I started a batch of dough to shape into buns for grilled bratwursts. Because I like to add milk to my hamburger and bratwurst buns, the sponge for this recipe takes a little longer to stir together than most of my bread recipes. You have to scald the milk first.
I start with a sponge for my bread recipes. The sponge for hamburger and bratwurst buns is as follows:
Sponge
Dissolve in a large bowl:
1 teaspoon yeast
in
1 cup warm water (about 110 degrees F.).
Scald
1 1/4 cups milk
Cool the milk, and pour it into the yeast mixture. Next, stir in:
2 cups whole wheat flour
until thoroughly combined.
You should end up with a mixture about the thickness of pea soup. The purpose of the sponge is to soften the wheat in order to make a finer-textured bread that isn't crumbly, as homemade breads, especially whole-grain ones, would otherwise be. Don't add any oils or salt at this point, as these inhibit rising.
Cover the sponge with a plate or a sheet of plastic wrap, and refrigerate for several hours. I'm about to put mine in the fridge, and finish adding the ingredients tomorrow.
Until then!
Sunday, May 30, 2010
The joy and simplicity of baking bread
I love to bake bread!
The comment I hear most is, "Doesn't that take a lot of time?" As a graduate student pursuing my PhD in a field totally unrelated to food, I can tell you: no, it doesn't take a lot of time. I like to start a batch of bread on Friday evening (which takes about two minutes, including the time it takes me to get my bowl out of the cupboard), and then bake it on Saturday morning. If I don't have time Saturday morning, I bake it another time. It's purely a matter of convenience. Most of the "time" needed for baking bread is just waiting - waiting for the bread to rise, waiting for the bread to bake... The bread does all that on it's own. (Well, you DO have to put it in the oven.) I just go and do my homework.
It is incredibly rewarding to sink one's teeth into a steaming slice of fresh bread after several hours of writing papers!
Right now though, I'm home for summer vacation, and the family is having bratwursts to celebrate Memorial Day tomorrow. I think I'll go start a batch of homemade bratwurst buns!
The comment I hear most is, "Doesn't that take a lot of time?" As a graduate student pursuing my PhD in a field totally unrelated to food, I can tell you: no, it doesn't take a lot of time. I like to start a batch of bread on Friday evening (which takes about two minutes, including the time it takes me to get my bowl out of the cupboard), and then bake it on Saturday morning. If I don't have time Saturday morning, I bake it another time. It's purely a matter of convenience. Most of the "time" needed for baking bread is just waiting - waiting for the bread to rise, waiting for the bread to bake... The bread does all that on it's own. (Well, you DO have to put it in the oven.) I just go and do my homework.
It is incredibly rewarding to sink one's teeth into a steaming slice of fresh bread after several hours of writing papers!
Right now though, I'm home for summer vacation, and the family is having bratwursts to celebrate Memorial Day tomorrow. I think I'll go start a batch of homemade bratwurst buns!
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