[aaronatthedoublef]

Hi - Thanks for the upside down turkey roaster idea. I'm not sure it is deep enough but I have some in the basement that I'll test. The bread pan on it's side works pretty well. I just have to do a better job shaping.

Mike - thanks for suggesting the BBGA forum to see if anyone has a line on a tech. It's a little frustrating to have spent as much as we spent on this thing and be deserted by both the store who sold it AND the manufacturer.

I really miss the Garland. It was so simple it was elegant and even I could figure it out.

[aaronatthedoublef]

I made two loaves of sourdough sandwich bread. I did block the fan which helped the blow out some. Also I did a lousy job shaping one of the loaves and it shows in the finished product. I guess I was rushing.

I put together another batch of crackers which I'll bake tonight or tomorrow morning I guess.

I sympathize with you CM. One of our ovens is down and the store that sold it does not service them, none of the dealers on the manufacturers website will service it because we did not buy it from them, and the manufacturer won't do anything to help. I even asked if they would have their support line walk me through it but they can only help certified oven technicians. Ugh.

[aaronatthedoublef]

The response from my wife was "I don't think that will fit on the counter..." 🙁

Violet wants to give me a movie theater popcorn popper (which I asked for years ago) and that was also nixed.

I figured if Violet asked for that first the mixer would seem reasonable.

And I just received my first 50lb bag of flour. This baking stuff is hard work!

[aaronatthedoublef]

I have another batch cooling right now. I did ask for a 10 quart mixer for my birthday. But I do not think it's in the cards.

[aaronatthedoublef]

400 g of BA's crackers yesterday morning at 8:00 am.

As of 6:30 am today - two crackers...

Plus 600 g of the 800+ g loaf of challah I baked.

And they are both skinny! It's just not fair. 🙂

[aaronatthedoublef]

One more thing - webstaurantstore.com has 55 lbs. of Caputo 00 flour for $35+$12 shipping (to Hartford). YMMV.

[aaronatthedoublef]

I do not know what we will do for Thanksgiving yet. I am hoping that the schools go full time online at Thanksgiving so we can quarantine for a couple weeks and see my in-laws at Christmas.

I've made four loaves of sourdough sandwich loaf this week - two using a pan as a convection shield and two without. The panless loaves have higher oven spring and a big blowout. The blocked loaves have are shorter and have smaller blowout.

I just took a braided pan loaf of challah out of the oven. I want to experiment with it some more. It looks like some of the braids aren't sticking in loaf form.

And before that I made a batch of BA's crackers.

And this is with one oven down!

[aaronatthedoublef]

We have 00 flour at Whole Foods and Big Y. Haven't priced it at Big Y but it's $5 for a two pound bag at WF. Online I've found a 55 lb bag for as low as $30. Shipping is about $15.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Don't take this the wrong way but, you don't really have a rapid consumption problem. My last batch lasted 48 hours because I baked them when the boys were at school and cooled them enough to put them away before they came home.

I just made some this morning and they will not last through Saturday. They were taking them off the pan as I was pulling the pan from the oven!

BA you are VERY popular in our house!

[aaronatthedoublef]

Thanks BA and Mike.

Mike, the reason I think it's the fan and not over or under proofing is I can make two or three loaves from the same batch. If they are directly in front of the fan the side in front of the fan pops. Never the other side and never a loaf not directly inside of the fan.

I will try to prop something up to block the fan during my next bake.

[aaronatthedoublef]

The Pullman loaf is neat. I like sandwich loafs that are loaf shaped or at least batards. Guess it's my lack of imagination.

How are the Montreal bagels in size? There is a place in Brooklyn that makes them and they are considerably smaller than traditional New York bagels.

BA, those crackers are a huge problem in my house. They do not even have a chance to cool. Maybe if I make them on a week when the kids are in school and the temp is lower some will be left.

I finally figured out what is blowing out my sourdough bread! My oven is always part convection. Whenever the temp falls and needs to be raised the convection fan at the back kicks on to circulate air. The part of the loaf closest to the fan blows out. Maybe it's the increased heat. Now I need to experiment with how to shield it.

• This reply was modified 5 years, 7 months ago by aaronatthedoublef.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Years ago I met a couple from Modena whose family had been making vinegar for hundreds of years. They had barrels of the stuff that had been passed down from generation to generation and aged and aged and aged. They could be HUGELY expensive. Her parents had given her and her husband a small bottle of several ounces as a wedding present. Very different from even the expensive stuff we can buy in the grocery stores here.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Baking, even simple baking can be a little complex and takes patience. And just because someone is stuck in the house doesn't mean more time. I stopped traveling each week but I'm spending more time working and that does not include the extra time my kids required before school started back up.

And think about how much BA and I have conferred on her relatively simple, relatively straight forward cracker recipe - and yes, I am giving BA credit because it's more hers than KAF's now.

FB and Instagram and the like are more about showing off what you've done and gaining likes and followers. There is a community element to it but it's not the cooperative, collaborative place we have here.

BTW, thanks Mike for creating this and thank each and everyone who has contributed and helped me be better.

[aaronatthedoublef]

I've made a couple of batches this week using your suggestions, BA. They've been very helpful.

I've noticed too, that I am not making my crackers thickness even. The middles are thicker than the edges but now even the middles are crisping up. The other thing I tried this morning is starting with a smaller amount of dough. I dropped down from 200 to 150 g. This allowed for a thinner sheet and a more even one.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Years ago a Welsh friend was asking what she was doing wrong as none of her recipes were working. I gave her a bag of KAF self-rising and things started to work.

I made my own once, years ago using bread flour, baking powder, and salt. This was early days of the web and there was not much online. It worked for my purposes.

Self-rising flour seems to be making a comeback because people want simplicity. I've seen a spate of two-or-three ingredient recipes where one of them is self-rising flour. What is the shelf life of baking powder in a bag of flour?

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