Mike Nolan
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Report on Provençal Rye (Ginsberg pps 119-121):
This is a rye with a surprisingly sweet flavor to it, considering it has no added sugars.
I chose to make two smaller loaves rather than one 2.5 pound loaf. The recipe makes about 1200 grams of dough, but it was not coming together well, so I added about another 50 grams of AP flour to it. The finished loaves are about 10 inches x 4 inches x 2 1/4 inches and weighed 568 grams, I should probably have made them shorter so they had a bigger cross-section, as it is they're probably too big for a cocktail rye and too small for a sandwich bread. This is one of those times when I wish I had one of those 'deli rye' pans that Chicago Metallic used to make and King Arthur used to sell, it'd be a good shape and size.
If I make it again, I may make it as one or two boules rather than as oblong loaves.
It was cold in the kitchen today, the bulk proof and the final proof both took longer than the recipe calls for. I baked it for a total of about 30 minutes, the internal temperature was 208 at that point.
It doesn't have a really dominant rye flavor, though I think adding some caraway might change that. I used medium rye flour and the absence of any rye meal, rye chops or caraway means it is a fairly soft chew.
The flavor changes somewhat when it is toasted and has butter spread on it. I actually liked it better with some sharp cheddar cheese spread on it.
We decided not to use it for Reubens, it might make a good sandwich bread but it is going to be the supporting cast to whatever you serve it with.
Update: We did try making Reubens from this bread a few days later, its sweetness was more of a distraction than a complement to the sauerkraut. The Jewish Bakery Pumpernickel bread is better suited for Reubens.
