Cooking thread, anyone?

[Whitenuckler]

Sourdough.


Similar here. The starter gets fed once a week. We're fortunate to have superb quality flour available that is locally (western WA) grown but we're open to different ideas and methods. We should compare recipes.

I made up my own recipe and method but it is based on many hours of research starting from when I made my own starter. Once I had the starter I did trial and error and do this each time:
Day before baking: Plug in seedling heater in cupboard to make my proofing box
Around noon take my starter out of the fridge. Let it warm up for an hour on the counter.
Feed the starter - I have weighed all my containers empty and have the weights recorded. Double what is there, ie if I have 50 grams of starter I add 25g flour and 25g water. Let it sit on the counter
A few hours later I start a sponge. I use half my starter, and then make a total of 350g of new starter. Return my starter to the fridge.
Proof the sponge overnight in the cupboard. The next morning it is ready.
Day of baking - starting after coffee
Pour the sponge into my mixing bowl and weigh to see exactly how much I have. I am never under weight, always over
Add and mix in 390g water. The water has been sitting out on the counter in a Brita.
Add 300g Whole Wheat and 300g of White. I am using Organic flour I get from Walmart of all places.
Mix and cover and place in my cupboard. Measure out 12g salt.
30 minutes later add salt and work it in by hand
Two to three stretches spaced out every 30 minutes.
Form into a "ball" and place in my proofing container lined with parchment paper
Let it rise all afternoon. Bake at 400F for 40 minutes in a covered crockpot.
Cool on a rack for the rest of the night (I have been asked to serve hot bread but I refuse)

 

[Whitenuckler]

I made up my own recipe and method but it is based on many hours of research starting from when I made my own starter. Once I had the starter I did trial and error and do this each time:
Day before baking: Plug in seedling heater in cupboard to make my proofing box
Around noon take my starter out of the fridge. Let it warm up for an hour on the counter.
Feed the starter - I have weighed all my containers empty and have the weights recorded. Double what is there, ie if I have 50 grams of starter I add 25g flour and 25g water. Let it sit on the counter
A few hours later I start a sponge. I use half my starter, and then make a total of 350g of new starter. Return my starter to the fridge.
Proof the sponge overnight in the cupboard. The next morning it is ready.
Day of baking - starting after coffee
Pour the sponge into my mixing bowl and weigh to see exactly how much I have. I am never under weight, always over
Add and mix in 390g water. The water has been sitting out on the counter in a Brita.
Add 300g Whole Wheat and 300g of White. I am using Organic flour I get from Walmart of all places.
Mix and cover and place in my cupboard. Measure out 12g salt.
30 minutes later add salt and work it in by hand
Two to three stretches spaced out every 30 minutes.
Form into a "ball" and place in my proofing container lined with parchment paper
Let it rise all afternoon. Bake at 400F for 40 minutes in a covered crockpot.
Cool on a rack for the rest of the night (I have been asked to serve hot bread but I refuse)

We had some rain and cooler temperatures today so I did some baking. I made a new formula for 70% Whole Wheat. Since I use white flour for my starter and sponge, I might need only to buy equal quantities. I included a picture of the sponge right after pouring it into my mixing bowl. Made a 3 pound loaf. 200g White, 450g Whole Wheat, 420g water, 350g sponge, 12g salt.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

My kid wanted to make some blueberry muffins for a friend’s birthday party. We ground soft white, einkorn, and spelt berries for the flour. They came out great!

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Cooked a loaf of banana today. Soft white, einkorn and spelt.

I went to refill my jars with new berries and found 2 un labeled bags. I THINK they are soft white, but could be hard white, or even hard red. I’m not sure the difference that my eyes pick out carry from batch to batch, lol. I remember seeing the full tub of the berries (that they’re usually out of) at the coop and thinking I should load up while they have it. I suppose I can just stop by the coop more and see what they’re always out of in order to confirm what it is, lol.

Or even mix it into recipes a little at a time.

 

[begreen]

The secret sauce

 

[Whitenuckler]

Cooked a loaf of banana today. Soft white, einkorn and spelt.

I went to refill my jars with new berries and found 2 un labeled bags. I THINK they are soft white, but could be hard white, or even hard red. I’m not sure the difference that my eyes pick out carry from batch to batch, lol. I remember seeing the full tub of the berries (that they’re usually out of) at the coop and thinking I should load up while they have it. I suppose I can just stop by the coop more and see what they’re always out of in order to confirm what it is, lol.

Or even mix it into recipes a little at a time.

I'd like to try some of your grains. I can get some milled by owner organic wheats here, but Einkorn is a special strain right?
What did the people in the fertile crescent grow? I understand they switched from animal based food to wheat. Same in Egypt too.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Home

“Barnyard Organics specializes in high quality milling wheat, oats and soybeans. 100% organic, and ready to supply any home looking for whole grains for sprouting, home-milling or otherwise.“

These guys look like they have berries and shouldn’t be far from you! If you can, mill your own. There are a lot of nutrients that oxidize out within 24 hours of grinding. I have a cheap impact grinder off Amazon that cost something like $30. There are better ones out there, but I haven’t been able to kill the cheapie yet.

I think einkorn, rye, etc are probably originally weeds that people decided to start cultivating. Wiki says that it was found on Otzi, so it’s been in cultivation for many thousands of years. Each type of berry has certain traits, flavors and nutritional content. If you can’t get a certain type, I’d just start where you can and then keep adding to what you have. In general the hards are for yeast breads, softs are for non yeast stuff.

Here’s a few things that were passed to me that’ll help choosing and avoid grinding out too many berries.

Ask lots of questions, I’ll answer if I know, lol.

 

[Whitenuckler]

We had some rain and cooler temperatures today so I did some baking. I made a new formula for 70% Whole Wheat. Since I use white flour for my starter and sponge, I might need only to buy equal quantities. I included a picture of the sponge right after pouring it into my mixing bowl. Made a 3 pound loaf. 200g White, 450g Whole Wheat, 420g water, 350g sponge, 12g salt.

Just cut up my bread and tried some. Very good. I will be making this from now on. I can taste the difference having more whole wheat. This summer I will do more checking on what I can get for wheat that I can grind myself. I used to have a grinder when I made Almond butter.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I just checked and Azure standard sells and sources wheat berries in Canada. Our good friends buy through Azure in bulk. I just get mine at a localish coop. I take my kid hippie watching. I started a conversation once about grinding cinnamon sticks with the grains and gathered like 5 or 6 people listening in and commenting. It was a blast! Lol

 

[Whitenuckler]

I just checked and Azure standard sells and sources wheat berries in Canada. Our good friends buy through Azure in bulk. I just get mine at a localish coop. I take my kid hippie watching. I started a conversation once about grinding cinnamon sticks with the grains and gathered like 5 or 6 people listening in and commenting. It was a blast! Lol

I looked at that website for Barn Yard Organics. I have not called them yet. I need a little education first. What do I needto get that I can grind myself? Does it need processing first to get rid of the husk? I found out there is a mill in NB called

Home - The Speerville Flour Mill

www.speervilleflourmill.ca

Bard Yard supplies them. I think I could get some flour of theirs at the Superstore.
In the end could I buy a large quantity of grain to mill or would it go bad?
I don't think Azure has much Canadian stuff. What about this:

Grains & Cereals

Discover Storehouse Foods' Grains & Cereals Collection, where wholesome, organic goodness meets your table. From hearty oats to ancient grains, our selection is perfect for nourishing meals and delightful, back-to-basics cooking. Embrace health with every bite!

storehousefoods.ca

 

[EatenByLimestone]

The grains and cereals place looks like it has everything you’d need for grains. I think I started with hard red, soft white, and hard white. You can pretty much do everything with that, then you get curious and start adding in other stuff. You start wondering if the bread would be better if it had a buttery taste. The next time you make it, you substitute in some Kamut. Have fun. For me it’s a health thing. I started noticing changes immediately.

Here’s my mill. It grinds about a cup of berries in each cycle. Putting more in it and I think it has trouble grinding it fine. Fine vs coarse doesn’t matter as much in bread and cakes as it does in things like pancakes. The husks look weird on the bottom of the pancake batter bowl, lol.

https://www.amazon.com/INSELY-Grinder-Stainless-Seasonings-Electric/dp/B0CNY2PPJ7

I have the 300g version. I think I’d get the 550 now. I bet the bigger would grind about 1.5 cups of berries per cycle. I just dump the whole berry in. It all grinds down and adds to the nutrients and fiber. Some pre sprout the berries. I never have done that.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

The berries don’t go bad. I’m sure they would eventually, but a year or 2 and they still have their nutrients.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Just bought approx 7lbs of Kamut and spelt.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Just bought approx 7lbs of Kamut and spelt.

I reached a bit of a dead end buying wheat for now. The one farm said they will have Acadia Red in the fall. I can buy already milled good flour though. I might get some of that for a change. Making a loaf today. My last 70% WW formula worked good.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

If it’s not sifted, you’ll still get the fiber and such from it. I’m sure the taste will be the same.

 

[Whitenuckler]

If it’s not sifted, you’ll still get the fiber and such from it. I’m sure the taste will be the same.

Here is the company who is collecting the wheat and milling it: They are in New Brunswick. I actually saw some bags
of a few types in my Sobeys in the Pharmacy.

Products | The Speerville Flour Mill

Choosing Speerville Flour Mill products is an investment in nutritious, natural food. Browse our flour, oat and grain selection below!

www.speervilleflourmill.ca

Does sifting remove the husks? From what I am told it's harder to make good bread with whole wheat flowers as it punctures the CO2 bubbles causing a flat rise. I rarely try 100% whole wheat as I like a light texture with lots of air pockets.
My loaf yesterday turned out good. I find I don't need to let it rise as much as I did. You get a further rise in the dutch oven before the yeast dies.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I have to admit I’m not the best at making yeast breads yet. I like them, my kid likes them, but my wife likes the store bought better.

I don’t have that with the pastry type stuff. That goes pretty fast. My wife keeps buying more and more bananas, then hinting that they’re getting too ripe.

 

[NickW]

I don't make "real" bread, but the sweet breads are also popular here. Banana bread with white chocolate chips, zucchini bread (the crushed pineapple recipe), and Amish cinnamon bread. We've tweaked the Amish bread recipe by using different pudding flavors besides the typical vanilla called for in the recipe. Strawberry and pistachio are both better than the original.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Cinnamon bread?

I have 5 zucchini plants in this year. I may be making pickles and zucchini bread this year, lol. Then again, with this crazy weather, I might get all male flowers, lol

 

[begreen]

For yeasted, sandwich breads, a good bread machine can make good quality yeasted loaves quickly. My wife relied on one while the kids grew up. She was trained as a professional baker, but just didn't have the time back then. The other thing that helps is a good bread knife that makes slicing easy and predictable. I got one with a guide so that the slices were uniform.

 

[Whitenuckler]

I have to admit I’m not the best at making yeast breads yet. I like them, my kid likes them, but my wife likes the store bought better.

I don’t have that with the pastry type stuff. That goes pretty fast. My wife keeps buying more and more bananas, then hinting that they’re getting too ripe.

You make sour dough bread right? That's a yeast bread that rises. I probably am getting yeast from my homemade beer too.

 

[begreen]

You make sour dough bread right? That's a yeast bread that rises. I probably am getting yeast from my homemade beer too.

Sourdough is not a yeasted bread like commercial yeast. Standard baking yeast is a different animal strain.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Sourdough is not a yeasted bread. Yeast is a different animal.

I think I know what you mean...the yeast they use at they bakery is not the natural yeast found on the grain in the field.
A sourdough starter is a culture of wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria that is used to leaven (raise) bread and other baked goods.

 

[begreen]

I think I know what you mean...the yeast they use at they bakery is not the natural yeast found on the grain in the field.
A sourdough starter is a culture of wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria that is used to leaven (raise) bread and other baked goods.

Yes, that's exactly right, different strains. I clarified my statement. Commercial yeast is more predictable and imparts a different flavor to the bread. Both are good, though sourdough is more work. Commercial yeast make bread making faster and easier. So much so that the process can be automated.

 

[Whitenuckler]

Yes, that's exactly right, different strains. Commercial yeast is more predictable and imparts a different flavor to the bread. Both are good, though sourdough is more work. Commercial yeast make bread making faster and easier. So much so that the process can be automated.

I read that the sourdough yeast gets rid of most of the gluten too. Remember the Wheat Belly book
Sourdough bread, while not gluten-free, generally has a lower gluten content compared to other breads due to the fermentation process, where bacteria break down some of the gluten. However, it's still not considered gluten-free as it contains residual gluten, typically not reaching the 20ppm limit for gluten-free labeling