Saturday, October 06, 2007

Atoning for my (bread) sin

Made the same recipe for the Basic Tassajara Bread as the last time, when I stuck an underproofed loaf in the oven because I couldn't wait any longer, and got a boxing glove as a result. The only changes made this time were that the bread was patiently proofed, and I remembered to decrease the salt. The reward for doing things properly was even greater than just this beautiful, jubilantly risen loaf of bread; I also learned about oven spring. By kneading the dough it over itself 5-6 times before rolling up into a log for the pan, you can "wind up" the dough so that it gets an extra helping push when it is placed in the oven. I ended up with the tallest loaf of bread I've ever made. The crack you see along the side marks where the top of the loaf pan was.

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