Half the Batch (The Making Dough Process)

~ PART ONE~

 
Tired kinda day but need to make bread so I halved the batch and will work on four loaves.  Just didn’t feel up to wrestling eight loaves all day.  I had good company, my three year old is always happy to help with baking.

So, for fun, I decided to try capturing step by step shots of the process I  carry out weekly.

1.  It all starts with the yeast.  Warm water, traditional dry active yeast and waiting for it to wake up.

2. While the yeast is working I get the sea salt into THE bread bowl.

 3. Oil of choice is added and today it is grape-seed.  Often I add a mix of grape-seed and olive oil but not on a tired kinda day like today.

4. Water, warm water is added and whisked in with the oil and salt.

 5. Grains and cereals are whisked in.  My favorites of late are spelt bran or flakes, chia seeds and toasted wheat germ.

(Toasted Wheat Germ)

(Spelt Flakes)

(Chia Seeds)

 6. I add the specialty flours.  Flours of choice, of late, are chickpea (a long time favorite in my bread), a local produced oat flour, red fife and quinoa.

 

 8. Now that the yeast is happy I gently spatula all of it out into the still very wet dough and then carefully fold it in.

 9. Time to add the white bread flour.  Today I am trying out Roger’s unbleached and additive free flour.  I am expecting good things since I have used their dark rye for years and highly recommend it.  Usually I pick up, with much arm strength (wink), the 20 pound bags of bread flour from costco… but can you believe this long time bread maker forgot to grab some last costco trip?!

 10. I dump my dough out to kneed while it is still really sticky and messy.  Trying to avoid adding any more flour then I need to seems to keep it a lighter and moister bread.

 11. Kneading, such a beautiful process.  Pulling, rolling, twisting and shoving the goop into a lovely ball of dough.

(Ta-da!)

 12.  Well I guess this turned out to be a twelve step process 🙂  With the dough all nice and smooth, it then gets tucked into the bowl and some cozy towels to warm up and rise.

All tucked in and ready to rise and get a beating, then rise again, for most of the day.  This evening I will roll it into loaves and pan it.  Once it has risen one last time it will be baked, cooled and bagged.  If I have the chance I will capture this finally process of making the dough BREAD.  Have a beautiful day everyone!

TTFN