[Sca-cooks] sour and substantial breads

[Terry Decker]

I find beer breads so-so.

Your filling may have been a real sourdough which produces a heavier loaf 
than the stuff that you buy at the grocery which is called sourdough (where 
the sour is usually citric acid).  If it had large pockets of aeration, I 
would say it likely had a yeast booster or had really good CO2 producing 
yeastie beasties and lactobacilli.

If you like sourdoughs but don't want the hassle of keeping a starter, 
here's a trick you can try with your bread machine.   Take 1/2 cup of water 
and proof the yeast for which the recipe calls.  This will replace 1/2 cup 
of liquid in the recipe.  Once the yeast is proofed, add one cup of flour 
and stir it in until you get a thick batter.  This will replace 1 cup of the 
flour in the recipe.  Cover the bowl and let it stand on the counter for 24 
to 48 hours to let lactic acid build in the sponge.  Pour off any liquid 
standing on top of the sponge.  Break the sponge apart in the remaining 
liquid of the recipe and proceed to make bread as you normally would.  Not 
as good as a fine sourdough, but it will have more flavor.  The one worry 
with this method is mold, so if you live in a mold prone area, you may want 
to keep an eye on the starter and use it a little earlier in the 
fermentation.

Bear


> Okay, I've heard about beer bread, how does it taste?
>
> Also, I remember tasting some kind of loaf that wasn't just sourdough
> (though it may have been sourdough plus something else), but it was
> memorable.  Sour, but also reminding me of english muffins, and really 
> heavy
> craft breads, and biscuits and gravy, and meatloaf.....what I mean, was 
> that
> after eating it, I felt FULL, which I rarely do when eating bread, and it
> was, somehow, more satisfying.  It had a sour taste, but it was
> more....umame, I guess, than I'm used to.  Anyone have any idea what it
> might have been?  It wasn't too mealy, which I've had when breads were
> cooked badly....it was great with butter...
>
> -- 
> Ian of Oertha