True Artisanal Bread is made with basic ingredients. Some think it is not right to vary in anything other than shape. That is - in the mind of some, all bread in the Artisanal style varies only by the maker. I guess in this area, I am not a conservative.
My idea is hand crafted bread made with basic ingredients and lots of care. The shape is second to the crumb, crust and flavor.
The Crumb - this is the inside of the bread and it is made up of texture and holes which is the result of the hours that the bacteria has expelled gasses and created acids. These also create flavor. All the activity stops when the heat reaches a point that the bacteria dies. Where there was once dough, there is now bread.
The Crust - the exterior is formed while still raw, sliced so as to offer a place for expansion as the dough makes its final expansion in the heat and then it dries and carmelizes under the oven's intense heat creating a shell as the inner dough finishes its bake. While the crust itself can be a work of art with its many flavors and textures, I understand that some people just don't like a thick crust, particularly in certain uses.
The Flavor - the 'plain white bread' can have a wonderful flavor all itself when it is developed over time. Adding other flours like whole wheat, rye, oats, quinoa or millet can add character to the dough flavor. Simply adding more soaking or fermenting time for some of these grains (not necessarily milled into flour) can bring out distinctives as well. It is said that bread is solid beer - and beer liquid bread. The fermentation process in beer is a time and temperature process. So is bread. By pre treating these grains in different ways (without changing the ingredients on the label) different flavors can be obtained.
Flavors are also modified by the addition of other ingredients like herbs or dried or fresh vegetables. My favorite bread is a basic white recipe with added dried rosemary and thyme. It has a very light crumb and herby flavor - delicate and special. It holds butter very well and is great with poultry sandwiches, hearty soups and stews and dipped in virgin olive oil with fresh ground pepper.
The two craziest varieties are one with serrano peppers and cheese and a dark bread that contains cocoa and molasses for color and honey to offset the bitterness. These are major flavors which overwhelm the wheat and don't warrant long fermentation periods.
So - my breads are known by their dominant flavors. Honey Wheat, Oats n Oats, Double flax, Dill and Onion for example
Can I make a sandwich with this bread? Of course. But, it doesn't look like the normal sandwich loaf baked in a loaf pan. This bread is hand formed and generally made in a round (boule) or football (battard) shape. I have been told that the crusty end is the best part. One can slice it from side to side to get full slices or by cutting the loaf in half one may cut slices in the short direction to get many somewhat similar slices to make several half sandwiches or simply slices for a bread basket.
For hunks, cut the loaf once longwise and then again longwise and then short wise in a thicker slice. These hunks are great for dipping or simply enjoying with butter or another spread.
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| The white markings result from the rice flour lined banneton - a traditional wicker basket - in which the dough rests for its final rise. |
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