BakerAunt
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Wow! Almost everyone was baking bread of one kind or another today.
On Sunday, I baked Pompanoosuc Porridge Bread, a recipe from King Arthur (back when they sold Pompanoosuc porridge), which I have modified. The original recipe was baked in their bread bowl, but I found the dough was too much, and it was hard to get the center baked. I next tried the bottom of my Emile Henry long baker, but it was too long to allow for a higher rise. I then turned to a 12 x 4 x 2 ½-inch Kitchen Aid loaf pan, but I felt the sides were too low for adequate support. Last December, King Arthur featured a cream-colored Emile Henry loaf pan with scalloped edges that is 11 x 4 ¾ x 3 ½ inches. That seemed the right size, so I bought it. This loaf pan is perfect for this amount of dough, and a loaf with lovely rise. However, it stuck in a couple of places when I turned the loaf out of the pan. I think that is due to the ceramic being thinner than most of the Emile Henry that I own. Also, this recipe has higher hydration (one of the reasons more side support is important), and those breads can stick to ceramic no matter how well a pan is greased. Next time, I will grease, then coat the interior with farina before putting in the dough.
The Ankarsram has an arm that can be positioned from the side of the bowl to the center, so there is nothing to tilt, which takes up less room when in use. I loosen the arm and allow it to rest back from the bowl when the mixer is not in use.
The largest batch of bread dough I have done so far is the Whole Wheat Oat Bran Bread, and that has about 8 cups flour plus 2 cups oat bran and 1/2 cup flax meal.
I used the mixer today to make Pompanoosuc Porridge Bread. (I'm not sure the recipe is still at King Arthur, as they no longer sell the Pompanoosuc porridge, although they may have the recipe made with steel-cut oats. This bread has about 4 cups of flour and 1/2 cup of the porridge, which is cooked up to one cup. The Ankarsrum did an excellent job with the smaller amount of dough--something my 7-qt. Cuisinart could not handle well. I did not need to hold back any flour; indeed, I needed to add 2 Tbs. Kneading time is longer at about 12 minutes, but I do not mind that.
I will write up the recipe with my changes and post it sometime in the next couple of days.
Last night I cut up the remaining "seconds" apples, mixed them with sugar and spices in my two crock pots and allowed them to cook on low overnight. Sunday afternoon, I canned two more pints of apple butter and seven half pints. I will check the seals tomorrow.
I made a simple clam chowder for Sunday lunch, which I can eat for a couple of days. The recipe comes from a Betty Crocker cookbook that I have had for nearly fifty years. My only change is to add ½ tsp. celery seed, a trick I learned from my college roommate.
We had leftovers from last night's dinner of braised chicken thighs and rice.
Temperatures actually hit the low 20s today!
I made yogurt on Saturday. I also made chicken broth using the bones in the freezer from the chicken we had for dinner on New Year's Day.
For dinner, I made Cider Braised Chicken with Mushrooms and Spinach, which I developed from a Washington Post recipe; I mostly kept the method and changed almost everything else. I had frozen the 2 cups of cider from the farmers market in the autumn. The spinach came from today's farmers market. We had it with mixed brown and black rice that I cooked in some of the chicken broth. We had another 2 ½ inches of snow overnight, so it made for a comforting meal. Except for a brief period one day, temperatures have not been above freezing for nearly two weeks, and the highs have only been in the teens.
Skeptic--Taste is one reason I like using barley flour, but I also find that its lower gluten content can make more tender scones and cakes. In some ways, it is a great replacement for cake flour which has a lower nutritional profile. When Bob's Red Mill stopped selling barley flour, I needed to order it, and it comes in an 8 lb. bag, so I like to use it when I can.
Wolf will let you specify black knobs instead of the standard red, but I like how the red ones stand out on the oven.
We happily repeated the dinner from the past two evenings.
Another suggestion for Aaron's daughter: a bandana or head scarf.
On Thursday morning, I baked "Crumb-Topped Apple Spice Muffins," a recipe from Beatrice Ojakangas' Light and Easy Baking. I make it half whole wheat, replace the 4 Tbs. of butter with 4 Tbs. canola oil, add 2 Tbs milk powder, and 1 Tbs. flaxmeal. I replaced nonfat yogurt with buttermilk. I used Winesap apples and added 1/3 cup chopped pecans. I did not do the crumb topping but sprinkled with Penzey's Cinnamon Sugar blend.
Thank you all for the birthday wishes.
My cake (Bischofsbrot) came out very well. It's a delicious way to celebrate my 70th birthday.
We had more of the pork loin roast with butternut squash, barley, and kale.
I use canola oil in sone of my recipes. For a recipe where a little more fat is ideal, I like olive oil or avocado oil which have 2 g per Tbs. as opposed to 1 g per Tbs. for canola. However, Mike is correct: in some recipes there is just no substitute for butter. Sometimes half butter and half avocado oil will give the desired taste with less fat.
Aaron--You mentioned that you are looking at a Wolf stove. That is what I got, and I still love it after seven years. I chose dual fuel, so gas burners with electric oven. A two-thirds sheet pan just fits. If you get the Wolf, go for the red knobs!
I did not get the Wolf hood. We have low ceilings, and it would have been far too powerful. The sales rep who helped us recommended another, which was also a lot less expensive. We went with another Amana refrigerator with freezer drawer on the bottom. (Our 25-year-old Amana is in the Annex kitchen.)
On Tuesday evening, I baked Bischofsbrot, which is a firm cake with walnuts, regular and golden raisins, dark chocolate chips (72% cacao this time), and maraschino cherries, of which I put in extras. I make it with half barley flour and half King Arthur AP flour. I replace the 6 Tbs. butter with ¼ cup avocado oil plus 2 Tbs. buttermilk. It bakes in a 12-inch long, narrow loaf pan at 300 F for 90 minutes. For the first time, I used the Ankarsrum for something other than bread and employed the plastic bowl and the whisks. I will write up the details for those interested in how the mixer works. I will say, however, that I continue to be impressed.
Aaron--You can probably do the bread in a Dutch oven, as Skeptic suggests, but I don't know if the cold start would work the same or not. It's worth the experiment.
Joan--What kind of oil did you use in your bread? I like either olive oil or avocado oil. Oh, and your loaf is beautiful!
Apologies for not getting the thread started on the Ankarsrum adventures. A lot is going on. I will try getting to it in the next day or two.
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