[Sca-cooks] Re: Pennsic Bread Recommendations?

[Louise Smithson]

We've briefly discussed a dutch oven (I know, not
period, but.. better than having to get into our
dragon and drive down the road and go into a
supermarket, and use plastic to buy bread!), but I was
wondering if there were any other options that don't
require serious construction? (a big unglazed flower
pot over a grate kind of thing, or EASY ways to build
a bread oven from generic bricks or SOMETHING)

I cook bread every year in the fire at Pennsic.  This
started when I took a class (offered every year) by
Mistress Armarantha the Viscious.  She teaches you how
to cook muffins on skillets (very camp friendly), and
white and wheat bread in a dutch oven.  I have had
great success with the dutch oven.  You have to put
the bread in a tin or bowl. Then you put a trivet in
the bottom of the oven to raise if off the bottom.
I also have had good success using a clay oven that I
bought from cooking.com  (search for clay oven.

You place it on hot coals and bury it in more coals.
It takes a little longer to bake a loaf than in a cast
iron dutch oven (about 1 hour), but is more even and
yields a really crunchy crust.

What is handy is to start the sponge the night before
and leave it in the cooler overnight.  That way you
just have to knead form and rise in the morning and
then bake away.

I strongly recommend taking Mistress Armarantha's
class.
Have fun.
Helewyse


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