So bread flour is good to use in most of the baking we do? I have some, but I rarely pull it out unless I’m baking … bread. Great tips.

this class sounds as fun as the baking one!

Now that’s what I call beautiful!

Beautiful work as always, Ivonne! As far as the water in the oven helping with crust formation… What it does is creates a lot of steam that gelatinizes the protein and starch on the outer layer of the bread. Once all the steam is gone, the outer layer dries out, leaving a crispy, crackly crust. It also keeps the bread moist so it has more time to rise in the oven. If you’re interested in the science and technical side of bread baking, I highly reccomend the Bread Baker’s Apprentice. It’s a wonderful book filled with great recipes and interesting bread information.

I’m excited for the croissants! They’re one of my favorite foods.

You are inspiring me to make some bread Ivonne. I also agree with Natalia. if you are serious about bread, the Bread Baker’s Apprentice is a fantastic book.

I am seriously bread-impared. Can’t ever get it to work. This looks delicious!!

hi ivonne, that looks fabulous! i can almost smell the wafts of goodness just staring at the pictures

Just like sugar I am a flour nerd having cake, bread, whole wheat, almond, all-purpose and self rising as we speak.

omg … i can smell the aroma of fresh baking bread too! this looks really yummy!

Thanks for making me dream with this post!

All that bread sure looks very yummy and beautiful!…

I was going to finally make brioche this weekend.. thanks to you. Unforseen circumstances did not allow it to happen, but soon - soon I will make it! And then I’m going to be trying that butter crust - it’s one of my favorites for sammies! All of your breads this week look fantastic. Sorry to hear the French Sticks weren’t too flavorful - but I have confidence that if you try them again, you’ll add your own specialness to fix that problem!

Nothing beats fresh baked bread straight out of the oven.Looking forward to the Danish.

Great post! I’m learning lots about baking just through your own posts of your experiences Have never made bread at home, but I really should give it a try…

Ivonne, your bread looks absolutely perfect. When I think of bread, in a very Plato-like image in my mind of ‘perfect bread’ this is what I envision.

Hi Ivonne! Beautiful bread loaves! I’m thoroughly enjoying hearing about your school adventures. I love making bread - it’s a wonderful art! That’s such a shame about the school’s freezer, but it’s nice that you were able to redo the croissant dough. Can’t wait to read the exciting conclusion to the croissant story!

Hi Ivonne,
I’m curious is you’ve learned exactly what “strong” bread flour is… I have been researching this term and finding conflicting information. Has your class covered it or does anyone else know the facts about it?

I’ve been wanting to learn how to bake a good sandwich loaf for a while. The butter crust bread may be a great motivator. I wonder how much the recipe would change if I wanted to make a whole wheat/multigrain type of loaf? Oh, and you have my complete awe and envy for the tomato sauce/jarring post. It seems I can never master that.

Hi Ivonne,

Your bread looks great!!! Pass the nutella please. When your oven arrives :-), you may want to break-it-in with the potatoe bread and the white bread loaves from the “Baking with Julia” book. I haven’t made them in a while, but they were definitaley a hit win your counsin A. The potatoe bread is especially great when you dip in tomatoe salad juices!!!!!

Love Aunt D.

When do we get to see your buns? *giggle*

Bread is fun, brown bread is supposed to be harder to make rise. I must have got lucky, i’ve never used live yeast before, that’s my next step, but I have lots of the packet stuff to finish off first.

My french baguette just comes out like normal bread, I have to work that recipe over me thinks

Such fun to read and very informative, as always! I am excited to hear about croissants. I’d love to try making them myself.

Oh how I wish I can make this! I’m so jealous! Looks delicious.

And where can I get a copy of the recipe for the butter crust bread… ?

Very nice and tasty looking!!

Paz

You’re definitely enticing me to take up baking. I would love to bake and create those cakes for my family.

You have what it takes to make bread…..lucky you!you certainly have to have patience to make these sort of things….good for you!

There is nothing better than fresh baked bread! The smell alone is worth it! I can’t wait for the croissant next week….can we put Nutella on them???

I love kneading too, it makes me feel so relaxed and happy. This was such an awesome post! You make me want to find the nearest cooking class and sign up….

Hope the croissants will come out next week! I cannot wait to see them!

Another great post about baking class!

It’s my feeling that using the school’s proofing machines are the reason the French sticks had basically no flavour - too fast a rise. From what I understand about French bread, there is invariably a starter dough that ferments overnight. Then the actual dough is made, encorporating the starter dough and the dough rises in a colder environment. (ie: fast rise = bland taste) The most flavourful French-style breads I’ve made consist of unbleached all-purpose flour, a tiny bit of whole wheat flour, water, salt and yeast. That’s it. No malt….

I generally let bread dough rise on the counter. Whenever I’ve pushed the rise by putting it into a lukewarm oven, the resulting bread has been not quite as nutty tasting.

Oh yes, and one more thing from this horribly opinionated baker: I use unbleached all-purpose flour for all of our bread except bagels.

-Elizabeth

P.S. For reading and recipes, I really like “Artisan Baking Across America” by Maggie Glezer and “The Village Baker” by Joe Ortiz. (Not that there’s anything wrong with “Bread Baker’s Apprentice” - I’m just not that big a fan of Reinhart.)

Also, I had a major French bread epiphany after making the recipe for Couronne in the novel “Bread Alone” by Judith Ryan Hendricks. (The novel is pretty Bflat but the recipes are very good.)

Steam adds crunch, colour, and shine. At my culinary school, we had this very expensive, fancy steam injected oven that was terrific. I used to put water or ice with my breads but lately haven’t been bothering. Just getting lazy. Alternately, you can get a spray bottle and spritz the top of your loaves as you put them in the oven (we did this at the bakery where I worked) - just make sure you’re baking your bread in a hot oven. I love butter crust bread, too. I encourage you to crack open that Bread Bible. You won’t be disappointed.

Thanks for the info ejm i will try that spray bottle tactic unfortunately i cant afford a steam injection oven.

While I do use the spray bottle tactic too, James, it’s wandering coyote who you should thank….

I too used to fill a broiling pan with water and put it in the oven as it preheated. I would take it out when the bread was half baked and needed to be turned. But now I just spray the risen bread liberally with water just before putting it into the oven.

The other thing that seems to really make a difference is to preheat the oven for a good half hour before baking the bread AND preheat it to 50F more than the recipe calls for. Turn the oven down to the correct temperature when you put the bread in. (Opening the oven door causes major heat loss - books I’ve read say about 50F….)

-Elizabeth

Hi everyone,

I’m really enjoying my bread classes and appreciate your feedback!