My 53th loaf: Fruit of the earth loaf with atta flour again

Having acquire a source of active dry yeast at a low price, I am becoming much more generous with my use of yeast. This time I am making the fruit-of-the-earth loaf with ample yeast in the pre-ferment. I decide not to proof the yeast.

Recipe: Fruit of the earth loaf with atta flour

Ingredients:
Preferment
- 2 cups atta flour
- 1 tp active dry yeast
- 1/2 tp cinnamon powder
- 1/4 tp nutmeg powder
- 1/4 tp cardamon powder
- 3 TB brown sugar
- 1+1/2 tp kosher salt
- 3/4 cup water
Dough
- 1/2 cup atta flour
- 1 tp active dry yeast
- 1/2 cup uncooked whole grain cereal
- 3 TB vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup warm 1% milk
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/4 cup sweetened dried prunes, chopped
- 1/4 cup spicy pineapples, chopped

Procedure:
1. Mix all the dry ingredients of the preferment in a bowl. Add 1/2 cup of water. Mix to form a dough. Incrementally add the remaining water while mixing. When dough is fully formed, knead it for a few minutes until smooth. Then chill overnight.
2. Next day, soak active dry yeast and uncooked cereal in 1/3 cup warm milk for 20 minutes. Take out the pre-ferment from the fridge. Tear it into small bits. Work the soaked ingredients into the dough until everything incorporate. Add up to 1/2 cup flour and a few TB milk to adjust the hydration. Then allow to rise for at least 2 hours on counter top.
3. When the final dough has risen once, rub in the oil. Then add all the nuts and dried fruits.
3. Shape dough into a log. Place in a greased medium loaf pan. Allow to rise until volume doubles.
4. Preheat oven to 350F. Bake for 15 minutes uncovered. Then cover with foil and bake for another 50 minutes until internal temperature is 190F.

Results:
Day 1
Day 1, 11:36pm, initial ingredients:

Day 1, 11:40pm, initial mixture:

Day 1, 11:48pm, stickiness of initial mixture:

Day 1, 11:54pm, a very dry dough:

Day (2), midnight: dry dough having been needed 5 minutes:

Day (2), 00:02am, dry dough ready to chill:

Day 2
Day 2, 7:33am, dough after 7 hours of overnight chilling:

Day 2, 9:52am, dough warmed up for 2 hours, without significant growth:

Day 2, 10:28am, dough kneaded, smooth and elastic, but dense:

Day 2, 10:28am, uncooked cereal and additional 1 tp of yeast mixed with warm milk:

Day 2, 10:28am, dried fruits and nuts chopped for later use:

Day 2, 10:35am, dough torn to pieces and mixed with milk mixture:

Day 2, 10:59am, dough kneaded:

Day 2, 12:02pm, dough rested 1 hour in order for yeast to grow, yielding significant expansion:

Day 2, 12:11pm, dough with 1/2 cup flour added to adjust moisture after dough has expanded:

Day 2, 12:24pm, dough's texture:

Day 2, 12:25pm, dough to be oiled:

Day 2, 12:36pm, dough oiled shape and height before chilling (because I needed to go away to do something else):

Day 2, 3:48pm, dough chilled 3 hours; because of the warmth from kneading, dough continued expanding while in the fridge:

Day 2, 3:49pm, dough's texture at the bottom:

Day 2, 3:50pm, fruits and nuts added:

Day 2, 4:00pm, dough to proof in pan greased with shortening:

Day 2, 4:00pm, dough's height before proofing:

Day 2, 5:41pm, dough's height before baking:

Day 2, 5:41pm, dough with a wash of egg yoke and milk:

Day 2, 5:42pm, loaf start baking:

Day 2, 5:55pm, loaf baked 15 minutes:

Day 2, 6:28pm, loaf baked 45 minutes, still not quite done, still very soft inside, can't hold the thermometer:

Day 2, 6:44pm, loaf baked 1 hour, done:

Day 2, 6:44pm, thermometer coming out clean:

Day 2, 6:44pm, loaf's top:

Day 2, 6:45pm, loaf's height:

Day 2, 6:46pm, loaf's bottom:

Day 2, 6:46pm, loaf's bottom corner:

Day 2, 6:46pm, loaf's side:

Day 2, 6:47pm, loaf's heel:

Day 2: 6:46pm, loaf's top when warm:

Day 2, 7:17pm, loaf's top when cooled:

Day 2, two loaves baked for April:

Observations:
I can see that when the active dry yeast is not proofed, the dough rises up very very slowly. Therefore, I have to add an extra 1 tp of yeast on the second day when I make the final dough. To allow the yeast to be effective, I make the dough wet with the extra yeast. Then I let the wet dough rest for an hour on counter top for the yeast to grow. After the yeast has grown, I adjust the hydration by adding extra flour.

My 39th experiment: Fruits of the earth loaf with atta flour

Now I am playing with atta flour to find out its properties. It has a nice feel that is somewhat between whole wheat flour and white flour. This time I am going to make the fruits-of-the-Earth loaf using atta flour instead of King Arthur flour.

Recipe: Fruits of the Earth loaf with atta flour (make 1 medium loaf)

Ingredients:
Pre-ferment
- 2 cups atta flour
- 1/2 tp active dry yeast
- 2 TB warm water to proof the yeast
- 1/2 tp cinnamon powder
- 1/4 tp nutmeg powder
- 1/4 tp cardamom powder
- 2+1/2 TBs brown sugar
- 1+1/2 tp kosher salt
- 1/2 cup warm water
Final dough
- 1 cup atta flour
- 1/2 cup mashed yam cooked with 1/2 tp fresh chopped ginger
- 1/2 cup uncooked whole grain hot cereal
- 3 TBs vegetable oil
- 1/3 cup warm 1% milk
- 1 TB orange juice
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1/4 cup sweetened dried prunes, chopped
- 1/4 cup spicy pineapples and candied tamarind, chopped

Procedure:
Day 1
1. Proof yeast in warm water.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients of the pre-ferment in a large bowl. Then add proofed yeast and water. Mix until it forms a dough ball. Then knead for a while until the dough is uniformly hydrated and smooth. Chill in fridge overnight.

Day 2
Do nothing

Day 3
1. Warm up the pre-ferment for at least 2 hours on counter top.
2. Mix in the uncooked cereal, flour, yam, milk. When the final dough is done, rub in the oil. Then add all the nuts and dry fruits. The final dough should be very strong and able to stand.
3. Shape dough into a log. Place in a greased medium loaf pan. Allow to rise until volume doubles.
4. Preheat oven to 350F. Bake for 15 minutes uncovered. Then cover with foil and bake for another 50 minutes until internal temperature is 190F.

Results:
Day 1
1:55pm, pre-ferment being mixed:

2:07pm, pre-ferment kneaded 10 minutes:

2:22pm, pre-ferment ready to be chilled overnight:

Day 2: nothing

Day 3

7:24am, warming up:

10:15am, mashing yam:

10:28am, initial mix:

10:42am, final dough being mixed:

11:04am, final dough done:

11:24am, final dough rested 20 minutes:

12:07pm, final dough rested 50 minutes:

12:08pm, final dough rested 50 minutes texture:

12:18pm, final dough with nuts and fruits:

12:18pm, final dough to proof the second time:

12:47pm, final dough proofed 30 minutes:

12:51pm, final dough shaped:

12:51pm, final dough shaped height:

1:22pm, final dough proofed 30 minutes in warmth:

1:22pm, final dough proofed 30 minutes height:

1:37pm, loaf baked 10 minutes, then covered to bake the remaining time:

2:30pm, loaf baked 60 minutes:

2:31pm, loaf height:

2:35pm, loaf's bottom:

2:35pm, loaf's side:

2:39pm, 2 loaves baked on the same day being compared (left: this loaf; right: my 40th loaf):

2:39pm, 2 loaves baked on the same day being compared on their heights (left is this loaf; right is my 40th loaf):

Remarks:
1. This time when I make the pre-ferment, I am quite comfortable with the hydration. It seems that atta flour just takes longer to arrive at the uniform hydration, but it does not necessarily need more water.
2. The dough is very strong. I think the atta flour has quite a bit of gluten.
3. In terms of texture and flavor, the atta flour has a strong and grainy wheat taste. It is not as smooth as King Arthur whole wheat flour.
4. So far in my experiments, everyone who has tried the goodies made with atta flour like its texture and flavor of wheat.
5. I think atta flour would go well in baked goods that include coarsely ground ingredients like almond meal, coconut powder and the mixed ingredients of this loaf.