Category: Failures

Gluten-free Sourdough, lacto-fermented zucchini loaf (savory) #2

If the last one was thrown together, this was more of an insouciant blending. I ballsed up the ‘slurry’ again – I decided to mix it in dry but neglected to whisk the flours for a good blend, so I got some clumping. I switched up the starter and made it more of a 100% hydration (typically I have used about 65% hydration).

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups flour mix #2 (with tweaks per prior posts) –
  • 3/4 cup 5/6 day fermented grated zucchini – chilled, so why I am bothering to add this since it should have no active fermentation, I don’t know
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • about a 1/4 cup sugar – I am not sure why I increased this
  • 3/4 cup active (ie just went through a rise & fall cycle) starter
  • 10g / 10g flax / chia ground and added as dry
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger

Method:

I mixed everything together at once, as before, and let it rise 12 hours. There was some, not particularly appreciable activity, and so I baked an hour at 180. Disappointing.

Scraping Bottom

So, a few things done over the past days, but without any glory. To add insult to injury, this morning I just ditched the dough for a loaf – I didn’t bake. If I need bricks, I can easily get them.

I started the week thinking about the inclusion of fermented liquids. It seemed that if my simple ginger bug had worked previously, it might work again – but with increased volume. I popped a piece of ginger root and some sugar with 2 cups of water in a Mason jar and walked away. Bad call. Per this post (and countless others), the process is more active.

I also set up an experiment – honey water (a precursor to mead) but without cultured yeast – I just added a swirl of starter from the spoon leavin’s – about 2 T of natural honey with the 2 cups of water. Early days on that.

Finally I set to making a loaf yesterday with the following:

  • 500g flour mix (3 cups – but decided to start adding in weights)
  • 4.5 oz starter (a good mix of weights & measures to keep you guessing)
  • 1 cup & a splash
  • 45g chia / flax (as 20g chia and 25 flax) – intended to have 20 / 20 but my hand trembled
  • 1 tsp salt

I mixed the dry ingredients (the flax & chia ground in with the flour and salt) and added the water and starter, mixing to a malleable dough. I think this was the start of the problem. The dough should be wet at this stage, and since it wasn’t, I think it was poorly hydrated. The plan was to have it rise 8 hours or so in the bread pan and then bake. Nothing – some very moderate rising activity but basically it sat and soured. This morning I decided I couldn’t face baking it.

I’m going to try the same mix (but with the 5.5oz starter I was using up front) adding more water to get a wet dough and rising in the gastronorm. The other major change has been that I ran out of the local polenta I use (a pair of women in the market place grind it specially for me) and had to buy a dubiously yellow packaged polenta. Not ‘instant’, but certainly not too natural. Organic, for sure.

 

GF Sourdough #2; Focus on Crumb

I’d like to be less impatient, and not change multiple factors – do a solid design of experiment. But I am impatient, so I made more than one change. I added in a flax and chia slurry in place of the xanthan gum etc; I used more water; and I used a stand mixer to beat the wetter dough. Oh, and more butter.

Flour Mix:

  • 3x Buckwheat
  • 1x Soy
  • 2x White Rice
  • 1x Fine Cornmeal
  • 2x Coarse Cornmeal

Starter:

I used the same starter I had previously, now matured well and to the point where it will double after feeding in about 2 hours (at about 75 F)

Bread Ingredients:

  • 3 cups flour mix
  • 1.5 tsp salt
  • 5.5 oz starter
  • 2 oz butter
  • 1.5 cup water (85 F)
  • 15 g chia seeds, 15 g flax seeds, ground and mixed w/ 60 g boiling water and left to cool

Method:

Mix dry ingredients. Rub in butter. Add starter to 1 cup of water and stir to disperse. Add along with flax slurry to dry ingredients and mix for 2.5 minutes in a KitchenAid at second speed. Add enough additional water to make a stiff batter. Set aside to rise in a covered bowl – I used a plastic gastronorm this time in order to have more visibility to the dough during the rise, and placed an elastic band around in order to see the volume shift.

This rose spectacularly – close to doubled in 2-3 hours. However, I left it. After about 6 hours I divided it, managing it with a little flour, and let it rest, whereupon it continued to rise. I heated the dutch oven and carefully transferred the dough for 20 minutes w/ lid on and 20 w/ it off …

Results:

I made big bread-tasting biscuits / cookies! Pictures to follow, but in essence no outer crust formed, and no oven spring occurred. The texture was a loose sponge.

Plus side – flavour was solid, and the ‘crust’ had good colour and flavour. Flax slurry didn’t affect the good taste at all. Starter is mature.

Thoughts: too much water / fat in butter not helping / too long a bulk rise?

Actions: back to 1 cup & a splash, form loaves when at 160% (don’t wait for 200%), remove butter. Yes, multivariate adjustment.

  • Crumb: 1/10 (on cooling, more like a crumbly cake, quite moist, pleasant. Not bready.
  • Flavour: 9/10
  • Crust: 0/10 (no crust!!)

 

 

GF Sourdough, Ginger Bug, Butter ‘n All

It occurred to me to try and follow ‘normal’ recipes as much as possible to start with, in order to have a base. The following was loosely based on one in Bread: A Baker’s Book of Techniques and Recipes (Hamelman) for plain levain-based sourdough.

Flour Mix:

  • 3x Buckwheat
  • 1x Soy
  • 2x White Rice
  • 1x Fine Cornmeal
  • 2x Coarse Cornmeal

Starter:

  • Ginger bug – 1/4 cup water + 2 chunks ginger + 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 1/4 cup flour mix
  • 1/4 cup coarse cornmeal
  • 1/4 cup water

Mix to a very stiff consistency. Let sit for 2 days at room temperature. Feed after 2 days with 1/4 cup flour mix + water from ginger bug. Let sit for 18 hours. Should double in size after about 12 hours and be starting to ‘collapse’ at that point.

Bread Ingredients:

  • 3 cups flour mix
  • 1 tsp xantham gum
  • 1.5 tsp salt
  • 5.5 oz starter
  • c. 1oz butter
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 cup water + a splash (room temp)

Method:

Mix dry ingredients. Rub in butter. Add starter to water and stir to disperse. Add to dry ingredients and knead briefly. Set aside to rise in a covered bowl.

After 18 hours, shape with care (this could be done ahead of time) and bake as follows:

Heat dutch oven at full (450 For close to it) for 40 minutes (at least). Place dough in lid and body over the top. 20 mins at full and then 20 without the lid.

Results:

  • Flavour: excellent (8/10)
  • Crust: superb (9/10)
  • Crumb: awful (0/10)

Basically, no rise or spring at all. Plan is to try and use flax / chia to get a good risen loaf, then adjust for flavour.