Bread Baking Results - 2024
Listed below are the breads that I baked during the thriteenth year of my bread baking journey.
1/8/2024 Loaves #402, #403, & #404
Emmanuel's Sourdough
Over the holidays, granddaughter Teagan commented that she hadn’t had any of my bread for quite a while. That was all the incentive I needed to do some baking and get her some fresh sourdough bread. I ended up baking 3 loaves, but had an interesting problem along the way. When I adjusted the oven shelves, I managed to get the baking shelf on an angle (sliding one side into a slot higher than the other side). I didn’t notice it until I checked the oven about 10 minutes after placing the dutch oven combo cooker into the oven, only to find the cover had parcially slid off and was pressing the dough to one side (actually I noticed the consequences and wondered how that happened - Roxie noticed the wierd angle of the shelf - thanks Roxie). I corrected the shelf, got the dutch oven combo cooker cover back on, and finished up. Needless to say, I ended up with a very misshaped loaf. The next loaf was shaped much better and that’s the one I sent over to Teagan.
1/16/2024 Loaves #405 & #406
Spent Grain Bread
Mike was planning to brew some Imperial Stout and asked me if I’d like some of the spent grain to make some bread with. I jumped at the idea and Mike pulled off a gallon bag of spent grain shortly after the brew was completed.
I baked 2 loaves. Since we had some fresh bread already, I popped one loaf in the freezer to enjoy later. We went down to Boal City Brewery to meet a couple that Roxie used to work with and I took the other Spent Grain Bread loaf with us and gave it to them to take home.
I baked 2 loaves. Since we had some fresh bread already, I popped one loaf in the freezer to enjoy later. We went down to Boal City Brewery to meet a couple that Roxie used to work with and I took the other Spent Grain Bread loaf with us and gave it to them to take home.
1/19/2024 Loaves #407, #408, & #409
Spent Grain Bread
I still had some left-over spent grain from Mike’s brew of Imperial Stout and decided to bake some more bread with it. Although I often only bake 2 loaves of spent grain during one bake, I decided to increase quantity and bake 3 loaves this time.
We had 2 other couples come over to our Keuka cottage for dinner, so decided to share a loaf of spent grain bread with them when they left following dinner. Both couples reported that they had it as toast the next morning and really enjoyed it. I tried it as toast also and really enjoyed it.
The crumb of the bread wasn’t nearly as crumbly as I seem to recall from prior such bakes using spent grain.
We had 2 other couples come over to our Keuka cottage for dinner, so decided to share a loaf of spent grain bread with them when they left following dinner. Both couples reported that they had it as toast the next morning and really enjoyed it. I tried it as toast also and really enjoyed it.
The crumb of the bread wasn’t nearly as crumbly as I seem to recall from prior such bakes using spent grain.
1/20/2024 'Loaf' #410
Kolsch-Dill Dinner Rolls
We were having two other couples over for dinner and Roxie was making some lasagna. Thinking some bread would go well with the lasagna, I decided to bake some bread. I also had some Boal City Brewery Kolsch beer with me, so ended up baking some Kolsch-Dill dinner rolls.
The procedure I used was fairly easy and quick to pull together. I made 12 dinner rolls that turned out fairly good. The appearance was good and the taste reasonable but, even though others really enjoyed them, I thought that they were somewhat dense and not as fluffy as I had hoped for.
The procedure I used was fairly easy and quick to pull together. I made 12 dinner rolls that turned out fairly good. The appearance was good and the taste reasonable but, even though others really enjoyed them, I thought that they were somewhat dense and not as fluffy as I had hoped for.
1/26/2024 Loaves #411, #412, & #413
Spent Grain Bread
When Mike gave me some spent grain from his brewing of an Imperial Stout, he extracted a galln bag for me. I baked 5 loaves previously from this grain and placed 4-1/2 cups of grain in the freezer to use later. I pulled the grain out of the freezer on a Thursday and baked 3 more loaves of spent grain bread on Friday.
Still having a previously-baked loaf in the freezer, I decided to let others try it out. I gave 1 loaf to Mike & Chris; the second loaf to Mike & Deb; and the third loaf to Dave & Scott at Boal City Brewery to share. I figured the guys serving the beer ought to sample the flavor of the bread baked using the grain from a brew cycle. Since they had to share the loaf, I made a promise to get them their own loaf of bread (perhaps some sourdough) at a later date.
Still having a previously-baked loaf in the freezer, I decided to let others try it out. I gave 1 loaf to Mike & Chris; the second loaf to Mike & Deb; and the third loaf to Dave & Scott at Boal City Brewery to share. I figured the guys serving the beer ought to sample the flavor of the bread baked using the grain from a brew cycle. Since they had to share the loaf, I made a promise to get them their own loaf of bread (perhaps some sourdough) at a later date.
1/30/2024 'Loaf' #414
IPA Cheddar Bread
I received a book for Christmas titled ‘Beer Bread’ and wanted to try another recipe from that book. Since I already had Boal; City Brewery West Coast IPA on tap, I decided to go with a bread based on that beer - IPA Cheddar Loaf.
It was a rather quick and easy procedure to follow. The recipe called for mild cheddar, which I was able to find, and suggested yellow cheddar instead of white cheddar, so that the resultant loaf would have some nice yellow color in it.
The flavor was good, with a nice hint of cheddar but not overpowering. There were lots of holes left in the bread after baking due to the melting of the cheese.
Since I only baked one loaf, I cut it in half and shared one half with Mike, since he had breweed the beer I was using. We ate the other half.
It was a rather quick and easy procedure to follow. The recipe called for mild cheddar, which I was able to find, and suggested yellow cheddar instead of white cheddar, so that the resultant loaf would have some nice yellow color in it.
The flavor was good, with a nice hint of cheddar but not overpowering. There were lots of holes left in the bread after baking due to the melting of the cheese.
Since I only baked one loaf, I cut it in half and shared one half with Mike, since he had breweed the beer I was using. We ate the other half.
1/31/2024 Loaves #415, #416, & #417
Emmanuel's Sourdough
I seem to be on a roll baking different types of bread this month. I had promised to bake some sourdough bread for a couple of the guys down at Boal City Brewery, so decided to get it done while I had some time. I went with the procedure that I seem to always go back to - Emmanuel’s Sourdough. I baked 3 loaves; gave one each to Scott & Dave at Boal City Brewery and kept the third loaf for us to eat.
3/1/2024 Loaves #418, #419, & #420
Emmanuel's Sourdough
We’re running out of bread - egads! I pulled my sourdough starter out of the frig a few days ago and fed it regularly until it was once again strong enough to bake bread with. I baked 3 loaves of Emmanuel’s Sourdough. Following the intial rise, it took close to 5 hours to proof before baking. That’s a little longer than normal, but likely due to the lower house temperature when I started the proofing. I eventually turned on the oven at 170*F and placed the proofing bannetons on top of the stove to get things moving a little quicker. That seemed to help. I shared 1 loaf with Mike, Chris, Teagan & Owen. The 2nd loaf is fready to cut and enjoy. I froze the 3rd loaf for enjoyment later.
3/10/2024 'Loaf' #421
Sesame Flatbread Beer Crackers
We were having two other couples (Mike & Deb and Carrie & Dave) over for dinner and Roxie was making some Greek Pasta. I offered to make an appetizer consisting of a Classic Kentucky Beer Cheese along with some Sesame Flatbread Beer Crackers. Both recipes came from the ’Beer Bread’ book and both used Boal City beers.
The procedure for the crackers was fairly straightforward and didn’t take too long. The resultant dough was very sticky, so I mixed in quite a bit more flour and then kept covering with flour as I rolled it out. The crackers seemed to expand quite a bit, so perhaps next time, use less baking powder. Make sure to roll the dough VERY thin and don’t overbake. One hint: using a bench knife, pre-score the rolled dough in both directions so that it is easier to separate into reasonably shaped crackers after baking.
The procedure for the crackers was fairly straightforward and didn’t take too long. The resultant dough was very sticky, so I mixed in quite a bit more flour and then kept covering with flour as I rolled it out. The crackers seemed to expand quite a bit, so perhaps next time, use less baking powder. Make sure to roll the dough VERY thin and don’t overbake. One hint: using a bench knife, pre-score the rolled dough in both directions so that it is easier to separate into reasonably shaped crackers after baking.
3/15/2024 Loaves #422, #423, & #424
Spent Grain Bread
Mike mentioned that he was planning to brew a Porter upon his return from an Atlanta visit. Since I seem to have good results baking bread using grains from brews that contain a rich combination of malts and grains typically used in stouts, porters, and brown ales, I convinced Mike to pull off some of his spent grain following the brew process.
I picked up the warm grain right after Mike extracted it from the brewing vessel. I portioned it into two batches, each with enough grain to bake 3 loaves of bread. One batch went into the freezer for later and the other was used to bake these 3 loaves.
We will take pone loaf to the lake to share with Betsy & Jasper. I gave the 2nd loaf to Mike and the 3rd loaf to Gordy at the brewery.
I picked up the warm grain right after Mike extracted it from the brewing vessel. I portioned it into two batches, each with enough grain to bake 3 loaves of bread. One batch went into the freezer for later and the other was used to bake these 3 loaves.
We will take pone loaf to the lake to share with Betsy & Jasper. I gave the 2nd loaf to Mike and the 3rd loaf to Gordy at the brewery.
5/10/2024 Loaves #425, #426, & #427
Emmanuel's Sourdough
I had not used my sourdough starter for close to 2 months, so I decided it was time to ‘revive’ it and do some baking.
Following the initial rise, I split the dough into thirds and shaped 2 round balls & 1 oblong piece. I let these proof for around 4-1/2 hours and then started baking. Although all 3 loaves had good oven spring, the oblong loaf didn’t have a large ‘ear’ when completed and seemed rather dense. I suspect this might have to do with me not creating adequate surface tension prior to baking.
We cut right into 1 loaf, gave one to Teagan and Owen, and placed the 3rd loaf in the freezer for later.
Following the initial rise, I split the dough into thirds and shaped 2 round balls & 1 oblong piece. I let these proof for around 4-1/2 hours and then started baking. Although all 3 loaves had good oven spring, the oblong loaf didn’t have a large ‘ear’ when completed and seemed rather dense. I suspect this might have to do with me not creating adequate surface tension prior to baking.
We cut right into 1 loaf, gave one to Teagan and Owen, and placed the 3rd loaf in the freezer for later.