Bake your bread, make your desserts 2020

Thank you! I recall you had a LOT of flour… hope you’re still enjoying using it!

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Pumpkin muffins. My sisters recipe and the baking papers from my Aunt.

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Ok, I may have gone nuts, but I’m going to try making bagels tonight. (Emboldened / crazed by the recent bread successes…)

Anyone been down this path and have advice for me?

The SE recipe uses tangzhong (by another name), but I’m not kneading or breaking someone else’s FP over this.

Thinking of adapting it to the no-knead bread method (given that they have an excellent NKB recipe, I’m mildly annoyed they haven’t yet done a bagel version).

So maybe the same recipe, shape and cold rise overnight, boil and bake in the am…

Suggestions? Advice?

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Never made bagels but wishing you the best of luck. It sounds fun!

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Well, I’m in it now… into the fridge overnight :crossed_fingers:

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This thread may help!

Aha! Thank you! I was to tired to search yesterday… sorry!

So this was pretty exciting!

Despite some skepticism (dough turned out too soft, didn’t rise like bread, holes looked too big, and so on) these turned out GREAT!

Chewy and delicious. Better than anything I’ve eaten from the store here, and many bad/bready bagels I’ve eaten even in nyc.

Highly recommend trying these at home if you haven’t already.

I used a combination of SE/Alexandra cooks with adaptations for ingredients and method both (no machinery or kneading, no bread flour, no barley malt). In forgot the egg wash.

Still, very chewy, and the right flavor. Very exciting! (I’m being chastised for making a measly half recipe for 4 bagels turned into 5… my tester was promptly confiscated by small people for a “taste” but never came back…)

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They’re gorgeous!!

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My risen dough has stuck to my banneton when I didn’t use enough flour on the basket (regular hour, 90 min rise) and also when I used plenty of flower but did a much longer rise in the basket, in the fridge. I think over a period of many hours, the dough somehow absorbs the flour at the contact spots, and perhaps no amount is enough. So I would probably just avoid rising in a banneton for a very long period of time i.e. upwards of 2-3 hrs.

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Wow, any tips?

I’m sure the banneton needs to be seasoned… I wet it, coated it with flour, and let it sit in the sun. Let’s see. The bread recovered, so I’m not too afraid about trying it again!

I think my main tip is not to take any of the “must do”s too seriously.

Aside from that, I subbed molasses for the barley malt, and used some in the dough as well as in the water for boiling.

IMO the SE recipe has an unhelpful tangzhong (“yukone”) method - it’s way too much of the total flour. I usually use 1/4c flour mixed into 1/4c water and gently cooked to a still-soft paste in the microwave or on the stove, then mix in the rest of the water slowly to dissolve (so the gelatinized flour gets well-distributed through the dough).

I let autolysis do the kneading work… so rested the dough for an hour after mixing initially (I did bloom the yeast first). Then folded a few times before dividing and shaping. Into the fridge for an overnight rest. Boiled and baked in the morning. Really chewy bagels, so the kneading wasn’t missed.

If you’re using toppings, what worked for me was using a bowl just larger than the bagel - sprinkle a bit into the bowl, plop the damp bagel in after it’s boiled, sprinkle some more on top, and then move to the parchment-lined baking sheet. Saves flipping the wet bagel or handling it too much.

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Thanks. I would like to try. If I run 1/2 a recipe do any of your adjustments need to change?

No, I did 1/2 a recipe myself (4 bagels).

Forgot - I did the ball method for shaping, not the rope method. Oil your hands, roll in your palms or on the counter.

We have achieved Peak Bread, we’ve decided.

Another simple no-knead boule for the weekend. I forgot to start it on wed or thurs so no cold rise this time. Tangzhong, AP only (forgot the ww).

Half gone to fri afternoon snacking, so maybe there will be another round of baking tomorrow.

Happy Friday!


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My first attempt at a Pullman-style loaf.

Late night baking session because the kitchen was otherwise occupied for most of the day.

The last (so f at) of the new toys - a small Pullman loaf pan.

I was distracted (by small people) while making the dough, and messed up the recipe a bit. Forgot to account for the flour I used in the tangzhong (which I made this morning when I started the process, before the kitchen became unavailable). That was one of a few stumbles. Final was that the bread was not in the least bit browned at the end of the baking time, even though the internal temp was right. So, broil.

Still, it wasn’t a complete loss, I’m hoping - it smells pretty good, and looks only half bad :rofl: Fingers crossed.

ETA: Couldn’t resist… tastes good! Will try to get the full square shape next time (and actually follow instructions :joy:).

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Salted choc chunk shortbread cookies — except I forgot the salt on top…
Three ways: choc chunks, chocolate jimmies and cocoa nibs. I tried the jimmies just for visuals but found I really liked them. The nibs were good but would have been better if I had caramelized them

first.

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Never thought to use sprinkles.