting on my oven is 170 degrees. If your oven only goes down to 200 degrees, prop the door open slightly and let the crackers dry overnight.

Leave the crackers in the oven until they are completely dried (several hours). Mine were done in about an hour and a half to two hours. They will be crispy and delicious. Trust me.

 

Thanks to Kathys Kuechenkampf for hosting Bread Baking Day (BBD #67): Brot für Allergiker or Bread for Allergic Persons and to Zorra of 1 x umrühren bitte aka kochtopf for creating Bread Baking Day.

 

Happy Baking!

Cathy

 

 

Mini Baguettes and the Train around London

When I visited the UK last year, I toured around London with my son on the train system. It was definitely an experience! Not a bad one just a little hectic at times trying to make sure we were on the right line and knew which stop to take so we didn’t miss our next transfer. 

I decided it was best not to rent a car while I was over there because 1) I had never been to London; 2) I’m directionally challenged at the best of times; and 3) they drive on a different side of the road than we do in America. It was confusing enough just figuring out which way the cars would be coming at you when you wanted to cross the street. You can laugh all you want, but they actually have signs in a lot of areas that tell you which direction traffic is coming from. Good thing too.

We utilized the London transit system and as a result, were able to enjoy a totally different view of London. The train stations were so big, they reminded me of an airport.

In these stations, they had all sorts of shops and places to eat. This made things very convenient. While you were waiting to catch the train, you could shop and have lunch. Or bring your food to enjoy on the train ride. This might seem silly, but I’m used to MARTA, the Atlanta rapid transit system, and you don’t eat on those trains. Well some people do, but that’s another story.

I really liked the sandwiches over there. I love bread, but I’ve never been a big sandwich eater, mainly because I don’t like mayonnaise. I’ve also never been fond of the infamous BLT sandwich nor do I enjoy ketchup, but I like mustard. I also like PB&J sandwiches, egg salad, tuna salad and some ham and turkey sandwiches, but only if they are spread with mustard. Well it just so happens that they eat mustard over there. It’s a different mustard, but mustard just the same. I was okay with that!

While we were waiting on a train one day, we went in a place to eat and found these sandwiches made with mini baguettes (photo above). They had all different kinds, but I enjoyed the one filled with tuna.

I liked the sandwich so much I decided to recreate it when I got home. I finally got around to making some this past weekend.

These mini baguettes are very easy and can be made in about 4 hours, not including the overnight Pâte Fermentée. Since I made these with KAMUT all-purpose white flour, I had to adjust the hydration in the final dough. Instead of 70% hydration, these are about 84% hydration, but keep in mind that KAMUT flour is more absorbent than regular bread flour so if you use regular bread flour, you might want to reduce the hydration to 70-75%.

 

Mini Pâte Fermentée Baguettes with KAMUT

Adapted from: The Fundamental Techniques of Classic Bread Baking by The French Culinary Institute

Yield: 4 Small Baguettes

Ingredient	Amount	Baker’s %
Pâte Fermentée*
All-purpose White KAMUT flour	25 grams	100%
Water	17 grams	68%
Kosher salt	pinch	2%
Instant yeast	pinch	2%
Final Dough:
All-purpose White KAMUT flour	385 grams	100%
Water	325 grams	84%
Kosher salt	7.5 grams	2%
Instant yeast	1 grams	.25%
Pâte Fermentée	42 grams	11%
Total	760.5 grams	197.25%

* The formulas for Pâte Fermentée seem to make way too much for one batch so I reduced the formula by 4.

 

Making the Pâte Fermentée: 

Combine the KAMUT flour, salt, yeast and water in a small bowl. Mix by hand until completely blended and knead a minute on the counter. It will be quite stiff. Place it back in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let it rest in the refrigerator at least 8 hours or overnight.

The next day, remove the Pâte Fermentée from the refrigerator, cut it into several pieces, cover the pieces with plastic wrap, and let them warm up to room temperature before mixing into the dough.

 

Autolyse:

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the KAMUT flour and water using a dough hook. Mix on low speed until the mixture is blended. Turn the mixer off and let the dough autolyse for 15 minutes.

Mix:

Add the salt, yeast and Pâte Fermentée and mix on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes.  Increase the speed and mix for about 5 minutes, or until the dough comes together but is still slightly sticky. 

Bulk Rise:

Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it ferment at room temperature for 1 hour.

After an hour, uncover the dough and fold it.  Cover the dough again with plastic wrap and let it ferment for 1 hour.

 

Prepare the Oven:

An hour before you plan to bake the loaf, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. with a baking stone on the bottom rack and a steam pan or iron skillet on the top rack.

Divide and Bench Rest:

Lightly flour a work surface. Uncover the dough and divide it into four 6.50oz pieces. Shape the pieces into rough logs, cover with plastic wrap and let them bench rest for 15 minutes.

 

Shape and Final Proof:

Uncover the dough again and lightly flour surface again if necessary.  Gently press and shape the dough into a baguette.

Place each baguette seam-side down on a floured baker’s couche and bring up the folds of the couche to hold the shape of the loaves. Cover with plastic wrap and let them proof for 30 minutes.

 

Score and Bake:

Uncover the dough again and score them using a lame or razor. Sprinkle a little flour on top of the loaves before scoring so you don’t drag the lame.

Carefully transfer the loaves to the preheated baking stone. I used my pizza peel and one of the loaves got a little stuck so it ended up with curved shape.

 

Add several ice cubes to the steam pan or iron skillet and immediately close the oven door. Bake, with the steam, for 25 minutes, or until the crust is a deep golden brown in color. The sides should be firm and the bottom should sound hollow when thumped.

Cool:

Remove the loaves to wire rack to cool.

 

I made tuna sandwiches with these loaves.  The photo of the sandwich didn’t turn our very well, but here is a picture of the crumb.

 

I’m submitting these baguettes to Bread Baking Day #66, Ultimate Baguettes hosted by Karin from Food for Angels and Devils. 

 

Happy Baking!

Cathy

Sesame Spelt Crackers for BBD#65

The theme for Bread Baking Day #35 is Crispy Breads. And, you know me, any chance to make crackers or crispy breads and I’m there.

I ran out of month before I got to this challenge so I’m getting my submission in on the last day. Fortunately, these Sesame Crackers are quick and easy. 

Eva from Kochpoetin invited us to bake crisp breads risen by yeast, sourdough or without any rising agent. These crunchy breads could be made of whole meal, a mixture of different kinds of flours or simply made of whole purpose flour. We were also encouraged to add seeds, cheese, nuts, dried fruit, or to just let our imaginations run wild!

My flour of choice for these crackers was spelt. I used a combination of whole grain spelt and white spelt flours. These crackers are risen with yeast and enriched with butter, honey and topped with lot’s of sesame seeds.

These crackers are rolled out really thin and cut into long thin strips, then baked.  After you remove them from the oven, you break them into the size you want for serving with cheese, fruit, hummus or just plain for snacking. 

 

Sesame Spelt Crackers

Adapted from: Sesame Crackers from Bernard Clayton’s New Complete Book of Breads

Makes: 8 Eighteen-inch-long strips (or more if you roll them out thinner/smaller)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole grain spelt flour
• 2 cups all-purpose spelt flour
• 1 tablespoon Kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon instant yeast
• 1 cup hot water
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 4 tablespoon butter, melted and cooled to lukewarm,
• Extra melted butter or olive oil, for brushing
• ~1/2 cup sesame seeds for sprinkling

 

Directions:

Lightly grease a baking sheet or line it with parchment paper.

I made these crackers by hand, but you can use a mixer or the EZ DOH if you prefer.

Add 1 cup each of white and whole grain spelt flour (or regular bread flour/whole wheat flour if desired) and add the yeast and salt.

In another container, mix together the hot water, honey, and melted butter.  Slowly pour the liquid mixture into flour mixture.  Mix thoroughly with a Danish dough whisk or wooden spoon.  Add the remaining white spelt flour, 1/4 cup at a time until a soft dough forms.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead until the dough is smooth. Add sprinkles of flour if the dough is sticky.

Lightly grease or butter a bowl.  Place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.  Let the dough ferment for 1 hour.

 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. before you start the shaping process to give it time to heat up.

Divide the dough into 2-4* pieces.  Work with one piece at a time and cover the remaining pieces with plastic wrap.

Press one ball into a rough rectangle on the parchment paper.  Roll the dough into a thin rectangle the length of the parchment paper (or baking sheet) about 6” to 8” wide. Focus more on getting the dough really thin than on the size of the rectangle. If the dough fights with you – i.e. snaps back as it’s being rolled, just let it relax for a few minutes. This would be a good time for you to take a break as well.

*The first time I tried this, I divided the dough into 2 pieces and rolled out the dough as much as I could on the parchment paper.  The crackers weren’t as thin as I would’ve liked so I divided the 2nd ball into 2 pieces. This allowed me to roll it out thinner. That worked better for me.

Cut the dough into long strips about 1 1/2 – 2-inches wide using a pizza wheel or sharp knife. Prick each cracker with the tines of a fork. Brush with melted butter or olive oil (I tried both, the olive oil was easier). Sprinkle with sesame seeds.  Gently press the seeds into the dough so they’ll stay on a little better.

 

Place the crackers (on the parchment paper) on a baking sheet. Place the baking sheet on the middle rack of the preheated oven.  Bake until the crackers are golden brown and dry.  The thickness of your crackers will determine the baking time.  It will range anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes. The thinner crackers around the edge are prone to burn so you’ll need to watch the crackers carefully.

Remove the crackers from the oven and place them on a wire rack to cool.  Break the long strips apart and then break them into smaller pieces.

Repeat the process with the remaining dough balls. Or, cover the remaining balls with plastic wrap and bake later. The dough can be refrigerated until the next day.

I served these crackers with spinach and artichoke hummus for an appetizer/dinner. They work really well for dipping and munching.

 

These crackers should keep well for 2 or 3 weeks if they are stored in a tightly covered container.  Mine won’t last that long because I like to snack on them.

Thanks to Eva from Kochpoetin for choosing nibble, nibble, crunch, crunch as the theme for Bread Baking Day #65.  And many thanks to Zorra for creating this event many years ago.

 

 

Happy Baking!

Cathy

 

Cinnamon Crunch Swirl Bread

Bread Baking Day (BBD), established by Zorra in 2007, is celebrating it’s 6th anniversary. The theme for BBD #60 is Glazed Bread. 

In honor of this special occasion, I made Cinnamon Crunch Swirl Bread.  My oldest son loves cinnamon so I made this loaf for him. He doesn’t like raisins or nuts in his bread so I omitted them. If you like raisins and/or nuts, feel free to include them for additional flavor and texture.

 

Adding a glaze or wash to the crust of a loaf serves different purposes, depending on the type of glaze you use.  A glaze or wash can be used to provide a crusty exterior, soften the bread or to give it a beautiful color and sheen and to provide added flavor. There are a number of ways to add a glaze to breads. Some of the most common types of glazes are egg wash, melted butter or oil, milk, a mixture flour and water, or plain water.

I used melted butter on the top of these loaves.  To get the distinctive swirls, the dough is rolled out, brushed with melted butter and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. Once the loaf is baked and before it cools, the cinnamon crunch topping is added by brushing the top with melted butter and sprinkling it with additional cinnamon sugar. The topping gives the loaf an extra burst of flavor and added crunch. Simply delicious!

 

 

Cinnamon Crunch Swirl Bread

Adapted from the Bread Baker’s Apprentice by Peter Reinhart

Makes: Two Medium Loaves

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups bread flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 4 teaspoons raw sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 teaspoons instant yeast
• 1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons melted butter (or shortening)
• 1/2 cup milk, at room temperature (I used almond milk but you can use buttermilk or whole milk)
• 3/4 cup filtered water, at room temperature
• Additional butter for brushing the loaf
• Cinnamon sugar for sprinkling on the dough and on top

 

Directions:

1. Mixing the Dough

Stir together the dry ingredients: flours, sugar, salt, yeast, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl.  Mix in the egg, butter, milk, and water.  Stir with a large wooden spoon or a Danish dough whisk until the ingredients come together to form a ball.  Add flour or water as necessary to make a workable dough that isn’t too sticky or dry and stiff.

 

2. Kneading the Dough

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface, cover it with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel (or bowl) and let it rest for 15 minutes.  After the dough has rested, knead the dough until it is smooth and supple, about 10 minutes.  Add flour as necessary to achieve the desired texture.  If you want to add a cup of raisins and/or walnuts, knead them in during the last 2 minutes of kneading and distribute them evenly.

Clean and wash the bowl and lightly oil it.  Place the dough in the bowl, roll it to cover it with oil, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel.

 

3. Bulk Fermentation

Let the dough ferment 2 hours, or until it is doubled in size.  In this hot weather, my dough was ready in an hour and a half.

 

4. Shaping the Loaves

Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces.  Roll each piece out to an 8 x 5-inch rectangle and about 1/3-inch thick.  Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.  Roll the dough into a tight sandwich loaf (jellyroll style).

 

Pinch the seam closed with your fingers.

 

Lightly oil two 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pans and sprinkle the bottom and sides of the pans with cinnamon sugar.  Place the loaves seamside down in the pans.  Spray the tops lightly with spray oil and cover with plastic wrap.

 

5. Final Proof

Proof the loaves at room temperature for about 60 to 90 minutes, or until the dough crests above the tops of the pans.  It should be nearly doubled in size.

 

6. Preparing the Loaves for Baking

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. with the oven rack on the middle shelf. 

Brush the tops of the loaves with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

 

 

7.  Baking the Loaves

Place the loaves on a baking sheet.  Make sure they aren’t touching each other.  Carefully slide the baking sheet into the preheated oven.

 

Let the loaves bake for 20 minutes. Then rotate them about 180 degrees for even baking.  Continue baking for another 20 to 30 minutes depending on the oven.  The baked breads should be golden brown on top and lightly golden on the bottom and sides.  The loaves should sound hollow when thumped on the bottom.

 

8.  Cooling and Serving the Loaves

If you are using glass pans, let the loaves cool in the pans on a wire rack about 10 minutes before removing.  If you aren’t using glass pans, you should remove the loaves immediately after removing them from the oven and place them on a wire rack to cool completely.  Let the loaves cool for at least an hour; 2 hours if you can manage it before slicing and serving.

 

Be sure to check out the BBD #60 roundup on Zorra’s blog.

 

Happy Baking!

Cathy