Saturday, October 9, 2010

My 103st experiment: Almond saffron sugar loaves

These loaves are baked specially for two lovely little ones.

Recipe: Almond saffron sugar loaves (2 mini loaves)

Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup saffron sugar cubes
- 2 cups unbleached flour
- 1 cup almond meal
- 2/3 cup evaporated skim milk
- 1+1/2 tp active dry yeast
- 1 tp salt
- 3 TB unsalted butter
- up to 3/4 cup water

Procedure:
1. Proof yeast in warm skim milk and melted butter.

2. Toast almond meal until light brown and smelling great.
3. Sieve together flour, almond meal, salt. Add to the mixture of milk, yeast, and butter, to form a dough. Then adjust hydration by adding up to 3/4 cup water. Note: Because the almond meal is dry, it may need more water than usual.
4. Allow dough to proof until volume doubles.
5. Punch dough down. Add in the sugar cubes.
6. Shape into logs, and proof again until volume doubles.
7. Bake at 350F until internal temperature reaches 190F.

Results:
11:14am, almond meal to toast:

11:40am, toasted almond meal:

11:46am, melting 3 TB butter:

11:48am, 2/3 cup evaporated skim milk added to butter:

11:49am, adding wet ingredients to the mixture of flour, almond meal, salt, and yeast:

11:56am, adding 1/4 cup flour to dough:

12:10pm, dough:

12:10pm, dough's height:

1:44pm, dough rested 90 minutes:

1:44pm, dough's height after rest:

1:51pm, water roux of extra 1/4 cup flour added:

1:59pm, final dough:

2:00pm, sugar cubes added:

2:06pm, dough shaped into a log:

2:12pm, dough shaped in pans:

2:12pm, dough's height in pans:

3:16pm, dough proofed 1 hour:

3:16pm, dough's height after 1 hour of proofing:

3:54pm, dough proofed almost 2 hours:

3:54pm, dough's height:

3:54pm, dough to bake at 350F:

4:15pm, loaves baked 20 minutes:

4:15pm, loaves height at 20 minutes:

4:29pm, loaves covered and continued baking:

4:38pm, loaves baked 40 minutes:

4:38pm, thermometer coming out clean:

4:38pm, loaves' top in pan:

4:39pm, loaves' height:

4:42pm, loaves' top when out of pans:

4:43pm, loaves' side and heel:

4:43pm, loaves' bottom:

5:22pm, loaves in batch:


Observations:
1. The sugar cubes melt and start giving out bubbles in the middle of the baking.
2. Sugar makes the loaves very tender.


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