[aaronatthedoublef]

Thanks. Looked up Baystate and they are in Quincy MA, closer than KAF but way more traffic-y as I would need to go through Boston traffic. I sent them a request for info and I'll see where they sell the flour.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Charlotte Rutledge is the test kitchen manager and sends out Sunday Recipes and I think she took over for PJ. Where I am flour is a bit out of fashion now. Most people are going gluten free or Keto and they use mixes to support this. Plus the people at the grocery stores don't know enough about the flours they do sell to help people pick the right product they need for baking.

Most magazines are going for glitz. Saveur used to be great and now it's a glorified travel magazine that uses food as an excuse to travel. They keep sending it to me even though I haven't subscribed in years. And it used to be fantastic. It was something every chef and pastry chef I knew recommended which is why I subscribed in the first place.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Thanks for the batard tips!

First clear is funny. KAF has it at $8.95 for a 3 lb. bag and at NY Bakers it is the same for 5 lbs.

I just spoke to the wholesaler my chef friend recommended who sells to lots of NYC bakeries and he had never heard of it. They don't even have it in their catalogue and they are known for their flours.

I could drive up to KAF. It's a few hours drive if I cannot find it any place closer. NY Bakers is in CA.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Thanks for the tips. The pre-shaping will probably help. I was also reading in "Secrets" and it says steam and brushing either with a cornstarch solution or water pre-baking help prevent blowouts so I'll try those too. I may not get to rye again next week depending on when my next first clear comes in. "Secrets" and the Rye Baker both say it use to be cheaper but it certainly is not any more.

I used to make baguettes at the bakery and the first night was challenging but after a dozen or so snakes I started to get the hang of it. We didn't make batards when I was there, sadly, only boules, baguettes, and loaf pan loaves.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Mike, neat bug story. I still love solitaire and it is the only computer game I play.

BA - I tend to do the scoop/level method because that is what my mom taught me. The few times I've used KAF weights instead of volumes, they felt light to me so maybe I'll go with the USDA to start as I convert my recipes

Thanks!

• This reply was modified 5 years, 2 months ago by aaronatthedoublef.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Well, converting from volume to weights also probably depends on how you fill your volume, particularly with flour. Do you scoop and level or do you fill the measuring cup and level? I wonder, too, how much it varies from scale to scale. My first job out of college was writing code for mail room scales and even units from the same company could have different results. But

The correct term for people like me is "color deficient". It's a lack of cones that causes me to see things the way I see them. All of my kids have thought I was playing a joke on them when they were little and I would say something was a different color from what it was. My brothers share this condition and apparently somewhere in the range of 40% of all men suffer from this.

Tech trivia - the reason Outlook allows you to determine what color you want tasks to turn when they are overdue is because I pointed out that I cannot see the difference between red text and black text on most white backgrounds including printer paper and computer screens and the large number of men who had similar challenges during an early demo of an early version of Outlook.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Thanks Mike. Subtle differences in colors are usually lost on me as I am color blind and various shades of white look mostly the same to me.

I like the flavor first clear adds and that it adds some extra bran too. And it's more traditional too which I like.

I guess I'll have to figure out the weights. I'll start with the KAF weights and adjust as I go I guess.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Mike, that is an AWESOME cake!

I made some more rye bread. This time I used part bread flour and part first clear with the rye. In "Secrets of a Jewish Baker" all the recipes use first clear and rye flours exclusively. But then reading the Rye Baker website here it said to only use about 40% first clear. I used less than that but it was mostly because I ran out. In "Jewish Holiday Baking" the author uses bread flour exclusively.

I think the loaves had a higher rise. I need to wait a while before I cut them but I want to see if they are less dense. I'll let you know how they taste.

Also, the problem with using a rye starter for other breads is they all seem to have caraway seeds. So if I can figure out a way to add the caraway seeds when I build the bread dough instead of adding them to the starter I can probably get away with one.

While I was waiting for the loaves to rise before baking (I still need LOTS of practice shaping - I have one half-decent batard) I also made some brownies so as not to sit idle. Something isn't quite right. I think I use too little chocolate and too little flour. It's a little confusing sometime carrying things between home and the restaurant but, I have access to a restaurant kitchen at no charge so I am pretty happy about that.

BTW, does anyone have a good conversion from volume to weight. As I scale up my batches it will be easier and more accurate to use weights.

• This reply was modified 5 years, 2 months ago by aaronatthedoublef.
• This reply was modified 5 years, 2 months ago by aaronatthedoublef.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Cool. Is this to add a cinnamon flavor to the chili through the role? My mom made chili with cinnamon.

[aaronatthedoublef]

This week I made a dozen scones. To Skeptics point this recipe starts out a little wet but I fold in flour until the dough is no longer sticky. Then I form circles and cut the circles into wedges and push the wedges together. This helps keep them moist.

I made 10 dozen chocolate chip cookies for the high school band.

I made deli rye. It's the first time I made this in a mixer and I made about five pounds of dough which shrank to four and a half after the first rise. I made three loaves. I have access to a 10 quart mixer and it was more than big enough to handle this. I can probably up this to 10 pounds and will try that next week. The rye tastes good but probably needs a bit more salt. I need lots more practice shaping. I tried to make batards with diagonal slashes and still had blowouts.

Also the recipe called for a starter that I have to make each time. This adds about 12 hours as I let it sit overnight. If I have a standing starter then I can shave some time off this.

[aaronatthedoublef]

My Costco has 16 oz bottle for a bit under $30.

[aaronatthedoublef]

So far made 10 dozen cookies for a pot luck, a sour cream chocolate cake, and scones. Want to make some rye bread too this week.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Right. Produce waste has become a huge issue in the US. We have so much abundance that if something is slightly bruised we throw it away even if it is still good. But Mike's also right that organic waste can be used for compost. But if you in big cities it might be a little harder if you live in a place without a yard. Also, I grew up in a row house with a small yard and one of our neighbors had a compost heap that we ALL could smell. He was not very popular.

How about tortillas that taste like a margarita? Especially for those who don't drink.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Have him watch the old "Good Eats". Alton Brown was famous for creating kitchen gadgets with stuff from the hardware store. He doesn't do that on the Good Eats reboot probably because he can make more money for product placement.

[aaronatthedoublef]

Thanks Mike. I deciding whether or not to take a butchery class.

I may make it kosher style but I won't make it kosher. The place I was looking at meats has both kosher and halal so I can source it there. But being kosher in my town is more complex than normal and more complex than it should be. We're a town of about 60,000 people with a larger number of Jews and two grocery stores that are kosher. And we argue about which one is "really" kosher because of the different authorities that certify them. And that is just the start of it.

So I may buy kosher meats but that's as far as I'll go.

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