Another semolina crust pizza

I like homemade pizzas. I try making the semolina crust pizza again. Last time my hubby mentioned that there is something in the crust that tastes strange to him. I thought it's because of the very long fermentation. This time I try it with exactly the same ingredients, but with a more controlled fermentation process. However, he still tastes that same flavor in the crust. So it has to be either the semolina flour or the oat bran. We'll find out next time.

Recipe: Semolina pizza (for 2)

Ingredients:

Crust

- 1/4 cup KAF all-purpose flour

- 3/8 cup fine semolina flour

- 1/8 cup oat bran

- 1/4 tp kosher salt

- 1/2 tp active dry yeast

- 1/4 to 1/2 cup warm water

Toppings

- 1/2 to 1 cup tomato sauce

- 1" salami, sliced and browned to drain off excess fat

- 1 fresh italian sausage, removed of casing and browned

- 1 tp mini pepperoni, browned and drained off fat

- 8-10 slices turkey pepperoni

- 2 slices of pineapple

- ample fat-free mozzarella cheese, shredded

Procedure:

1. Mix flours, bran and salt in a bowl. Proof yeast in 1 TB water. Add to the mixture and knead to form a dough. Add water incrementally while kneading the dough. Aim for a somewhat moist dough. 

2. Allow dough to ferment in the fridge for a few hours or overnight.

3. Roll dough out on a greased wax paper. Dust a pan with corn flour. Flip dough over carefully. Allow to proof until puffy.

4. Spread tomato sauce and add toppings just before baking.

5. Bake at 500F on lowest rack in the oven, 4 minutes. Add shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake for another 2 minutes until cheese has melted.

Results:

12:01pm, ingredients (except oil):

12:04pm, mixing:

12:13pm, initial dough formed:

12:20pm, texture of initial dough after kneading:

12:23pm, dough needing more hydration:

12:33pm, oil-free dough ready to rest in fridge:

4:57pm, dough chilled in fridge for 4 hours:

4:57pm, texture of dough after chilling:

6:00pm, dough warmed up on counter top for 1 hour:

6:01pm, texture of dough after warming up:

6:01pm, oiling wax paper to stretch dough:

6:03pm, dough oiled and being stretched:

6:06pm, dough fully stretched and allowed to rest while preparing pan:

6:09pm, pan dusted with corn flour (finer than cornmeal but not cornstarch):

6:10pm, dough flipped onto pan:

6:13pm, dough allowed to proof on pan:

7:11pm, dough proofed for 1 hour:

7:11pm, dough's puffiness after proofing:

7:14pm, tomato sauce spread on dough (perhaps too much sauce):

7:17pm, sausage, mini pepperoni, turkey pepperoni, salami and pineapple:

7:19pm, baking started at 500F, lowest rack:

7:23pm, pizza baked 4 minutes:

7:24pm, cheese sprinkled on top:

7:25pm, baking resumed at 500F:

7:27pm, pizza baked for 2 more minutes, cheese completely melted:

7:27pm, edge of pizza:

7:28pm, bottom of pizza very lightly cooked, soft and not at all crispy:

7:28pm, melted cheese:

7:31pm, cut edge of pizza:

7:30pm, very very soft crust:

7:32pm, a slice:

Observations:

1. The crust is not crispy at all. But then it only takes 2 minutes for the mozzarella to melt. So next time I may reduce the amount of sauce used, bake the pizza for 6 minutes first, then add cheese and bake for another 2 minutes.

2. The toppings of this pizza is moist. 

3. Because almost all the sausage meats used in this pizza have been browned and drained before baking, this pizza has relatively low fat content.

My hubby says that the ultimate test for a pizza is whether it can go with a guinness. Despite the little something in the crust that does not please his palate, this pizza still passes his guinness test.

My 57th experiment: Beer herbed seeds bread

We've been enjoying bread so much that I've started to make 2 loaves per week. Now that I have two KAF cook books, I am practically trying out everything from there whenever occasion arises. Now that I've tried a few quick bread recipes, I begin to understand what is so quick in the quick bread. It's the time of mixing, not the time of baking. So far, my quick bread batters tend to be more moist than the yeast bread dough. Therefore, the quick breads take longer to bake, and yield a more moist texture than the yeast breads.

Recipe: Beer herbed seeds bread (1 medium loaf)

Ingredients:
- 1 cup KAF all-purpose flour
- 1 cup KAF whole wheat flour
- 1/2 cup fine semolina flour
- 1 TB baking powder
- 1+1/4 tp table salt
- 1 TB white sugar
- 1 12-oz O'doul's ember, less 1/4 cup
- 2 TB vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup flax seeds
- 1 tp each of dried rosemary, parsley, oregano, and marjoram

Procedure:
1. Mix all the flours, the baking powder, salt and sugar in one large bowl.
2. Mix all the herbs and seeds in a small bowl.
3. Add O'doul's very slowly and stir. As the beer mixes with the flour, it stirs up a lot of bubbles. Try to avoid any explosion. Save about 1/2 bottle until the seeds and herbs are added in, so that the herbs may get hydrated. Add the oil while mixing the batter.
4. When the batter is almost thoroughly formed, add in the seeds and the herbs. Mix thoroughly.
5. Grease a 8.5"x4" pan (this time I use 9"x5", but a smaller one should be enough). Pour the batter into the pan.
6. Preheat oven to 350F. Bake on middle rack for 30 minutes. Then cover with foil and continue baking until a temperature comes out clean.
7. Allow to cool on rack. Then wrap in plastic to cool overnight before slicing.

Results:
2:20pm, ingredients ready:

2:21pm, beer added slowly to the mixture of dry ingredients:

2:24pm, half the beer saved to hydrate the seeds and herbs while mixing the batter:

2:25pm, final batter ready:

2:28pm, thickness of the batter when poured into a greased pan:

2:30pm, the (lack of) spread of the batter:

2:30pm, the height of the batter just before baking at 350F:

2:31pm, leftover beer, not used in the batter:

3:03pm, loaf baked 30 minutes:

3:03pm, loaf's height when baked 30 minutes:

3:03pm, loaf covered with foil and continued baking at 350F:

3:27pm, loaf baked 55 minutes, internal temperature 180F:

3:27pm, thermometer coming out clean:

3:33pm, the edge of the loaf being easily detached:

3:33pm, loaf's top when done:

3:33pm, loaf's height:

3:36pm, loaf's bottom:

3:37pm, loaf's heel:

3:37pm, loaf's side:

3:39pm, loaf's corner:

3:39pm, loaf's top:

6:34pm, loaf cooled for 3 hours:

6:39pm, a center-of-loaf slice:

6:39pm, a heel-of-loaf slice:

6:40pm, loaf yielding 14 slices, easily sliced, giving a cut knife:

6:40pm, the crispy crust and the chewy crumb of the loaf:

6:47pm, a bite on a heel slice, very crispy crust, very tender crumb, with distinctive chewy bites on the seeds:

7:31pm, remaining slices wrapped to freeze:

Next day, comparison of three recent loaves (all frozen): the oatmeal flaxseed bread (bottom left), the zucchini quick bread (top), and the beer herbed seeds bread (bottom right):

Observations:
1. In my last few experiments, I try out quick breads. What I have noticed is that wheat-based quick breads tend to have a more dramatic oven spring, but also fall back much more substantially than wheat-based yeast breads. This is probably because the gluten has not developed enough to hold the shape of the quick bread. The preparation time of quick bread is usually less than 30 minutes. There is no time to proof the yeast or to let the dough rise. If any gluten develops at all, it's during the mixing time and the beginning of the baking.
2. According to the KAF whole grain cook book, "practically all quick breads benefit from an overnight rest before slicing. The moisture in the dough redistributes itself as the breads sits, improving its texture and slicing qualities. This characteristic couldn't be better suited for whole grains, which become even more appetizing when given some extra time to absorb the loaf's moisture. The bran softens, the flavors meld, and any spices or vanilla have more time to evenly suffuse the bread."
3. Indeed, after allowing the loaf to cool for 3 hours, the loaf is a lot easier to slice. The flavor is very good. I like the rich combination of herbs and seeds, along with some unusual sweet that comes from the beer.