yes, you read me correctly, it's Dump Bread! or respectively everything i had in the kitchen put into a bread. i've got quite a story to tell - but let's get the ingredients and ratios out of the way first, shall we.
specific ingredients used
sponge:
king arthur natural unbleached white whole wheat flour
hodgson mill natural 100% stone ground rye flour
bob's red mill vital wheat gluten flour
80% hydration multigrain wild yeast culture (starter)
boiled and filtered tap water
soaker:
rolled oats
steel cut oats
brown flax seeds
toasted sesame seeds
black rice
caraway seeds
fennel seeds
boiled and filtered tap water
final dough:
king arthur natural unbleached white whole wheat flour
hodgson mill natural 100% stone ground rye flour
hodgson mill organic whole grain whole wheat flour
bob's red mill vital wheat gluten flour
fleishmann's instant dry yeast (my batch used approx 5 tsp or 2 packets)
sea salt (approx 7 tsp)
unsalted butter (approx 2 tbsp)
unsalted butter (approx 2 tbsp)
boiled and filtered tap water
all of sponge
all of soaker
toppings:
egg wash
sesame seeds
sunflower seeds
rye and whole wheat flour
wheat bran
in previous postings i've detailed my first workings with wild yeast and had mentioned separating my starter into two different consistencies - a light starter fed only rye and white flour - a grainy starter fed rye and whole wheat flour as well as bulghur wheat. since then, i've used both starters to make 6 different batches and put some of each away in the fridge. bytheway, i found some side projects for the starter you have to discard at each feeding - sourdough pancakes are quite easy and very delicious, the light starter i have works best for this as the grainy starter leaves itself too chewy. also tried crackers but nothing amazing there. all the while, my sitting culture of grainy starter has been fed a veritable cornucopia of ingredients - let my see if i can recall each...
rye flour
whole wheat flour
bulghur wheat (or cracked wheat)
cornmeal
cut oats
rolled oats
wheat bran
100% wheat cereal
some scraps from toppings that fell off loaves prior to baking, sesame seeds, flax seeds, chopped pecans, various other flours
...i basically have been trying to see what these guys will eat. i'm carelessly noting when their activity slows after feeding a different ingredient. the sturdy base of every feeding is equal parts rye and whole wheat and then i have a "grain du jour" for the the yeast's bounty. i've been feeding once a day, normally. if i see the starter looking weak, i'll feed a second time in the day. i had the constant urge to push the starter to it's edge of sustainability. so after a week of feeding this chaotic blend, i find they eat most anything i put in. cornmeal and rolled oats resulted in a decrease in activity but the starter was easily rejuvenated with a straight shot of rye. bulghur wheat seems to make the yeast very active but it makes the starter chunky and doesn't form a nice fluffy texture - i've staggered the days i feed bulghur wheat in between other ingredients to counter act. so you should be getting the idea why this is a "dump" bread.
it's the prefect bread to bake after a few months of insane self-schooling. i have about a dozen different bags from the bulk section that are running thin on their original fill - and rather than dumping more money at the store, right now i'll dump as much as what i got at hand - i figure this is the premise in which many a great bread had been conceived ages before i was but a blip on google's radar - i can only hope to gain a glimpse at the old world for i'm too spoiled with our well stocked stores and piped in fire. though i can honestly admit - creating this bread was one of the most difficult exercises since i first tried baguettes (and then immediately tried again). through the dumping process of this batch's creation, i dumped fresh ideas into my brain and ran with a few trials of new methodology. this time around i adapted the Sourdough Multigrain Bread from "Advanced Bread and Pastry", explained by dmsynder from The Fresh Loaf blog. to fit my available grains and starter, i took a general tweaking to the ingredient ratios he gives but decided to follow the method exactly as prescribed - i don't think i've ever followed a recipe's method, ever - but ya know, why be such a smartass all the time - i might learn something. this method calls for the longest pre-ferment time i've ever employed at 12 hours. the recipe also calls for instant yeast, which i first cringed at - i mean, i got the starter going like mad, why are we spiking the dough? i learned to stop worrying and love the bomb - i did as the recipe asks and added the instant yeast. in this batch i also gave myself a workout with the slam/fold kneading technique, which is all the rage now, thought ya knew - this multi grain dough, however, is not your typical french fluff - it is dense and and gritty and mean - it called me names and insulted my mother - in other words, not the best batch to test my newly discovered tactics in kneading. these efforts also mark my first use of a soaker, of which uses rice - a new ingredient to my baker arsenal.
i photo-documented a few moments of my madness - the act itself another challenge with dough-covered hands. i have arranged the photos through the method run down and will elaborate when i feel appropriate. to save space on this post, i've minimized some of the photos - clicking on any image will link to an enlargement.
i photo-documented a few moments of my madness - the act itself another challenge with dough-covered hands. i have arranged the photos through the method run down and will elaborate when i feel appropriate. to save space on this post, i've minimized some of the photos - clicking on any image will link to an enlargement.
above is the starter i'm working with - note the large chunks from the various ingredients i've been feeding the culture. this starter began it's day at about 50% hydration and i want to get it up to about 80%. without discarding any of the starter, i added more water and a small amount of rye flour to encourage activity. the starter sat for about 3 hours and took on a softer texture with more bubbles. at this time i mix the sponge ingredients until just combined and cover for 12 hrs. i've already gotten my proportions down by first measuring the amount of grains i have for the soaker as these are my most limited resource. i apply the ratios depicted in the graphs but to be specific about the soaker, i used equal amounts of the rolled oats, steel cut oats, brown flax seeds, toasted sesame seeds and black rice - i only sprinkled the caraway and fennel seeds. below is the sponge and the soaker after 12 hours
to start mixing, blend flours together with dry yeast and salt
mix most of final water until current ingredients are combined
add all of sponge and mix until mid-level gluten development is reached
below is when i stopped mixing in the bowl and turned the dough out to knead. note: if someone were to replicate this method and use an electric mixer, i would advise to autolyse before kneading (let the dough sit for 20 mins).
kneading this mass took me about 30 minutes before i was ready to incorporate the soaker
as i said before, this dough a pain in the ass to work
but trapping air and folding gets the job done eventually
the thing i love most about working with a starter is the expansion of time - when i work with dry yeast, i feel so rushed - having to make a benchmark time so the newly rejuvenated yeast doesn't run out of steam. with a starter, time becomes all too abstract - the yeast have been living and active in the starter for quite some time and have become a hardy stock - they'll put up with all the abuse you can dish out until the inferno.
i introduced the soaker to the dough as a continuation of the kneading process. the soaker contains a considerable amount of the recipe's water - when adding the soaker, it will seem as if the dough is falling apart. i dusted flour into the dough as i folded the soaker in and continued to knead. i first i wasn't sure i needed to add all the soaker, afraid that too much water was being added at this stage - although, i eventually got all the soaker in the dough which returned to it's appropriate texture - which is still kind of wet and sticky.
now ferment the dough for 2 hours with folds after one hour
below is the dough at the beginning of fermentation
and this is the dough, risen significantly, after one hour
to fold the dough, i reach under the dough ball in the bowl and pull it's underside around to the top and then turn it out onto my work surface.
i fold the dough in every direction - at the same time i'm stretching it and being sure to trap air inside the dough.
this step should not take long, shape the dough ball again and return to it's bowl.
after another hour, the dough has risen back to it's bulk prior to the "punch-down".
i quickly knead the dough, first gently folding it as i did earlier, then roughing it up for a few seconds - now the dough feels like what i'm used to with dry yeast - not nearly as sticky or wet as it was pre-fermentation.
now i divide the dough ball - you can call me a hippie if you want, i've been called worst - i like to divide my dough into a peace sign to judge the sizes of each loaf.
i usually proportion my batches to produce two large boules and two small batards.
this time, i have a very large batch (somehow i've got more dough than usual while using just the scraps of my kitchen). so with this large batch, i'll try another untested practice and will save one of the large boules in the freezer
i divide dough for 1 large boule, 2 small batards and 1 small boule
a quick preshape and then a 20 min bench rest
the first picture below shows the 4 preshaped balls slightly expanded
i shape the four loaves and place them in proofing baskets, pictured second
i proofed these loaves for only 50 minutes - proofing has taken up to 2 hours for previous starter based breads i've baked
preheat the oven to 450º F, ready stones and steam
below is a shot of my preoven work area, quite cramped but it works
the sifter is full of the same rye flour and whole grain whole wheat flour listed in the ingredients.
i use semolina flour to powder the bottom of the loaves and rest them on parchment paper.
you can see i use a haik for brushing the egg wash and an exacto knife to score the loaves. is it obvious i went to art school?
i prep all loaves before putting anything in the oven
there's no rush here and with small conventional ovens like mine, it's best to start all loaves at once
each of the four loaves have a different topping.
the fat batard is given sunflower seeds with a second coat of egg wash
the longer batard has sesame seeds
the small boule has wheat bran
and the large boule is given a heavy dusting of flour from the sifter
once the loaves enter the oven, i pour hot water into a tray of water that was placed in the oven when preheating. the loaves are baked at as high a temperature my oven will get (usually in the range of 400-450º F) for 10 minutes.
after these first ten minutes, i remove the water tray and lower the temperature so that the oven doesn't go above 400º F for the remainder of the baking time.
below is what the loaves look like after the first 10 minutes, the second is another ten minutes later
and yes, that is a shattered baking stone - a fantastic improvement to my oven feng shui that happened last week - if you'll notice that i remove the parchment paper from underneath the loaves and start moving them in the oven as the heat is inconsistent - i want an evenly toasted crust and especially no burnt spots.
my oven will take 20 additional minutes after i remove the steam to bake the loaves completely.
i like to let the loaves sit in the oven for a spell, with the flames off and the door ajar, so the loaves begin a gradual cool down.
i will vow not to slice a loaf until no less than 4 hours after baking - ive learned time and time again to let bread do it's thing but it's always so hard to wait this last stretch
and that's the whole process right there, folks - my, am i hungry...
one of the best crumbs i've produced yet - the white specs are the inside of the black rice grains. the bread cuts perfectly, not getting hung up on anything - all the grains are well integrated into the gluten strands, not one ingredient stands out and dominates the flavor or texture. aside from the crust, the black rice is the hardest thing about the bread but they are soft enough for a pleasurable chew. the sesame seeds and flax seeds are there if you look for them. the oats seem to be completely absorbed within the greater dough - their ghostly presence is quite essential. the small addition of fennel and caraway seeds i believe was a wise choice - the aromatic nature of these herbs could of been overpowering in larger proportions. i've always had a habit of short-changing the salt in my bread. this bread has the most salt i've ever given bread and after seeing and tasting the final result, i'll stop being so paranoid about the amount of salt per batch. the sunflower seeds make a great topping and don't fly off the crust when i cut a slice, thanks to the second application of the eggwash. i'll probably gift the larger boule and the handsome batard so i can't give a report on how those toppings worked out.
by kevin walsh, 2010
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