Jul 15 2009
Breadbaking and timekeeping
This is one of those I should have been doing this ages ago posts that will have other people rolling their eyes and muttering “well, yeah”.
Last week I made a batch of low-yeast bread which was allowed to develop over the course of an evening. I moulded them and let them prove overnight in the fridge.
Not only was it easier and less hassle to bake first thing in the morning but I also had the satisfaction of making some of the nicest loaves I’ve made in a while. Helen and I took a baguette each and a box of sandwich ingredients to work, which also cut down on my effort in the morning. No more making sandwiches!
I’ve been too busy to do this again lately — I tried again on Sunday but the yeast was more active than I assumed it would be and it would have been over-proved after a night on its own. So I just baked that night. But I’m looking forward to doing this again.
9 Responses to “Breadbaking and timekeeping”
Well I’ve never got round to it yet so don’t beat yourself up I must try sometime soon
yeah, but you find it much easier to get out of bed in the morning (or at least, much harder to stay in bed!) than Dougal, so I expect that helps! Also, we eat home made sandwiches for lunch almost every day and so get through a frankly staggering amount of bread. Needs must and all that….
Dougal, nice blog, and just the spirit! I love fresh bread in the morning, but admit to lazyness and use of the old bread making machine for overnight baking.
What’s the point about this being low yeast I wonder? Just to keep the dough at bay when it droves over night, or what?
Errr. I suppose the dough will prove rather than “drove,” of course.
w7, you’re absolutely right. I’ve tried using “normal” quantities of yeast overnight but even the cold fridge doesn’t stop the dough over-proving. And unless it’s in a loaf tin it becomes very difficult to manoeuvre into the oven!
OK, at least there is no claim of yet another health scare through too much yeast. I usually make my non-breadmaker bread alongside with the cooking, or just during the day in time for our supper, so have no need for taming the dough over night.
One of the many delights of working from home. A bit of dough-making here, a bit of work, a bit of working the dough, a bit of work, a bit of baking, …
oooh, don’t, you’ll make him awfy jealous!
I’m with you, Dougal. Good bread dough, like curry, has to be left overnight before it fulfils its lip-smacking potential.
And bread is being Chorleywooded along so quickly that the taste is being completely left behind, and people are growing up not really knowing what bread tastes like.
Yay for all things slow.
This morning’s loaves were, if I do say so myself, disturbingly good.