Bread -- part II

So I took some notes on my bread making processes so I could pass them on.

Here's an example of the recipe I've used twice this week.

I took my sponge out of the fridge on Wednesday and doubled it. Then I doubled it again on Thursday. So Friday morning I had 8 ounces. I had Leilani mix 6 ounces of starter, 6 ounces of flour and 6 ounces of water and put it in the oven. I like storing it in the oven because it's protected.
When I got home a couple hours later, I mixed in about 11 ounces of flour. (Weight is a better measure than volume for flour. But for the flour I was using 6 ounces measured about 1 Cup.) This gave me a fairly wet dough. Flours are different so it's hard to say exactly how much you need. The way I can tell I have close to the right amount is that I add it and stir until it starts to clean the bowl. I also added a pinch of salt before I mixed it. Half the time I forget to do this. You can also add a couple of tablespoons of oil here to add a little flavor.
Then I started kneading it. A wet dough makes a better bread, so I try to use as little flour as possible. But it always takes some to keep things from sticking. I usually put some in my sifter and just dust the board and the dough.
I let the dough rest halfway through the kneading for about 20 minutes. Then I kneaded it a little more. It probably took 10-12 minutes of total kneading but I usually just stop when the dough is smooth, shiny, and stiff enough that it bounces back when I push on it.
I oiled a bowl and put the dough in. I covered the bowl with plastic wrap and put it back in the oven. If I'm in a hurry or the dough is very cold sometimes I turn the oven on for 30 seconds just to make it a little warmer. A slow rising dough is fine though if you have the time.
The rise is done when it's doubled in volume. You can tell by pushing on the dough. It should spring back slowly. If it doesn't spring back it's over-risen. If it springs back too fast it needs to rise more. If it's over-risen, just deflate it and let it rise again. It won't take nearly as long.
So I took my doubled dough and gently kneaded it to distribute the air. Then I divided it in half and shaped it into loaves. The only noteworthy thing here is that the skin of the loaf needs to be fairly tight.
Once the loaves had risen, I sliced across the top of them. These scoring cuts need to be about 1/2 an inch deep. The pattern doesn't really matter. If you don't do this enough your loaf will burst open. As soon as the loaves were scored I put them in the oven.
Halfway through the rising I preheated the oven to 425. When it got hot I sprayed the oven with a spray bottle. I do this a couple of times before the loaves go in and 2 or 3 times within the first few minutes -- each time trying to open the oven as little as possible.
About 30 minutes later the bread will look ready to come out. Then it needs to cool for 20 minutes or so before it can be eaten.
Now a word of encouragement: my first many loaves of sourdough were not devoured quickly. Hot bread, even mediocre hot bread still gets eaten. But once it's day old it needs a little bit of quality to get eaten -- at least around here. This proves just fine though because homemade croutons are a great use for this bread. (I'll post my technique some other time.) I used to make a lot of croutons. Now, I can't ever seem to keep bread around long enough to make croutons.

Mad bread skills

Beware, at the risk of sounding like a bad housewife, I will now be boasting about my husband's bread. That's right...my husband is the main cook in the house. Don't worry though, he keeps me busy with dishes :) Good thing I don't mind washing dishes, but cooking (especially experiment cooking) isn't really my thing. I guess I'm more of a sous chef. Anyway, he made some bread this past weekend and it was absolutely delicious. He makes his own starter and likes to experiment. Check it out below!

mmmmmmmm!