bread rotation, week 2

I was looking forward to the second week of the bread rotation. Looking forward to it! I had a list of breads I was excited to make:

Mt Hood (a hazelnut bread)
Snowcap Rye (a three-day rye bread)
Caraway Rye (a 40% rye bread with caraway seeds)
Seeded Sourdough (with flax, sunflower, sesame, and...another seed)
Beer Bread with Roasted Barley (I substituted oats)

My partner and I finished an Indian bread that we'd started the week before, called Aloo Partha. It involved a spiced potato filling wrapped in a whole wheat dough. I wish I'd taken photos as the assembly process was complex and interesting: a ball of dough is rolled out flat and filling is spread thinly over the whole. The round is then rolled into a cylinder, and the cylinder is wrapped into a spiral shape. The spiral is then rolled flat to create a round flat bread with layers of filling embedded throughout. I wish we'd made some chutney too- this bread was hearty enough to be lunch, and a dipping sauce of some sort would have completed it nicely.

The first solo bread I made was the Mt Hood. This bread required four separate preferments, which together made up roughly half of the final dough. From right to left- white sponge, whole wheat sponge, white levain, rye levain. The white sponge exploded because the container turned out to be too small to contain its growth- it more than doubled overnight!



These are combined with additional yeast, flour, salt, and in most cases water-- but I substituted an oaked hazelnut ale that a classmate of mine had made in the previous quarter. As I added this beer to the candied hazelnuts that give this bread its name (Oregon is known for its hazelnuts) I was aiming for a very nutty, slightly sweet bread with a complex flavor.

The bread seemed to like the additional yeast provided by the beer and it grew quite nicely during the bulk ferment:



I shaped it into rounds and tried to do a pretty leaf scoring, which didn't work out so well... but the bread turned a lovely shade of brown in the oven, and came out dotted with toasted nuts:

"img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4009/4311014690_a017e13f92_o.jpg">

As it turned out, this bread might be the best thing I've ever created. The hazelnuts and the beer gave it an almost nutella-like nutty sweetness, with a richness and depth from the preferments. It had a medium crumb, moist but offset by the crunch of the nuts. My coworkers devoured this bread and day-old loaves were used for what I'm told is the most amazing french toast ever. I will probably be making this bread for my fourth quarter final project.

And then, somehow in that week, I managed to make all of the other breads listed-- a minor miracle, of which I am justifiably proud-- but I forgot to take photos of all of them. Except the snowcap rye, and I'm glad I remembered that, because it's just so pretty. So I leave you with this- a hearty rye bread topped with flour before baking so that the final proof in the oven poofs the top into something resembling (the recipe claims) one of the rocky mountains. You be the judge:

third quarter bread rotation

This was my first rotation of the third quarter. I was (am) exhausted, and after the horrorfest of last quarter's bread rotation, I was terrified of breads. I just didn't want to do it. In fact, I chose it as my first rotation because I wanted to get it over with.

And then I learned to love the breads.

In this rotation, we chose which breads to do, when to do them, and how to manage our time. There was no schedule and there were very few rules. We could adapt recipes or bring in our own. I worked with a partner but this could involve as little or as much interaction as we wanted. Aside from the lack of sleep, I found this to be just lovely.

My first bread was a mushroom and farro bread, made with dried shiitake mushrooms, button mushrooms, and farro. The shiitake mushrooms were reconstituted in hot water, and that water was used as the liquid in the dough. The bread took two days- one to prep the mushrooms and the farro and the preferment, and one day to assemble, proof, and bake the bread.



The bread had a lovely earthy flavor, and the farro added texture and a nuttiness. The shiitake mushrooms were better than expected (I worried about dried mushrooms) but the button mushrooms fell flat. Next time I'd use something else- the recipe called for porcini, but I didn't have those available.

My partner and I did one bread together in this first week, and that was the german pumpernickel. This bread is composed entirely of rye and bakes over 16 hours at low heat, and then must cool for an additional four hours or so before it can be sliced. The dough involves a preferment and a soaker (rye and shredded rye) and so the final process takes roughly four days. The result is an exceptionally dense and flavorful bread, made exceptionally dark due not only to the rye but also to the maillard reaction triggered by this baking method.

The claylike dough does not want to be kneaded in the mixer; it simply coats the inside of the bowl in an interesting homage to negative space:



My three-day bread (the one requirement we had was that we choose a three-day bread) was an olive levain, made with three kinds of olives and a sourdough levain. Three-day breads have a preferment and then are given a long overnight proof after their final shaping so that they can develop more and more complex flavor. I used kalamata olives from school as well as two kinds of spanish olives (one oil-cured) from work. This bread was fantastic and I would definitely make it again. I may try to adapt the recipe for home use.

Here the bread has been given its final shape and is ready to rest and proof overnight:



Once baked, the scoring down the center makes it look as though it's just bursting with olives:



My disaster for the week was the semolina sesame bread. The preferment was very, very wet and the amount of flour in the final dough in no way yielded what the recipe claimed would be a 'stiff' product. It was downright soupy. I had to had more and more flour (durum) and in the end this probably caused quite a bit of overmixing. By the time the bread was done proofing it was clear that there wasn't enough time to bake it, and we had to retard it overnight- not usually done for this kind of bread.

By the next day, the bread had formed a crust (not enough humidity in the retarder) and while this isn't always a problem, in this case the bread had to be re-shaped. After the overmixing, the extra-long proofing, and then this over-shaping, the final product was dense and not pleasant to the taste. Alas.



I had so badly wanted to do a number of sesame breads, but after that experience, I was done with that idea.

And that was week one: german pumpernickel, mushroom farro bread, olive levain, and semolina sesame.

bread rotation

Second quarter's bread rotation was extremely stressful. The workload was designed for five or six people, and one rotation group had seven. My rotation had FOUR. This might not sound like much of a problem, but it was. Every day it felt like we were worried about time, and rushing to get things done. Work that we trusted to the first-quarter students didn't get done properly and had to be re-done the next morning, costing more time. We had to get to the bakeshop early every day to get the ovens on and the first dough mixed, because otherwise it wouldn't rise in time to use. '

On top of that, I started a new job that week, and my rotation partner moved from one apartment to another. We were an exhausted mess and how we got through those two weeks is beyond me. I did miss one day of that rotation.

So all that is a way of saying that I'm going to post a lot of pictures of bread below, and I'm not sure what all of them are. I barely remembered to take photos at all in the rush to get things out and down to the case.

No idea what this one is:



This is a capuchin roll, named after the monk's caps. We made them for Thanksgiving.



Butternut squash challah, topped with pumpkin seeds, also for Thanksgiving:



Regular challah:



Judging by the irregular shapes, I'm guessing that this is rustic pain au levain, made with the pain ordinaire for lunch service (we used to make rolls for service, but no longer have the duchess that cut the dough for us, and we don't have the time to do it all by hand):



Another one I can't remember for sure, but it might be our three-day levain:



This bread was mis-weighed because we accidentally turned the baker's scale around. Instead of weighing each portion to be 18 ounces, we ended up with each portion being 30 ounces. But, it was delicious.



Naan made using a starter and wheat flour:



Hazelnut-currant bread:

artpark brownies

I was reading Ruth Reichl's memoir, Tender at the Bone, when I got to this recipe. I mentioned brownies and all my roommates perked up. Luckily I live around the block from a 24-hr QFC, and good chocolate can be had at all hours of the night. Sometimes I wonder what the checkout people think of me, in my pajamas at 1am, buying two dozen eggs, heavy whipping cream, milk, 5 lbs of sugar, and 10 oz of the best unsweetened chocolate. (This, by the way, is what an ice-cream-making-kick and baking fetish does to your shopping lists.)

By the time the brownies came out of the oven, my roommates had gone to bed, and I decided to go to bed before the brownies had cooled enough to eat (sadly, brownies are better after they cool). The upshot of this: brownies for breakfast!

Artpark Brownies
from Tender at the Bone
makes 12 brownies

2/3 cup butter
5 ounces unsweetened, best-quality French chocolate (I used German. Don't tell the French.)
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups sugar
1 cup sifted flour (sift flour into 1-cup measure until heaping, then level with a flat object.)

Preheat oven to 400.

Butter and flour a 9" square baking pan (I used an 8" pan and added 7 minutes to the baking time.)

Melt butter and chocolate in double boiler, over boiling water. When melted, add vanilla and set aside.

Beat eggs and salt in mixer. Add sugar and beat at high speed for about ten minutes, or until mixture is quite white. (If you have a kitchenaid and use the middle speeds, this will not take ten minutes.)

Add chocolate and butter mixture and beat at low speed, just until mixed. Add flour and combine quickly, until there are no white streaks. (Do not overmix.)

Pour batter into pan and put into oven. Immediately turn oven down to 350 and bake for 40 minutes. The normal toothpick test will not work on these brownies, but if you want to try pricking them with a toothpick, it should not come out quite clean. Do not overbake; these brownies should be fudgy.

olive oil cake

This cake is from Sunday Suppers at Luques, one of the most consistently delicious and reliable books I have ever used. Quite literally everything that I've made from this book has been phenomenal, although some of the recipes require quite a bit of work. (Don't try to make a four-course meal for six people with two cooks and two hours.) This cake recipe is one that *isn't* a lot of work.



The only downsides are that it requires quite a bit of olive oil, which isn't cheap, and a LOT of eggs. 9. NINE EGGS. But the cake--oh, I could eat it every day. It's extraordinarily moist, not very sweet, with a distinct but not overwhelming olive oil flavor. It's mildly savory and thus can pair with anything-- olive oil ice cream, creme fraiche, fruit, you name it. I ate it for breakfast, for snack, and for dessert, and sent some to the staff at cafe piccolo. And I've been thinking about it ever since. I'll probably make it again this week.



And it really is that gorgeous golden color all on its own!

I just realized, as I was typing out this recipe, that I made the cake wrong when I made it. Upon revealing my mistake (I put the heavy cream into the batter with the olive oil) I was instructed to make it that way for all time, because the cake was that good. It's up to you-- make it as instructed below, or fold the cream and olive oil in together.


Olive Oil Cake, from Sunday Suppers at Luques
1 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for greasing the pan
3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup semolina
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup brandy (i omitted this because i didn't have any brandy)
3 extra-large eggs
6 extra-large egg yolks
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup heavy cream (this should be whipped and served with the cake, unless you're me. If you're me, include heavy cream with "wet ingredients".)

Preheat the oven to 375.

Brush a 9" round cake pan with olive oil.

Sift the flour and baking baking powder together and then stir in the semolina and salt. Combine 1 cup olive oil and the brandy in a small bowl.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs, yolks, and sugar at a high speed until full volume. (Pale and ribbons.) Remove the bowl from the mixer and alternate folding in the dry and wet ingredients, a third at a time. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Tap the pan a few times on the counter to remove any air bubbles.

Bake about 40 minutes or until the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The cake should be golden brown and spring back when you touch the center. I used a 10" pan and the baking time was markedly less. Cool the cake on a rack for 15 minutes before turning out of the pan.

cake rotation

SO MANY CAKES. These are roughly in the order in which they were made.

lemon-raspberry pound cake: easy to make. Very pink. A bit too sweet for me (especially with the glaze).



These cheesecakes cracked a bit, and so we got to decorate them with chocolate. Trying to do neat stripes failed me, so I went the Pollack route. One of the chefs overheard me talking about me pollack cheesecake and he called out, "you need a cigarette and a shot of whiskey, THEN you'll be doing it right!"



For a cake that gets no respect, Tiger cake is quite delicious. It's pretty easy (no one respects the easy things, eh?) -- just vanilla cake with lemon zest swirled with chocolate cake and then coated in chocolate ganache.



This next cake I tasted when someone else made it and then begged to do it during our rotation. It's a black forest cake-- a devil's food cake flavored with kirsch cherries (in the batter) and then layered and coated with kirsch buttercream. This process taught us to level cakes when slicing layers, to frost, and to make rosettes. And it tastes like heaven. I bought a whole cake.



The outside of the cake is coated in chocolate cake crumbs. This is a useful tactic if your frosting job isn't particularly spectacular. You can also use nuts.



The rosettes are topped with a kirsch cherry (we soaked the dried cherries in kirsch brandy). The frosting swirl in the middle of the cake is actually very hard to do-- you need a very steady hand.



We had made a swiss roll cake (often jellied or something and then rolled up into a log and sliced) but forgot about it in the fridge for a while. We also had some extra devil's food cake and kirsch syrup from the black forest cakes. We made some chocolate mousse and learned to layer. The white layer is the swiss cake, which we soaked with the kirsch syrup to soften it up, and the dark cake is the chocolate-cherry, and then the mousse. Getting mousse layers to be level is quite a challenge.



We decorated one cake to be sold whole (cocoa powder and bits on top) and sliced the rest for individual sale (in background).



The last project was petit-fours for the bakeshop party. This is an opera cake, but a bastardized version. It's a milk chocolate sponge, coffee buttercream, chocolate ganache, and shiny chocolate glaze. i think.



We spent an hour cutting the cake into wee pieces for party serving. It was an extremely rich cake, so the small pieces were for the best.

cookie rotation

I found cookie rotation to the be the most boring of rotations. Generally, cookie baking is about assembling the right ingredients, not overmixing, and then not forgetting that your cookies are in the oven. It's also about knowing when they're ready to come out when you're not using a timer. Some cookies have complicated assembly procedures, but I found these to be generally more trouble than they're worth.

hehe: the 'broken' cookie broke when we tried to take it off the parchment paper.



These cookies are from the first week. From left to right, they are: chocolate decadence, hazelnut butter cookies, white chocolate walnut, and gingersnap.



Despite cookie rotation having a reputation as the 'easiest' rotation, we made a million stupid mistakes the first week- forgetting to double-pan the cookies when they went in the oven so the bottoms didn't burn, forgetting that the cookies were in the oven and overbaking them, etc. There were also failed cookies-- a marscapone/honey filling for a cardamom thumbprint cookie melted all over the pan-- and cookies that no one liked (except the chef, oddly), such as the trail mix cookies below, which contained many varieties of nuts along with golden raisins.



One of the assembly-required cookies was a shortbread and chocolate shortbread checkerboard cookie. I discovered that I like shortbread dough much more than actual shortbread cookies, and in this case, the chocolate dough is less good than the plain. These cookies required that we sheet the dough out thin, trim it evenly, cut precise strips with rulers, and glue them together with water to form a checkerboard log that we could then slice cookies from. Pretty, but extremely time-consuming.



You can also take the two kinds of dough, sort of layer them, and roll them up to slice cookies off. This results in a marbled version that tastes the same and takes about one-twentieth of the time.

For the last several days of the rotation, we made a 'cookie' that was really a cake petit-four, a chocolate-orange ganache layered confection. It involved a japonais, which is like a cross between a sponge cake and a cookie, and a sponge cake, and although our skills were not quite up to the task of these slightly difficult base recipes, we were happy to have moved on from cookies and we also discovered that ganache covers a variety of sins-- especially when spiked with liquor. This was a good transition into my next-- and final-- rotation: cakes!

bread rotation

Bread rotation made me rethink my baker ambitions. I probably sound like a huge wuss, but bread rotation is rough. First quarter students do nothing but assist the second quarter students, who are responsible for doing much of the major production. There may be five products to have out by 1:30pm, and this means that often the second quarter students arrive very early. We lowly assistants were responsible for feeding the levain (the mother dough used for the quarter, or sometimes the whole year+), making starters and poolishes and levains for the next day's bread, mise-en-placing whatever ingredients were needed for the next day's bread, putting things into and taking things out of ovens, and sometimes, if we were lucky, shaping dough. Shaping dough could be a pyrrhic victory, though-- these bastards were a pain in my ass:



They are a multi-strand unusual braid where every strand is actually three. The ends are then tucked underneath to form this monkey's knot.

I didn't take many pictures during this rotation because I didn't feel responsible for anything we made, having been mostly a go-fer for the two weeks. (I did take a picture of my bread knot because I was proud of actually completing the forming process.) The pictures below are of two breads made by an advanced student. The one on the left contains coffee. While I was very excited to try this russian bread, I was not impressed with the flavor. Coffee does not belong in bread, I've decided. On the right is a sourdough.

blood orange tart

This is a variation on a completely delicious lemon curd tart that I made for a dinner party. I love blood oranges and so I wanted to see if using orange would make the tart even *more* delicious.



You can see the blood orange vodka bottle in the background- I had bought an entire bag of blood oranges at the store and was on a bit of a bloody orange bender. While I followed the process for the lemon tart precisely, substituting blood orange juice for the lemon, the tart never set properly. It was always a bit too loose, even after 24 hours, and the color... well, let's just say that the color is probably the reason no one makes these. Eggs, butter and lemon make a vibrant, appealing yellow. Eggs, butter and blood orange made a... well, sort of a pepto-salmon pinky-orange blush hue. Words do not quite suffice.

I covered the top in chocolate shavings to rescue my eyes, but still. Back to lemons it is. For all that, the flavor is okay. Not spectacular. As it turns out, I prefer the contrast of a very tart lemon with the dark chocolate. I'd have a picture of that tart-- I've made it twice with lemon now-- but once sliced, it never lasted long enough to take a picture.

I will find a way to make a blood orange and chocolate tart. Just you wait.

Blood Orange Tart, adapted from Sunday Suppers at Lucques
1 recipe pate sucree (follows below; or use your favorite tart shell recipe)
2 oz bittersweet chocolate
4 extra large eggs
3 extra large egg yolks (I had only large eggs and so used 5 whole eggs and 3 yolks)
1 cup + 1 TBS granulated sugar (I used less; adjust to taste)
1 cup blood orange juice (or meyer lemon, or just plain lemon)
10 TBS cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
pinch of kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream (optional)

NOTE (from Susanne Goin):
This tart should be served cold, so make it at least a few hours before serving. When you make the lemon curd, you need to stir it the entire time. For an ultra-smooth curd, I use both a whisk and a rubber spatula, alternating between the two as I stir. Start with the whisk, and as the mixture begins to get frothy, switch to the spatula (which helps to get rid of the froth), scraping the bottom and sides continuously. Remove the curd from heat and let it cool slightly before pouring it over the hardened chocolate layer. Don't cool the curd completely before pouring or it will lose its nice sheen. You can also make this tart with regular lemon juice.

- Preheat the oven to 375 F.
- Line the tart pan with the pate sucree. Prick the bottom with a fork and line it with coffee filters or parchment paper. Fill the lined tart shell with beans or pie weights and bake 15 minutes, until set. Take the tart out of the oven and remove the weights or beans. Return the tart to the oven for another 10-15 minutes, or until crust is an even golden brown. Set aside on rack to cool completely.
- Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over medium low heat. Spread the chocolate evenly on the crust, and chill in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes, until the chocolate has solidified completely.
- While the crust is chilling, make the curd. Whisk the eggs, egg yolks, sugar, and lemon juice together in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring continuously, alternating between a whisk and a spatula (or just use a whisk), until the lemon curd has thickened to the consistency of pastry cream and coats the back of a spatula/spoon.
- Remove the lemon curd from heat. Add the butter a little at a time, stirring to incorporate completely. Season with the salt.
- Let the curd cool about 8 minutes, then strain it into the prepared tart shell. Chill the tart in the refrigerator.
-Whip the cream to soft peaks and serve with the tart. (optional)

Pate Sucree
(makes enough for two tarts)

This is an easy, excellent pate sucree recipe, but you can use whatever one you like, or a store-bought crust if you're pressed for time.

1/4 cup heavy cream
2 extra-large egg yolks (I use 3 large)
2 3/4 cup + 2 TBS all-purpose flour
1/4 cup + 3 TBS granulated sugar
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 lb unsalted butter

- Whisk the cream and eggs together in a small bowl.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the flour, sugar, salt, and butter on medium speed until you have a coarse meal. Gradually add the cream and yolks and mix until just combined. Do not overwork the dough.
- Transfer the dough to a large work surface and bring it together with your hands to incorporate completely. Divide the dough in half, shape into 1" thick discs, and wrap one to freeze and use later. (You can also line a tart pan and freeze the whole thing that way to be even lazier later.)
- If the dough is too soft, put it in the fridge for 5-10 minutes to firm up. If it is manageable, place it on a lightly floured work surface, sprinkle a bit of flour over the top, and roll it into a 1/4" thick circle, flouring as necessary. Starting at one side, roll/wrap the dough around the rolling pin to pick it up and unroll over a 10" tart pan. Gently fit the dough loosely into the pan, lifting the edges and pressing the dough into the corners/flutes with your fingers. To remove the excess dough, roll the rolling pin over the top of the tart pan for a clean edge, or work your way around the pan, pinching off excess with your fingers.
- Chill for one hour.

challah

I found the recipe!

This is obscenely easy to make, delicious, and makes the best french toast the next day. Just go make it. Right now. You have no excuses. Your friends will be impressed that you can, you know, bake! Even if you've never made bread before, this is entirely possible.

Challah (recipe from my Israeli friends Yoav and Hadar, translated from Hebrew)
NOTE: quantities are in grams.

1 kg flour (2.2lb)
25g yeast (yes, that's a lot. short rise.)
170g sugar (6 oz)
2 eggs
1 3/4 to 2 cups water
118 ml oil (4 oz)
1 TBS salt
1 egg, to wash
poppy or sesame seeds, to sprinkle

-Mix flour and yeast together with a fork or whisk.
-Add everything else (except egg for egg wash and sesame/poppy seeds)
-Mix with dough hook for 7-10 minutes until dough is smooth, shiny, and sticks to the bottom of the bowl.
oil (lightly) the top of the dough and cover (I use a towel) for one hour or until doubled.
-Divide dough into two and divide each half into thirds.
-Roll thirds into ropes and braid them (dough should be a bit sticky).
-Put each loaf onto an oiled pyrex 9 x 13 pan and let rise for 1 hour. Loaf should double in size. Brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with seeds.

Bake at 350 for 30-35 min.


This is the just-braided dough.
You can roll/tuck the ends of the braid under for a more polished look.

viennoiserie

I spent the last two weeks on dough rotation, which was basically viennoiserie-- breakfast pastry. Viennoiserie combines bread and pastry by making sweet yeast doughs. We made danishes, croissants, cinnamon rolls and fritters, using laminated doughs (alternating layers of dough and butter) and sweet dough (for cinnamon rolls). This rotation is tough because laminated doughs are a pain in the ass, and we were always the last ones out of the bakeshop at the end of the day.

This is nothing like baking at home (if you don't own a sheeter--and you don't-- don't bother trying laminated doughs. You will hate your life.)



On the left there is my partner. We work in pairs or in threes on each rotation. It's nice to have company, and she's probably my favorite person. Good to have on the hardest rotation.

This is danish dough rising for pinwheels before it's eggwashed and baked. Look how puffy it gets! That means we didn't fail.



When they're filled (in this case with vanilla pastry cream and orange jam) and baked, they look like this:



This is another shape, but the same idea, filled with lavender pastry cream and orange-lemon marmalade:



This is what I was most terrified of, because all the baking books I have talk about how hard it is: CROISSANTS. It's true that there's a lot to be careful of, and a dough sheeter makes your life better, but overall they weren't that bad. And they turned out lovely. The worst part was obsessive-compulsively watching the convection oven, because that thing sucks and will burn your food just to spite you.



My personal favorite, pain au chocolat:



Bear claws, with a delicious filling of walnut cake blended with hazelnut franigpane and pastry cream:



And the final haul last Friday:



These are a "garbage pastry" in that they use leftover scrap dough (from croissants, danishes, sweet rolls or all three) and just add apples and cinnamon sugar, (and butter. lots of butter.) but I think they might be the tastiest thing we made-- fritters:



cinnamon rolls (these are rather easy and we did them once with vodka apples):

challah

I had a friend who made this bread all the time, and I finally convinced her to translate it from the hebrew for me. So I can promise that it's authentic. And tasty. When it goes stale, it makes the best french toast ever.



Unfortunately, I lost the recipe. Seriously.



So all I can offer you are these drool-inducing photos, and perhaps someday, I'll get that recipe back. Don't worry, I mourn its loss more than you do.