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Tips for your Kitchen

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Soft American-Style White Bread from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, here is a video done by the authors for a simple European bread, which method is nearly the same for the recipe below. Excellent Book! The bread that I served today was made with one cup White Whole Wheat Flour from King Arthur Flour (Trader Joe’s carries it) to replace one cup of the cups of AP flour (see below)

  • 1 1/2 T yeast (1 1/2 envelopes)
  • 2 T sugar
  • 2 T Kosher Salt (1 1/2 T if using Morton Kosher salt; 1 T if using table salt)
  • 1 stick unsalted butter, melted
  • 3 cups lukwarm water
  • 7 cups (35 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour (I highly suggest Gold Medal unbleached or King Arthur unbleached); scoop the flour directly out of the bin and level off with knife for measurement
  1. Mixing and storing the dough: Mix the yeast, salt, sugar and melted butter with water in a lidded (not airtight) container.
  2. Mix in the flour, without kneading, using a spoon (you can use a heavy-duty stand mixer with dough hook, if you have it). If you’re not using a machine, use wet hands to incorporate the last bit of flour.
  3. Cover (not airtight) and allow to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and collapses (about 2 hours–though, this dough is totally forgiving; if you forget about it for a while, you can flatten and rise it again).
  4. The dough can be used immediately after the initial rise with only a 40-minute rest in the pan, though it is easier to handle when cold. Refriegerate the remaining dough in a lidded (not airtight) container and use over the next 7-10 days. (The longer it rests in the fridge, the stronger the “sourdough” flavor).
  5. On baking day, lightly grease a 9x4x3-inch nonstick loaf pan. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a cantaloupe-sized piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape it into an elongated ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go.
  6. Drop the dough in the prepared pan. You want to fill the pan slightly more than half-full.
  7. Allow the dough to rest for 1 hour and 40 minutes (or just 40 minutes, if you’re using fresh, unrefrigerated dough). Dust the loaf with flour and slash the top, using the tip of a sharp knife. Brush the top with melted butter.
  8. Twenty minutes before baking time, preheat the oven to 350º F.
  9. Bake the bread near the center of the oven for about 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from pan and cool on cooling rack.
  10. Allow to cool completely before slicing , or it will be nearly impossibly to achieve reasonable sandwich slices.

 

Enjoy. Sharing Optional!

Below are more tips from the class. Each is it’s own link to take you to more information.

Baking Tips

 

Baking Substitutions

 

Cooking Tips