The Fresh Loaf

A Community of Amateur Bakers and Artisan Bread Enthusiasts.

Recent Blog Entries

May 15, 2023 - 5:07am
yozzause's picture
yozzause

more flakes and dates

 Fakes and Dates another early morning test bake  of Lupin flour and Lupin flakes @ 25% and dates @25% too

 

 

 

May 14, 2023 - 5:33pm
Peternumnums's picture
Peternumnums

Bakers math

Hello 

I am trying to figure out the steps I need to take to answer this question and I'm having a tough time with it. 

If I have 100 grams of starter and I know it is an 80% hydration starter, how do I determine how much flour is in the starter?

I actually know the answer (54g flour 44g water), I just dont know how to arrive at it for myself. 

 

I am looking for the steps to take so I can do it for myself.  

If anyone knows how to arrive at the answer it would be much appreciated. 

Many thanks

Peter

May 14, 2023 - 9:12am
Nourl's picture
Nourl

Croissant - my journey to find the right recipe

My 1st try - with all-purpose flour and Candia butter 82% fat

 

I am not sharing much about the process here since there are many videos on YouTube that cover the croissant-making process. However, my goal is to recreate the taste of the croissants I used to have during my childhood. I want to use the right ingredients to achieve the perfect flavor, texture, and aroma. As a child, I remember savoring the buttery, flaky layers of the croissant, and I want to experience that same satisfaction once again. I am excited to embark on this journey of creating the perfect croissant recipe. 

Ingredients & Instructions:

  1.  Mix 500g of flour, 10g of salt, and 62g of sugar. Then, make a hole in the mixture and add 22g of active yeast, 105g of milk, and 150g of room temperature water. Mix all the ingredients on speed 1 for 4 minutes. Start adding 35g of cold butter and mix everything for 10 minutes on average speed. 

  1. Shape the dough into a round shape and leave it for 30 minutes. 

  1.  After 30 minutes, check that the dough is elastic. Punch out the air and form it into a 30x20 CM rectangle. Put it in the fridge overnight and make sure to cover it. 

  1.  Take 340g of butter and form it into a 20x20 CM square, leave it in the fridge overnight as well. 

  1.  The next day, take the dough and start the regular folding process of the croissant - 3 times. 

Notes:

  • Although I used bread improver, the volume did not last after taking the croissants out of the oven. 
  • I didn't like the taste of the butter. Next time, I will try a different one. 
  • I didn't use flour type 55. Next time, I will use it. 
  • The layers were perfect.  

 

Below images and results:

 

   

     

              

      

 

 

May 12, 2023 - 4:32pm
yozzause's picture
yozzause

lupin progress

i have been playing with Lupin Flour and Lupin Flakes recently and here is my latest bake  i call this one Flakes and Dates. I have been able to get the Lupin content up to 25% which is pretty good i have even managed 30% recently.    I started adding Lupin flakes to the flour  at a 20% and 5% ratio and was happier with the results. Anyway i suddenly thought why stick to that ratio and have tried an even split 12.5 / 12.5% and also decided to try a fruit dough to boot. 

First shot at this is the "Flakes and Dates" i didn't make it overly sweet using my home produced Honey @ 10%  and Butter @ 5% i did add an egg  but  made that part of the liquid. i have found it easier these days to crack and egg into the water container and then weight the water and egg as one and it was 55% i did   however use more water in my initial wetting of the Lupin flour and flakes  as stated the lupin content was 25% and an equal amount of boiling water was pour onto this and stirred it was quickly taken up and resembled bread crumbs this was allowed to cool before being used. salt was 1% and bread Improver was used at 1%  dried yeast was 2%.  Dates were chopped and in @25%

The dough does mix quite sticky and i did allow fort he Dates to draw some of that moisture. the dough does tend to get less sticky anyway. This dough with Bread Improver was treated as an Instant dough (no bulk fermentation) although it was allowed 30 minutes rest and recovery after mixing and a further 10 minutes after handing up it was then shaped and placed into some small baking pans which i like to do test bakes in so that i can distribute for evaluation. the proof was fairly quick and loaves were baked at 210C with steam for the first 10 minutes  and then turned down to 190C  for another 10 - 15 minutes. the finished texture was soft and  delicious Dates are great in bread and probably the cheapest dried fruit in the stores here. 

 the dough pieces were weighed off at 250 grams for the small tins

  the tins were smeared with butter   and dough pieces placed in

 you can see the good lift achieved , one was sugar syrup washed the other not

 

 with

  without

 The larger  Bakers keeper loaf

A cut shot showing the lupin flakes  and the dates, my wife wants more dates

 

May 12, 2023 - 2:51pm
Benito's picture
Benito

Whole Kamut Sourdough Roman Pizza with Pepperoni, Mushrooms, Onions and Roasted Red Peppers

My partner requested another Roman Pizza so how could I say no?  I wanted to use up a bit more of the whole Kamut that I have left so changed the spelt to Kamut.  Also having made this once I wanted to improve it, the last time the crust didn’t brown as well as I would have expected for the baking time.  So I added a tiny amount of sugar and some diastatic malt.  This worked well to improve the browning of the crust so I am happy with that.

To avoid all the grease from pepperoni, I encased them in paper towels and microwaved them in 15 sec intervals soaking up the grease until they were partly cooked.  During the pre-heat of the oven, I placed the sliced mushrooms in one layer in the oven to cook them to draw the water out of them.  Unfortunately I was called away from the kitchen so they got much more baked than just pre-baked, but they certainly didn’t soak my pizza.

In changing the formula from spelt to kamut, I didn’t extend the fermentation quite enough to compensate for the fact that kamut has better quality and quantity of gluten forming proteins in it than spelt so the crumb is more closed than I wanted.  I’ll need to remember to extend the fermentation, aiming for perhaps 120% when using a stronger grain in the future.  



For 11” x 17” pan

 

12 hour overnight levain build at 75°F 

 

In the morning when levain is at peak about 3x rise.  Into the bowl of your mixer, add warm water, salt, sugar, diastatic malt and levain.  Mix briefly with a spatula to dissolve the dry ingredients.  Then add all the flours.  Mix with your stand mixer until there is no dry flour visible.  Rest 5 minutes.  Then increase to medium speed and mix until moderate gluten development.  With the mixer running, drizzle in the olive oil.  continue to mix until good gluten development and all the olive oil is well absorbed.

 

Transfer the dough to the countertop. Do a letterfold of the dough.  If using an aliquot jar to follow rise extract the dough now.  Transfer your dough back into your proofing container in your proofing box at 78°F.  

 

During bulk fermentation perform three sets of coil folds at 30 mins intervals then allow the dough to rest until the dough has achieved 50% rise.  Then cold retard, this is for convenience so that the pizza can be delayed and ready for dinner today or the next day.  This is optional depending on how quickly or slowly the dough ferments.  

 

Approximately 2.5 hours before baking time take the dough out of the fridge for final proofing, this continues in the bowl until right before baking when it will go into the pan and have a short proof shaped.  Aim for about 80-85% rise to shape and then 100-105% rise for baking.  Make sure you start the pre-heating of the oven 500°F about 1 hour prior to the dough reaching 100-105% rise.  Bake your pizza on a pizza steel or stone placed on the lowest oven rack.

 

Another option which I think I prefer and I did is to allow the dough to ferment until it rises 80-85%, then shape and place it into the well oiled pan.  Allow it to reach 100-105% rise (I would aim for 120% rise at time of baking the next time I baked this again with kamut), then place it in the fridge and start pre-heating the oven.  This way it is easy to stretch the dough since the gluten hasn’t tightened from the cold retard.  During the pre-heat the dough will chill and should have even better oven spring as the cold gases rapidly expand in the oven.

 

Prepare your toppings well before shaping.  

For pepperoni microwave for 30 secs between sheets of paper towels to reduce the oil when baking.  If using mushrooms slice and bake or cook to dry out.  Could bake while the oven is pre-heating!  Could also dry out roasted red peppers this way or just dry with paper towels.

 

Crushed Tomato Sauce

Makes enough for 1 Roman pizza

1 can San marzano tomatoes - squeeze tomato water out of the tomatoes then using a hand mash up the tomato meat.  Keep the canned juice and tomato water mix to drink.

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 tsp dried basil or 2 tbsp minced fresh basil

1 tsp dried oregano or 1 tbsp minced fresh oregano

1 teaspoon granulated garlic powder

2 tbsp red wine vinegar or freshly squeeze lemon juice or a combination

1 tsp salt to taste

Stir together, can store up to 1 wk.

 

When the dough reaches 80-85% rise shape the dough.  Using a brush, oil your pan well with olive oil.

Flour the top of the dough in the bowl,  release it from the sides of the bowl, then flip it onto a well floured countertop.  Then flour the exposed top of the dough well. Stretch out the dough into a rectangle.  Using your fingers gently press into the dough gradually stretching it out.  Then gently flip the dough over and repeat the gentle pressing of the fingers aiming for about 75% of the pan size.  Once done, I folded the dough in half and transferred the dough to the pan unfolding it and stretching it out to the edge of the pan.  The dough was then allowed to complete final proofing for 10 mins.  

 

Drizzle olive oil on the dough.  Then using a large spoon, spread a thin layer of pizza sauce over the dough from edge to edge.  Slide the baking pan into the oven on top of the baking surface. Decrease the oven temperature to 425°F (220°C) and bake for 10 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and sprinkle on the grated cheese and any other toppings. Lightly drizzle some olive oil over the entire pizza. Slide the sheet pan back into the oven on the baking surface and bake for 15 to 20 minutes more. The cheese should be melted and the bottom crust well colored.  You can move the pizza up to a higher rack for the final 5 minutes if the toppings aren’t browning enough to your liking.




My index of bakes

May 10, 2023 - 3:10pm
jo_en's picture
jo_en

Ginsberg Ryes with CLAS

 

 

 future bakes...

2023-8-10 

Stan's Orange Raisin Rye with Clas by Yippee 

https://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/68380/20210604-stans-wholegrain-pecan-orange-raisin-rye

 

This is an amazing bake of 100% rye at 98-100% hydration. The total flour is 200 gr of rye of which 20 gr is from clas (58 gr clas). The mix starts off as a terrible sludge that gets better after the first 4 hr ferment. There is significant rise after a 1 hr bulk. The final 1.25h proof yields about a 50% rise after shaping. It used about 7/8 tsp dry instant yeast. As with other high hydration ryes, this dough was pressed in and smoothed over with wet hands or spatulas into a pan (5.5 in diameter and 1.5 in high).

The glaze is brushed on before and after the bake. Just a bit of rise occurred in the bake in the Zojirushi, but notice all the good bubbles in the crumb!

With a little bit more practice in smoothing out the top, pressing the dough into all surfaces of the pan, and baking in a real oven with controlled temps, I will have a terrific gift!! It is a delight to eat and each bite is worth savoring!

Be sure to soak the cranberries and raisins in rum/water.

 

8-13-23

Dry thin slices until just brittle in 275F oven on a rack. These rye crisps/biscotti are perfect for trail/traveling snacks! So healthy too! :)

2023-05-10

Lyubitelsky Rye - ginger, citrus and chocolatey

 

 Following CalbeachBaker 's great bake of this bread, I gave it a try.

There were some stumbles in what I did, but the color, taste, texture and flavors are very satisfying! Its chocolate looks come from the Bamberg Chocolate Rye Malt. (Be careful that it may discolor parts of the grain mill.)

The recipe is from Ginsberg's NYBakers, here;

the foodgeek recipe with adjustments for clas and freshly milled whole grains is  https://fgbc.dk/35ql

Use foodgeek calculator to adjust the ingredients by resetting the "Total" with desired weight of final dough. 800g is about 75% of reg pullman pan.

Save time with CLAS: Use clas from freezer instead of getting a rye starter (10-12 hr); for the Levain 6-8 hr was enough instead of 10-12 hr if using a reg rye starter. 

The bake was in Zojirushi Bread machine but the max time limit may not be enough for total dough sizes of 960g and more. The top did "cave" some due to factors like dough weight and varying temps in the Zoji.

Be sure to wait 24 hr before slicing and store cut side down.

It looks like a brownie!!  Slices -1/4" slice, toasted  :)

 Add-ins and flavors: raisins, freshly grated ginger in lemon/lime juice, sugared freshly grated orange/tangerine zest (organic). 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

May 10, 2023 - 1:48pm
CrustyJohn's picture
CrustyJohn

Purple Rice, Two Ways

I came across this purple sticky rice while stocking up on some pantry dry goods recently.  I've never heard of it before, but it has a nice rich flavor, and I've enjoyed working it into my recent breads.  

 

My first go-round was a 50-50 white/whole wheat loaf 

I think amounts were about

200g Maine Grains hard red spring whole wheat

200g KA special patent 

~3tsp salt

50g starter

@ 80% hydration I think

 

Then added

50g rice cooked milk and water until fully cooked 

during stretch and fold

Pretty much standard approach, for me.  I think I mixed all the flour together and did maybe a 1-2 hr. autolyse.

 

I baked at ~550, and it really seemed to help get a nice spring, though there were also some big holes in the center that are slightly more than I'd prefer.  The flavor is nice.  The rice as expected add a creaminess to the crumb, but the purple rice gives a more dark/complex taste than brown rice.  

 

Enjoying the results with a wheat loaf, I though it might make a nice addition to a rye loaf in place of the traditional seeds.  

I loosely followed the approach of a recipe I'd used a week before from The Rye Baker but I modified it so that the dough

was 100% rye flour

750g Maine Grains rye

50g purple rice cooked in milk

Something weird happened with this bread; I appreciate any speculation as to what might have caused it:

After mixing the initial sponge and letting it double, I mixed in the second round of flour and water and let it be for most of the day at room temp.  When I came back, it hadn't visibly expanded much, but it was a little hard to gauge in a large bowl, so I just went ahead and added the final flour and rice and put it in the tin for the final rise- This part took crazy long.  I was expecting 4-5hrs as it has been decently warm here, but instead, after ~50 hrs (yes, over two days), it was slowly rising, but still not reaching the top of the tin.  I finally decided to just bake it.  As you can see from the picture, it rose up a bit more during baking, and turned out pretty nice, but I'm confounded as to why it would take so long.  The only idea I can think of is that the warm water I added with the second sponge was borderline too hot and maybe killed much of the yeast?  This seems unlikely as it felt only warm to the touch, and I poured the water on the fresh flour rather than onto the stage 1 sponge, but it's the only thing that comes to mind.  

May 9, 2023 - 4:11pm
Benito's picture
Benito

Seeded Whole Spelt Whole Wheat Sourdough Hokkaido Milk Bread

I needed more bread, so what’s new?  Wanting some whole grain bread though I decided to use some spelt with the whole wheat for some variety.  I also wanted some seeds in this bread because I love seeds so decided to add pepitas and sunflower seeds at 10% each.

As is my custom, I use the weaker flour in the tangzhong since preparing the tangzhong denatures the protein so the gluten that that portion of the grain doesn’t contribute to the gluten of the dough.  However, the gelatinization of the starches that occurs does help with dough strength.  If I use a lot of a weaker grain, more than the 20% needed for the tangzhong, then I will use that in the levain.



For one 9x4x4” Pullman pan loaf.

 

Instructions

Levain

Mix the levain ingredients in a jar or pyrex container with space for at least 300% growth. 

Press down with your knuckles or silicone spatula to create a uniform surface and to push out air.

At a temperature of 76-78ºF, it typically takes up to 10-12 hours for this sweet stiff levain to be at peak.  For my starter I typically see 3-3.5 times increase in size at peak.  The levain will smell sweet with only a mild tang.

 

Tangzhong 

In a sauce pan set on medium heat, stir the milk and whole wheat flour until blended. Then cook for several minutes until well thickened, stirring regularly with a spoon or heat-resistant spatula. Let cool in the pan or, for faster results, in a new bowl.  Theoretically it should reach 65ºC (149ºF) but I don’t find I need to measure the temperature as the tangzhong gelatinizes at this temperature.  You can prepare this the night before and refrigerate it, ensure that it is covered to prevent it from drying out.

 

If you plan on using a stand mixer to mix this dough, set up a Bain Marie and use your stand mixer’s bowl to prepare the tangzhong.

 

Dough

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add the milk (consider holding back 10 g of milk and adding later if this is the first time you’re making this), egg, tangzhong, salt, sugar and levain.  Mix and then break up the levain into many smaller pieces.  Next add the flours.  I like to use my spatula to mix until there aren’t many dry areas.  Allow the flour to hydrate (fermentolyse) for 20-30 minutes.  Mix on low speed and then medium speed until moderate gluten development this may take 5-10 mins.  You may want to scrape the sides of the bowl during the first 5 minutes of mixing.  Next add room temperature butter one pat at a time.  The dough may come apart, be patient, continue to mix until it comes together before adding in more butter.  Again, knead until well incorporated.  You will want to check gluten development by windowpane during this time and stop mixing when you get a good windowpane.  You should be able to pull a good windowpane, not quite as good as a white flour because the bran will interrupt the windowpane somewhat.   Add the seeds and mix until well distributed.

 

On the counter, shape the dough into a tight ball, cover in the bowl and ferment for 2 - 4 hours at 82ºF.  There should be some rise visible at this stage.

 

You can next place the dough into the fridge to chill the dough for about 1.5 hours, this makes rolling the dough easier to shape.  Remember, if you do so the final proof will take longer.  Alternatively, you can do a cold retard in the fridge overnight, however, you may find that this increases the tang in your bread.

 

Prepare your pans by greasing them with butter or line with parchment paper.  

 

Lightly oil the top of the dough. Scrape the dough out onto a clean counter top and divide it into four. I like to weigh them to have equal sized lobes. Shape each tightly into a boule, allow to rest 5 mins. Using an oiled rolling pin roll each ball out and then letterfold. Turn 90* and using a rolling pin roll each out to at least 8”. Letterfold again from the sides so you have a long narrow dough. Then using a rolling pin, roll flatter but keeping the dough relatively narrow.  The reason to do this extra letterfold is that the shorter fatter rolls when placed in the pan will not touch the sides of the pan.  This allows the swirled ends to rise during final proof, this is only done for appearance sake and is not necessary.  Next roll each into a tight roll with some tension. Arrange the rolls of dough inside your lined pan alternating the direction of the swirls. This should allow a greater rise during proof and in the oven.

 

Cover and let proof for  4-6 hours at a warm temperature.  I proof at 82°F.  You will need longer than 4-6 hours if you chilled your dough for shaping. I proof until the top of the dough comes to within 1 cm of the top edge of the pan.

 

Preheat the oven to 350F and brush the dough with the egg-milk wash.  Just prior to baking brush with the egg-milk wash again.

 

Bake the loaves for 50 minutes or until the internal temperature is at least 190ºF, rotating as needed to get even browning. Shield your loaf if it gets brown early in the baking process. After 50 mins remove the bread from the pan and bake a further 10 mins by placing the loaf directly in the oven on the rack with the oven turned down to 325ºF.




My index of bakes.

May 7, 2023 - 1:51pm
CalBeachBaker's picture
CalBeachBaker

Goat Cheese & Herb Babka

Today's bake: Goat Cheese & Herb Babka

Source: Clotilde Dusoulier - Chocolate & Zucchini  #cnzrecipes

Note:  Orig TDW 0.650kg & Pan 30x10x10cm; New TDW  0.900kg & Pan 40x10x10cm

Discussion: I was looking for something to bake for a gathering of friends and thought this would be a nice finger food. I also wanted to experiment with using a food processor to mix/knead the dough as detailed in 'The Italian Baker by Carol Field'.

I am happy to report that I watched as this bread vanished before my eyes within minutes and that the food processor did a fine job with this volume of dough.

The bread had a marvelous flavor mix due to the fresh basil, dried rosemary, and thyme mixed with the goat cheese and then brushed with EVOO at baking end.

Make again? - Yes, definitely a crowd pleaser.

Changes/Recommendations: Increase the TDW by ~20% to better fit my pan size.

Ratings



 



Tony

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

May 4, 2023 - 3:36pm
Benito's picture
Benito

Roman Sourdough Pizza with fresh mozarella, Kalamata olives and artichokes

This first time I tried making one of these I used Full Proof Baking’s Kristen’s formula. It was great, but I had some technical issues related with shaping and transferring the dough from the countertop into the pan.  This time I thought I’d try a different one, Maurizio’s The Perfect Loaf formula.  Some of the minor changes I made are in brackets.

This recipe is for 11”x17” that I have decreased to 80% of the original weights. 




VITALS

Total dough weight

720g

Pre-fermented flour

7.5%

Levain

17.0%

Hydration

72.0%

Yield

One 11 × 17-inch rectangular pizza (baked in a half-sheet pan)

TOTAL FORMULA

INGREDIENT

BAKER’S %

WEIGHT

Type 00 flour or white flour (~11.5% protein)

90.0%

366g

Whole spelt or whole wheat flour

10.0%

41g

Extra-virgin olive oil

2.3%

9.6g

Water

72.0%

293g

Fine sea salt

1.9%

8g

Ripe sourdough starter, 100% hydration

0.8%

3.2g

ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS

 

 

Tomato sauce, low-moisture mozzarella (cut into ½-inch cubes), and toppings of your choice 

 

 

 

Levain

INGREDIENT

BAKER’S %

WEIGHT

Type 00 flour or white flour (~11.5% protein)

100.0%

30

Water

100.0%

30g

Ripe sourdough starter, 100% hydration

10.0%

3.2g

Using Ripe Sourdough Starter Instead of a Levain

If your sourdough starter is refreshed regularly and at 100% hydration, you can swap out the levain in this recipe for your starter. Give it a refreshment 12 hours before (i.e., the night before) you plan to mix this dough and omit the levain. If your starter is not made of a large portion of white flour, note that the final pizza will be a bit more sour than it would otherwise be.

  • Duration: 12 hours (overnight) at warm room temperature: 74°–76°F (23°–24°C)
    • MIX THE LEVAIN: Warm or cool the water to about 78°F (25°C). In a medium jar, mix the levain ingredients until well incorporated (this liquid levain will feel quite loose) and loosely cover. Store in a warm place for 12 hours.
  1. Mix

2 INGREDIENT

3 WEIGHT

4 Type 00 flour or white flour (~11.5% protein)

336g

6 Whole spelt or whole wheat flour

41g

8 Extra-virgin olive oil

9.6g

10 Water

262g

12 Fine sea salt

8g

14 Levain

64g

    • Desired dough temperature (DDT): 78°F (25°C)
    • CHECK THE LEVAIN: It should show signs of readiness: well aerated, soft, bubbly on top and at the sides, and with a sour aroma. If the levain is not showing these signs, let it ferment 1 hour more and check again.
    • MIX THE DOUGH: Warm or cool the water so the temperature of the mixed dough meets the DDT of this recipe. In the bowl of a stand mixer ◦ fitted with the dough hook, add the flours, water, salt, and ripe levain. (I added water, salt, mixed to dissolve then levain, mixed to dissolve, then added the flours).  Mix on low speed until just incorporated. Increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough begins to strengthen and cling to the dough hook, 3 to 4 minutes. Let the dough rest in the bowl for 5 minutes.
    • ADD THE OLIVE OIL: Mix on low speed until all the olive oil is incorporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Increase the mixer speed to medium and mix until the dough begins to smooth out and cling to the dough hook, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a bulk fermentation container.
    • MEASURE THE TEMPERATURE OF THE DOUGH: Compare it to the DDT and record it as the final dough temperature. Cover the dough.
  1. Bulk fermentation
  • Duration: About 3 hours 30 minutes at warm room temperature: 74°–76°F (23°–24°C)
  • Folds: 3 sets of stretches and folds at 30-minute intervals
  • SET TIMER AND MAKE A NOTE: Write down the current time as the start of bulk fermentation, set a timer for 30 minutes, and let the dough rest in a warm place.
  • STRETCH AND FOLD: When your timer goes off, give the dough one set of stretches and folds. Using wet hands, grab one side of the dough and lift it up and over to the other side.
  • Rotate the bowl 180 degrees and repeat. Then rotate the bowl a quarter turn and stretch and fold that side. Rotate the bowl 180 degrees again and finish with a stretch and fold on the last side. The dough should be folded up neatly. Cover and repeat these folds every 30 minutes for a total of 3 sets of stretches and folds.
  • LET THE DOUGH REST: After the last set, cover the bowl and let the dough rest for the remainder of bulk fermentation, about 2 hours.
  • Proof
    • Same-day bake: Proof the dough in a warm place for 3 hours.
    • Next-day bake: Proof the dough in the refrigerator overnight. The next day, take the dough out and leave out on the counter for 2 hours to bring it back to room temperature before baking.
    • At this point, there's nothing to do: continue to let the dough proof in the bulk fermentation container for 2-3 hours at room temperature.
    • About an or two hour into proof, begin preheating your oven with a rack in the middle to 500°F (260°C) and with a baking surface—I like to use my Baking Steel—inside on the rack.
    • Duration: 3 hours at warm room temperature: 74°–76°F (23°–24°C), or overnight in a home refrigerator: 39°F (4°C)
    • LET THE DOUGH PROOF: You have two proofing options:
  • Bake
    • Duration: 30 minutes in the oven
    • PREPARE THE OVEN: Place a rack in the bottom third of the oven with a baking stone/steel on top. Preheat the oven to 500°F (260°C) for 1 hour.
    • PREPARE THE TOPPINGS: While your oven is preheating and your dough is chilling in the fridge, gather and prepare your pizza sauce, cheese, and other toppings.
    • SHAPE THE DOUGH: Have a 11 × 17-inch sheet pan at hand (brush the pan with oil). Gently scrape the dough onto a floured work surface. Flour the top of the dough and your hands, and using your fingertips, gently press the dough out to a rectangle. (After pressing the dough out on one side, flip the dough over and repeat stretching the dough further, again aiming for about 75% of the pan’s size). Once pressed out to about 75 percent of the pan’s length, transfer the dough to the pan. Gently stretch the dough as needed so it runs edge to edge. (Stretching the dough to 75 percent first makes it easier to transfer to the pan and then finish stretching.) (Once fully stretched allow the dough to rest in the pan for 10-15 mins)(To transfer to the pan, I simply folded the dough in half so it was much easier to lift onto the pan and unfold.  The dough should not stick to itself if you have fairly generously floured it on both sides).

     

    BAKE THE PIZZA: Using a large spoon, spread a thin layer of pizza sauce over the dough from edge to edge. (I drizzled olive oil on first then applied the tomato sauce.)  Slide the baking pan into the oven on top of the baking surface. Decrease the oven temperature to 425°F (220°C) and bake for 10 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and sprinkle on the grated cheese and any other toppings. Lightly drizzle some olive oil over the entire pizza. Slide the sheet pan back into the oven on the baking surface and bake for 15 to 20 minutes more. The cheese should be melted and the bottom crust well colored.

    Baking with Sauce Only
    Baking the pizza first with only the sauce does two things: It gives the dough a chance to get a head start in baking, since the dough usually takes longer to bake than most of the toppings. Second, having only the tomato sauce on top means there isn’t too much weight on the dough so that it can’t rise. The full complement of toppings would prevent rising, but not so little weight that it rises too high.

     

    FINISH AND COOL: Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the pizza cool for 5 minutes before slicing.

     

    I topped the pizza with artichoke hearts and Kalamata olives that I squeezed and dried prior to using them.  I also had fresh mozarella cheese from Eataly that I tore and squeezed a bit to get rid of excess whey in it.  I meant to have fresh basil to use but forgot to pick that up at the grocery store.

     

    To make the sauce, I used a can of San Marzano tomatoes.  I only used the actual tomatoes from the can and squeezed the tomato water out of them and then mash the remaining tomato meat with my hand.  I added homemade red wine vinegar, salt, pepper, dried basil, dried oregano and garlic powder and then mixed it thoroughly.  I didn’t want this to be too wet to keep the crust from becoming soggy and it worked well.

     

    I was very happy with this pizza and this might become my go to pizza moving forward.  I’ll probably play with the dough recipe, but I think I prefer this to the New York/Naples styles I had been making up to now using my cast iron skillet.  There was always the risk of burning my hand when transferring the dough into the scorching hot skillet that I can now avoid by making this style of pizza instead.

    My index of bakes.

    Pages

    more
    Subscribe to Recent Blog Entries