I was busy all day on the jeep. Progress was steady and the unusual lack of swearing suggests it was a successful day! I will have pics and a report in the next couple of days.
On another note, I’ve been experimenting with no-kneed, no commercial yeast breads over the past few weeks. Right now I’m using a strain of sourdough from the San Francisco area. Besides the sourdough, there’s only salt, water and flour. I bake at 455 degrees in a thick ceramic backing dish with a lid.
So far, the results have been great! Check out that last batch here:
I’m going to ‘grow’ a few more starters and try some more complex combinations of flour. I will also be trying a dutch oven in our regular oven to see if that produces a slightly different flavor from the ceramic baking dish. I’ve just ordered both of Chad Robertson’s books as a happy-birthday-to-me gift (bday is later this week) to help expand my repartoire: Tartine Bread & Tartine Book No 3. Stay tuned!
Wow! I’d eat that. Those look great.
A man of true many talents.
Your next big step will be a wood fired oven for the back yard. And when you make that step, you’ll start making sourdough rolls, in addition to the whole loaves. You’ll find other uses for the hot oven once you’re done the bread, like casseroles, or with more wood for a hotter oven, pizza.
Good bread and baking have always been a passion of mine although I haven’t been successful. On the other hand, Dave it looks like you’ve mastered the art.
Looks great but to much of that and you will not fit behind a CJ2 wheel!
I’ve been baking bread on and off for awhile. Maybe a year ago on PBS radio there was a guy on science Friday that said all you have to do is take flour and mix it with water and stir it a couple times a day. He explained through a story of a French nun making cheese that eventually the good yeast takes over the bad.
The first time I tried it I was successful. I mean in a week, smelling the concoction in the jar made your mouth water. Me being the “to busy doing nothing jackass I am” couldn’t find time to stir it that often, and it spoiled. And I haven’t been able to duplicate it again.
I’m sure there are all kinds of Frisco sour dough starters. But if you like yours and could ship it I would certainly be willing to pay to try it.
Sangria is readily available here, but I would then have to look for Tillamook cheese.
John
The bread looks delicious ! I hope your birthday later this week will be a great one.
John,
I don’t know if I can ship the sourdough in this form or not. However, my uncle-in-law purchased the strain from the web. I’ll get him to send me the link.
– Dave
That’s alright Dave. After posting I was thinking it’s probably available around here if I looked, and in fact I think I’ve seen it for sale. Just your post motivated me to try to start another batch of my own. It was suggested to me that maybe it hasn’t worked right because of the cold winter and therefor only skanky house air available as breeding fodder.
Thanks again
John