Breadwinner!

Well, well, well.  After four endless days of waiting, I learned last Thursday that my Cathedral Toasting Loaf had taken fourth place in the "specialty breads" category at the Minnesota State Fair baking competition.  There were 35 entries in my category and more than 2,800 in the entire bread competition.

Beyond the adulation of my peers and the media, I'm the proud recipient of a pink ribbon* and a bounty of $4.00!  Huge pride here.  

I've posted the recipe below.  When I get the time, I'll convert the metric weights to U.S. measures; however, we Americans really need to go metric.  Once you get used to it, it's astoundingly easier than the stupid system we use now. 

*The Fair people actually are defying convention by issuing a pink ribbon for fourth place. Check out http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_color_is_a_second_place_prize_ribbon.

Here's my ribbon, check, scorecard, and registration tag. Click on the photo to see the details.

Here's a stupid billboard I put together in PhotoShop.  No, it's not real!

Do yourself a huge favor and buy a scale like this one or an on-the-countertop version.  It'll change your life as a baker.

Here's an establishing shot of the cooler that held a large number of the bread entries.  They're on display for the duration of the fair.

Of course, my bread is the one with the pink ribbon.  I must say the second and third place winners -- on either side of mine -- do look really good.

Here's the proud winner.

Fear not!  I'm already working on a bread for next year. . . .

So, what's the recipe for my Cathedral Toasting Loaf?  Here goes.  It will make three one-kilogram loaves:

One week before:

Mix this stuff in a bowl, cover it, and put it in the refrigerator. (This is called the starter.)

1. 
   
   46g bread flour
2. 
   
   39g rye flour
3. 
   
   18g potato flakes
4. 
   
   6g vital wheat gluten
5. 
   
   6g cider vinegar
6. 
   
   138g lukewarm water

12 to 24 hours before you start kneading:

Mix this stuff in a big bowl.  (This is the bowl you'll be mixing the dough in.) This concoction is called the sponge:

1. 
   
   169g bread flour
2. 
   
   43g vital wheat gluten
3. 
   
   8g yeast
4. 
   
   dash of sugar

Four to 18 hours before you start kneading:

1. 
   
   Take the starter out of the refrigerator and leave it out on the counter.  Keep it covered.

Okay, now you're going to make the dough.  Add this stuff to the bowl the sponge is in:

1. 
   
   229g oatmeal
2. 
   
   329g whole wheat flour
3. 
   
   All of the starter you made earlier
4. 
   
   28g yeast
5. 
   
   42g flax seed
6. 
   
   914g of milk you've heated to about 100°F (38°C).

Mix this up and let it sit for seven minutes.  (You're doing this to let the yeast get established before you add the salt, which you're going to do next.)

Now, add 50g of salt and stir.  Most bakers prefer non-iodized, but use what you have.

Measure 718g of bread flour.  You're going to gradually add this until you get a good, fairly wet dough. Add only the flour you need to get the dough to a good consistency.  You may use less than 718g; you may use more. 

Knead for 10 to 12 minutes.

Use your scale to divide the dough into three loaves of approximately the same size, and put each in a bread pan you've prepared with Pam or margarine.  If you have it, sprinkle some corn meal on the bottom of each pan.

This is a one-rise bread, so wait about an hour, and once the bread has risen to about two inches (5cm) above the top of the pan, preheat the oven to 400°F (205°C).  Put the loaves on the center rack of your oven.  Bake for 27 to 33 minutes.  If you have an instant-read thermometer, it should read 200°F (102°C) when inserted into the side of the loaf after you've removed it from the oven. 

If you want to embellish the bread a bit, mix an egg yolk and a little milk in a small bowl.  Carefully brush it on top of the loaf (just before you put it in the oven), then sprinkle with sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or whatever you want.

Good luck!  Let me know how it goes.

Okay, I did it!

As many of you know, I (Mike) have been working for some time to create the perfect loaf of bread.  I've developed one intended specifically for toasting. My angle is that my version is much more healthful than the conventional English muffin or English muffin toasting loaf. 

You may also know that my plan was to enter the competition at the Minnesota State Fair.  Well, I did it!  I should know on Thursday, August 26, how I did, and I'll let you know.  I'll also publish the recipe; however, I do everything by metric weight, so the info may frustrate you.

My entry was due at the Fairgrounds by 11:00 last Sunday morning, so I got up at 4:00 and began work.  I made three loaves. As you'll see below, I wound up going with the grains-on-top version.

Here's a throw-away shot of me holding the chosen loaf.

Here we are at the Fairgrounds.  These folks are queued up to submit their entries in various categories.  I read they receive more than 2,800 baked-goods entries every year. 

Another throw-away shot of me standing in line.

Here I am chatting up one of the judges.  We'll see if it helps!

J'aime ma femme!

From Mike:  Someone once asked the late, great Johnny Carson, "What is the shortest period time that can be measured?"  His answer was, "The period of time that passes between the time the light turns green and the guy behind you beeps."  With all deference due Johnny, the correct answer is, "The shortest period of time that can be measured is the period of time that would pass between someone asking me, 'Given the chance, would you marry your wife again?' and me saying 'Yes!'" Patty's tops!

Saint Paul Bread Club

As part of my ongoing quest to dominate the world of bread making, I'm a fairly faithful attendee at the quarterly meeting of the Saint Paul Bread Club (http://spbc.info/).  There's always a theme, and yesterday it was "unconventional or specialty breads."  I'm still obsessed with developing my soon-to-be-award-winning toasting loaf, so I presented that, with the reasoning it was a specialty bread in that it was designed exclusively for toasting.  Others were only marginally convinced.

The group is run by a colorful guy named Klecko (I'm not sure of his full name), whose real job is as a honcho at St. Paul's St. Agnes Baking Company (http://www.saintagnesbaking.com).  He's a pro at both the art and science of bread making, so he's a good guy to know.  His sidekick is a guy named David S. Cargo.  (I'm not kidding.)  Members include folks at all levels of the craft, from beginners to those who've won multiple awards.  One stalwart is Kim Ode, author of "Baking with The Saint Paul Bread Club" and writer for the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Yesterday's group brought an interesting variety of specialty breads -- notably, one that was baked in a coffee can and one made primarily from beets (which was delicious). 

A plaque at the entry of St. Agnes Baking Company in Saint Paul:

"Yes, there was a St. Agnes. Our name derives from Grandma Agnes Rod who was also known as "Grandma Agnes".  In the early 1940s, when she was middle-aged, she was widowed. By necessity, she turned from homemaking to being a school cook, a job she held for over twenty years in rural Iowa.  She was a master cook and a bread baker -- and a saint!"

This woman is demonstrating her various scones recipes to an attentive crowd.

Here's Klecko, the main guy, explaining some science that's a big part of bread making.

After the formal meeting, folks gather around the table to sample the attendees' various creations.

Sláinte! A St. Patrick's Day Reunion

I (Mike) got my green on this year, much more than usual, as an old friend from my junior high days turned up in Minneapolis from his home in Manchester, England.  Jim Boran, second from left in the above photo (which I've named "Five Guys Sharing A [Flat] Beer!"), and I had re-connected several months ago when he popped up on FaceBook.  I'd had no contact with him since high school, and it turns out he's been living in England for more than 20 years, working as a prof at the University of Manchester.  He speaks with no discernible British accent. 

Jim and I hung out quite a bit back then.  One odd thing:  At that time (when no one had even imagined a cell phone, let alone owned one), my family's phone number was 929-2582.  Jim's family's was 929-2583.  What were the odds?

Anyway, we had great fun (and a great many pints of Guinness) at various bars in downtown Minneapolis. 

Others in the photo:  Jeff Krueger on the far left, Tom Rivall on the far right, and Paul Strickland next to Tom.  Great guys -- all!

Cassoulet and Company

Last week, for a Saturday night dinner party, Patty and I set out to re-create Julia Childs' cassoulet recipe from her magnum opus, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking."  My former neighbors, a.k.a. "The Vernon Street Gang," would be our guests.  Julia suggested we prepare the cassoulet over several days, and it's a good thing she did!  It was a monumental task I began Thursday night and worked on at various times until our guests arrived.

Cassoulet is a French, bean-based concoction into which is added whatever red meat one has handy, along with tomato sauce and a variety of spices.  It's one of those dishes that provoque arguments as to where the real version was invented and what ingredients are required to make what is, indeed, the real version.  Ours had pork, lamb, and, in a minor deviation from Julia's recipe, some Polish sausage instead of saucisse de Toulouse.

Frankly, I don’t like the way Julia presents the recipes – they’re very hard to follow. I think a good blog idea would be to publish simplified versions of everything in her book.  The cassoulet recipe could have been a lot simpler.

In any case, the work was worth it, as the dinner party was a resounding success.  Documentation is below.  (You can enlarge the image by clicking on it.)

Semmel Rolls and Other Adventures

I (Mike) have been trying to become a self-taught, master bread maker.  There's a French expression, "Avoir toujours du pain sur la planche" (literally, to still have bread on the cutting board; figuratively, to still have work to do), and I think that pretty much sums up how it's going.  I've been getting recipes from a great book Patty gave me, "Baking with the Saint Paul Bread Club."  (I'm also a member of the club.)  My step-kids gave me a super "Breads of the World" book that includes lots of history and interesting cultural stuff in addition to recipes, so I'm pulling ideas from that, too.

A friend suggested I make it a goal to enter something in the Minnesota State Fair this August, so I'm hoping to develop a great original recipe and see if I can become the talk of "The Great Minnesota Get-Together," which, I'm told, is what we locals like to call the Fair.

One recent project that went very well was trying to recreate "Semmel rolls."  Folks from Sheboygan, Wisconsin, will tell you there's no such thing as a bratwurst on anything but a Semmel roll, and I strongly agree.  They have a hard crust, a chewy inside, and they stand up to a brat without falling apart.  (By the way, "Semmel" is the German word for "roll," but no one seems troubled by the redundancy.)

I had two motivations to try to recreate Semmel rolls.  As a youth in Milwaukee, my parents often schlepped my siblings and me 60 miles (100km) north to Sheboygan to visit our grandparents.  I fell in love with Semmel rolls then and haven't found anything close since.  Also, my father is a huge fan, to the point he's tried to connect bakeries in Sheboygan with bakeries in Minneapolis/St. Paul to get Semmel rolls available here -- so far to no avail.  

One particularly big day for brats and Semmel rolls was Sheboygan's annual "Bratwurst Day."  There were grills ablaze everywhere, and, thanks to massive quantities of smoke from the burning brat fat, visibility of about 50 feet.  I was only five or six then, but it's occured to me since that there may have been some drinking going on. . . .

You can see what "Bratwurst Day" looks like today and get a bit of history at www.bratdays.org.

Here is my first shot at Semmel rolls.  They need a more "open crumb" (bigger air holes inside), and the indentation along the top of each needs to be deeper.  A bit more rye flour on top, too.

Here are some other breads I've made.  (You can click on the image to make it larger.)  The big issues for me are getting an open crumb from a wet dough (you sacrifice the shape of the loaf because you need a wet dough to get the big air holes), and getting a nice, hard crust.  Generally, I also could improve on texture.  Oh, well: Onward to the Fair!