Mutant Loaf Takes Over

This is what happens when you do not flour your bannetone well during the dough's second rising. You get a dough that will not release from the basket, resulting in a mutant loaf.

We'll call this loaf, Fred. No, Fred is not the name of a bad ex-boyfriend or the black sheep of the family. "Fred" is just a name I picked out of thin air, so please accept my apologies if "Fred" happens to be your loving husband or your cherished son. I'm sure that your Fred is very handsome.

What my Fred lacks in looks, he makes up for in (you guessed it!) personality. Now 25 days old, Bertha has grown more complex and she is making bread that has good chew and, most importantly, a nice tang. This loaf tastes like French pain au levain! Fred is delicious! It took a little over 3 weeks, but my starter, a little salt, water, and flour has finally resulted in some bread that is kick ass, if I may say so myself.

I just wished I had floured my bannetone better. Drats.

More bread musings: as much as I enjoy kneading bread by hand, using a mixer to do most of the job results in a much better product for me. Why? Because I add just barely enough flour for the dough to become a ball. It's a wet, sticky dough that is hard for me to handle. I let the mixer do most of the work, then take it out and knead it for, at most, 3 minutes. Even after the dough is mixed well, it is hard for me to handle. Sticky and wet are good things for a dough to be, for they will result in a loaf of bread that is chewy and full of holes instead of a paperweight.

The tutorial is coming soon! I'm thinking about doing it in parts, so those of you who want to follow along may do so. We'll have our own bread along! It would be really cool if we could all post pics and our notes in our respective blogs. If you're game, let me know in the comments section and I'll link you so others can follow your progress. We can decide on a start date together Tuesdays are a good start day because Tuesday through Thursday, you make your chef from scratch. On Friday, you transform your chef into a starter. On Saturday... BREAD!

Meet Bertha

She's my spanking new sourdough starter. Here is her 2 day old picture.

You must excuse her because, um, she's a little gassy. Tomorrow, she'll be mature enough to raise her very own loaf of bread. Sniff, they grow up so fast!

I've been kick started into making my own bread again, partially because I am unwilling to pay over $5 a loaf for the breads I love, and although I do adore Italian rustic loaves that I can whip up in less than a day, my heart belongs to French levains. Levains have so much more flavor, so I decided to get back into sourdough mode. Please, don't ask what happened to my previous starter, Martha. We don't speak of her anymore.

Last night, I was craving bread but Bertha was not ready. Pitas to the rescue! What else to eat with babaganoush? (Sorry, guys!) It was my first time making pita bread, and it was relatively quick and easy compared to most yeasted breads. As you can see, though, I need practice on rolling things into round shapes.

I also need to pay attention more and not go running for the camera when one of my pitas successfully puffs. Doing so results in boob shaped pitas. I presented this one to the boy.


They were so, so good. I'll be making them again! I also want to try making Indian flatbreads because the instant gratification is bliss.