Friday, August 27, 2010

Cornmeal bread

1 1/2 cups whey
4 tsp yeast in 1/2 cup water
2 tbsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp oil
2 eggs
1 cup cornmeal
Flour 'til it looks right.. 5 cups ish? More?

Left to rise overnight.. left to rise 2 hours with saran wrap over it, then it was trying to take over the oven. Punched down and left to rise while I slept. About 8 hrs and it was trying to take over the oven again. This time with a damp tea towel over it. Peeled off the towel, punched down again. (Note to self.. less yeast next time), and then took a loaf ish size amount into the loaf pan, 12 (13 really, but one was sacrificed to the floor) egg sized balls into a muffin tin and then the rest as a lump on a baking pan. It's artisinal round loaf! It has nothing to do with my other loaf pan already being packed! Another hour in the oven to rise.. and then baking. It didnt rise much in the hour, a little but not much. 350F, and yes I'm lazy and left the pans in the oven while it preheated.

Well. The rolls barely rose at all and they are.. well they bounce. VERY crunchy on the outside, but like a thin crust of supercrunch and then squishy inside. They all baked about an hour.

Next time, I think perhaps more sugar, and not an overnight rise. First rise in the bowl, second rise in their baking dishes. I think that's how it should be done, and I probably could find recipes to take me by the hand, but I learn better by experimenting. Sooo.. we eat some very crusty rolls. It's all good.

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