Buns in the Oven
Jun. 3rd, 2021 09:49 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
taz_39Aah, the weekend.
I got up earlier than I wanted to, but that's what happens when you have bread to bake.
Honestly, as tired as I am, and as much as I always need the sleep, having a few hours of quiet in the early morning is almost just as good to have. The house is still cool, the hot Florida sun hasn't yet broken through the haze of humidity, and I can see what I need to see with just ambient outdoor light. I prepare my mise en place, taking my time, each ingredient on the scale and into a small dish or measuring cup while the kettle heats on the stove. I add the yeast to a bowl of warm water or milk and honey so it can wake and bloom, and I pour myself fresh hot coffee so I can wake and bloom, too. I add the dry ingredients and mix the dough by hand, feeling when the lumps are gone and the dough is smooth and sticky.
And after that is usually when I start f*cking things up. Lol.
But seriously, it's really nice, to take my time and just enjoy the process.
To have just a few hours where I'm not supposed to be at work, or rushing to finish chores so I can practice steno.
To drink my coffee slowly from a mug, instead of gulping it between potholes on the way to work.
So if I'm such a terrible person for wanting that time to myself--for demanding it each week--then I guess I'm a terrible person.
I guess the Peanut Gallery can tisk away about how I choose to spend my time for a few hours each week. I'll probably never understand why it should matter to anyone else, or how me baking bread once a week warrants commentary at all. And I'll probably still get upset and defensive from time to time. But I'm still going to have time to myself like this. Because to some extent, I'm a Person, and I'm allowed.
Anyway, I had intended to make another brioche using an online recipe, but I overworked the dough and ended up having to throw it out. So instead I simply moved to the next recipe in my book, which is "Orange Blossom Brioche". It's the same brioche recipe as last week but with orange zest, orange blossom water, and wildflower honey instead of sugar. I hadn't wanted to make this loaf because I didn't think it would be a flavor I'd like. But we live in Florida, so really, how could I skip the ORANGE bread?
I made it exactly as instructed, with one very small deviation: I added just a little vanilla in place of a little of the orange water (which was optional anyway).
About the orange water, it wasn't available in any stores near me, so I had ordered it on Amazon around 5am, and it arrived that same evening around 5pm. Isn't technology amazing? Also, is Amazon hoarding orange water? Lol.
I first mixed the milk, honey, yeast, and eggs to let the yeast activate for a few minutes. Then I added the vanilla, orange water, and softened butter, whisking it until the butter was broken into smaller chunks. I poured the flour on top, and the salt and orange zest on top of that, then mixed it all together by hand. It rested for 30 minutes while I ate breakfast, then I kneaded it on the floured countertop for about 10 minutes at which point it was still sticky, but more firm and stretchy. Brioche dough is always stickier than regular dough due to all the sugar and butter.
While the dough was set aside to rise in a covered bowl, I went out to the garden to do some actual work.
Ever since my little monarch butterfly project the garden has been neglected. For one thing I had stopped spraying BT and spinosad because I was afraid it would kill my caterpillars. As a result, all of my plants are worm-eaten. And as a result of a month without rain, a lot of plants are unhappy or growing leggy instead of putting energy into producting vegetables. I first took the tomato pot outside and tore out the tomato, taking a cutting just in case I can get it to grow. Then I dug up my massive dill plant and put it in the tomato pot, and moved it to the pollinator garden (which is what I should have done in the first place when the dill was becoming established).
I still had one roselle seedling in the planter, so I took it out and moved it to the pollinator garden as well.
Watered those plants and a few others, and will probably water again tonight if it still refuses to rain (at time of writing we're at 40% chance).
Then I spent a lot of time weeding. The weeds were terrible, especially the crab grass, as I haven't weeded for an entire month. By the time that was done I was sweating buckets and covered in dirt. I came inside and got cleaned up, which was about the time the dough was ready anyway.
I shaped the dough as instructed with one small difference (insert Peanut Gallery criticisms here), which is that I formed the dough into a rectangle and rolled it up rather than doing a letter fold. I've done it both ways and have noticed zero difference, just felt like rolling it this time. I also popped some of the larger air bubbles that I saw in hopes of reducing big air pockets near the top of the loaf. Then the dough went into a loaf pan (another deviation here, I used an 8.5" instead of a 9" pan because I wanted a taller loaf, this is a totally acceptable change to make, sorry Peanut Gallery) and into the microwave with a hot cup of water to rise for 90 minutes.
After exactly 90 minutes I took the loaf out and gave it an egg wash, then into the hot oven. 35 minutes later, here is the result.
I think it looks very good, once again we have that cracking on the surface but I've been told many times that this just happens sometimes and there's not a whole lot to be done about it. Since it's entirely aesthetic and does not indicate that I did anything wrong, I'm ok with it. I do see a bit of splitting at the top of the loaf, so maybe I could have let it proof longer. I'm still an amateur, and this is still going to take practice.
The crust shrank just a little as the bread cooled. It has a lovely subtle orange scent, and when it was cool enough to slice, the crumb was lovely. There were still some larger air bubbles, but overall the distribution of bubbles was more even. It was moist, sweet, buttery, and delicious. In the interest of being less critical of myself, I'll say this came out very nice and I'm very pleased with it.
For anyone interested, I started assembling the ingredients at 8:30am and set the dough to rise around 10:30am, keeping in mind that 30 minutes of that was letting the dough rest. The rise ended two hours later (around 12:30) and I spent 5-10 minutes shaping before it went for the 90-minute proofing. So around 2:15 is when the loaf went into the oven for 35 minutes. My total active engagement in making this bread was about two hours, maybe an additional 30 minutes total for cleanup. I know people who binge shows or play video games or SLEEP for 8 hours each day. Just saying. But that's none of my business.
I got to chill for a little bit, then ate dinner and had steno class. It went pretty well, especially now that I've cleared things up with my teacher. A lot less stressful. Then Jameson and I watched Master Chef and went to bed. Lovely evening.
Thursday, woke up earlier than I wanted to but still late. I had a nice slow breakfast, toasting a piece of the orange brioche (it was HEAVENLY). Then it was time for my extra project: English muffins!
Now listen. Every week, I buy a package of Arnold's Sandwich Thins, the whole wheat kind. I use them for my egg sandwiches that I make for breakfast. The package has six sandwich thins, and costs between $3-4.
The English muffin recipe from King Arthur Flour makes sixteen muffins, using about four cups of flour, a little sugar and salt, and two teaspoons of yeast. They take two hours to make, prep included, and cost less than a dollar to make. And I can alter the recipe to include more wheat flour, too. To get the same number of sandwich thins would cost between $9-12.
My goal in learning to make these was to be able to stop buying expensive Sandwich Thins. One batch of these will last about two and a half weeks depending on how many Jameson swipes. Why the heck not.
The dough is made in a mixer and comes together very quickly. Then it rises for an hour or so. While it was doing that I did my meal prep for the week and cleaned up the kitchen. When the dough was ready I dumped it out and cut it into sixteen pieces, rolling each piece into a little ball and flattening it until it was about 3" wide. They weren't all exactly the same size but this ain't a professional bakery, ya know.
I stuck half the little circles directly on frying pans coated with semolina flour and cornmeal, and the other half went on a baking sheet to wait. They all rose for another 20 minutes or so, then I started cooking them just like you would pancakes. When they browned I flipped them, and flattened them a little with the spatula or my cast iron pan.
I could not believe how well they turned out.
They are a little more dense in the middle than I'd like, getting that griddle temperature right is a bit tricky. It may also be that way because I subbed in about 200 grams of white wheat flour for the bread flour. But the nice thing about English muffins is, you're going to be splitting them and toasting them anyway, so the middle is going to crisp up anyway.
Here is one before toasting. Fun fact: no one knows the secret to how Thomas' English Muffins gets such big nooks and crannies in their muffins. Most homemade muffins WILL look something like this.
Here is the same muffin, lightly toasted. As you can see, the more you toast them the better they're going to get!
I was very pleased with these, and am absolutely willing to make them once or twice a month to replace my expensive sandwich thins from the store. Also, now I really want eggs Benedict...
The rest of my afternoon was spent cleaning up and relaxing.
My sister posted some pregnancy photos, and God, she is so beautiful.
I'm jealous of her, and I love her, and I hope delivery goes smoothly for her. Seeing these pics makes me nervous that she'll have the baby before I even get there!!
I started prepping for dinner around 4pm because Jameson has a dress rehearsal tonight.
He has poured his heart and soul into this production, and I'm extremely proud of him.
I wish I were playing in the pit on his show. BUT, no trombones. Useless instrument.
For dinner I made simple chicken roulades stuffed with ricotta, spinach and tomatoes, served with lemon orzo on the side.
While Jameson was at rehearsal I took a trip to Target for some LaCroix "Limoncello" because one of my friends has not stopped raving about it for two weeks and I wanna try it. Also got some mini black-and-white cookies for no reason other than I love them and miss them. And some other random things that I'd need for meals for the week.
Back home, put the groceries away, packed my lunch, wrote this post up, emptied the dishwasher, and then it's time to watch anime until Jameson gets home.
I got up earlier than I wanted to, but that's what happens when you have bread to bake.
Honestly, as tired as I am, and as much as I always need the sleep, having a few hours of quiet in the early morning is almost just as good to have. The house is still cool, the hot Florida sun hasn't yet broken through the haze of humidity, and I can see what I need to see with just ambient outdoor light. I prepare my mise en place, taking my time, each ingredient on the scale and into a small dish or measuring cup while the kettle heats on the stove. I add the yeast to a bowl of warm water or milk and honey so it can wake and bloom, and I pour myself fresh hot coffee so I can wake and bloom, too. I add the dry ingredients and mix the dough by hand, feeling when the lumps are gone and the dough is smooth and sticky.
And after that is usually when I start f*cking things up. Lol.
But seriously, it's really nice, to take my time and just enjoy the process.
To have just a few hours where I'm not supposed to be at work, or rushing to finish chores so I can practice steno.
To drink my coffee slowly from a mug, instead of gulping it between potholes on the way to work.
So if I'm such a terrible person for wanting that time to myself--for demanding it each week--then I guess I'm a terrible person.
I guess the Peanut Gallery can tisk away about how I choose to spend my time for a few hours each week. I'll probably never understand why it should matter to anyone else, or how me baking bread once a week warrants commentary at all. And I'll probably still get upset and defensive from time to time. But I'm still going to have time to myself like this. Because to some extent, I'm a Person, and I'm allowed.
Anyway, I had intended to make another brioche using an online recipe, but I overworked the dough and ended up having to throw it out. So instead I simply moved to the next recipe in my book, which is "Orange Blossom Brioche". It's the same brioche recipe as last week but with orange zest, orange blossom water, and wildflower honey instead of sugar. I hadn't wanted to make this loaf because I didn't think it would be a flavor I'd like. But we live in Florida, so really, how could I skip the ORANGE bread?
I made it exactly as instructed, with one very small deviation: I added just a little vanilla in place of a little of the orange water (which was optional anyway).
About the orange water, it wasn't available in any stores near me, so I had ordered it on Amazon around 5am, and it arrived that same evening around 5pm. Isn't technology amazing? Also, is Amazon hoarding orange water? Lol.
I first mixed the milk, honey, yeast, and eggs to let the yeast activate for a few minutes. Then I added the vanilla, orange water, and softened butter, whisking it until the butter was broken into smaller chunks. I poured the flour on top, and the salt and orange zest on top of that, then mixed it all together by hand. It rested for 30 minutes while I ate breakfast, then I kneaded it on the floured countertop for about 10 minutes at which point it was still sticky, but more firm and stretchy. Brioche dough is always stickier than regular dough due to all the sugar and butter.
While the dough was set aside to rise in a covered bowl, I went out to the garden to do some actual work.
Ever since my little monarch butterfly project the garden has been neglected. For one thing I had stopped spraying BT and spinosad because I was afraid it would kill my caterpillars. As a result, all of my plants are worm-eaten. And as a result of a month without rain, a lot of plants are unhappy or growing leggy instead of putting energy into producting vegetables. I first took the tomato pot outside and tore out the tomato, taking a cutting just in case I can get it to grow. Then I dug up my massive dill plant and put it in the tomato pot, and moved it to the pollinator garden (which is what I should have done in the first place when the dill was becoming established).
I still had one roselle seedling in the planter, so I took it out and moved it to the pollinator garden as well.
Watered those plants and a few others, and will probably water again tonight if it still refuses to rain (at time of writing we're at 40% chance).
Then I spent a lot of time weeding. The weeds were terrible, especially the crab grass, as I haven't weeded for an entire month. By the time that was done I was sweating buckets and covered in dirt. I came inside and got cleaned up, which was about the time the dough was ready anyway.
I shaped the dough as instructed with one small difference (insert Peanut Gallery criticisms here), which is that I formed the dough into a rectangle and rolled it up rather than doing a letter fold. I've done it both ways and have noticed zero difference, just felt like rolling it this time. I also popped some of the larger air bubbles that I saw in hopes of reducing big air pockets near the top of the loaf. Then the dough went into a loaf pan (another deviation here, I used an 8.5" instead of a 9" pan because I wanted a taller loaf, this is a totally acceptable change to make, sorry Peanut Gallery) and into the microwave with a hot cup of water to rise for 90 minutes.
After exactly 90 minutes I took the loaf out and gave it an egg wash, then into the hot oven. 35 minutes later, here is the result.
I think it looks very good, once again we have that cracking on the surface but I've been told many times that this just happens sometimes and there's not a whole lot to be done about it. Since it's entirely aesthetic and does not indicate that I did anything wrong, I'm ok with it. I do see a bit of splitting at the top of the loaf, so maybe I could have let it proof longer. I'm still an amateur, and this is still going to take practice.
The crust shrank just a little as the bread cooled. It has a lovely subtle orange scent, and when it was cool enough to slice, the crumb was lovely. There were still some larger air bubbles, but overall the distribution of bubbles was more even. It was moist, sweet, buttery, and delicious. In the interest of being less critical of myself, I'll say this came out very nice and I'm very pleased with it.
For anyone interested, I started assembling the ingredients at 8:30am and set the dough to rise around 10:30am, keeping in mind that 30 minutes of that was letting the dough rest. The rise ended two hours later (around 12:30) and I spent 5-10 minutes shaping before it went for the 90-minute proofing. So around 2:15 is when the loaf went into the oven for 35 minutes. My total active engagement in making this bread was about two hours, maybe an additional 30 minutes total for cleanup. I know people who binge shows or play video games or SLEEP for 8 hours each day. Just saying. But that's none of my business.
I got to chill for a little bit, then ate dinner and had steno class. It went pretty well, especially now that I've cleared things up with my teacher. A lot less stressful. Then Jameson and I watched Master Chef and went to bed. Lovely evening.
Thursday, woke up earlier than I wanted to but still late. I had a nice slow breakfast, toasting a piece of the orange brioche (it was HEAVENLY). Then it was time for my extra project: English muffins!
Now listen. Every week, I buy a package of Arnold's Sandwich Thins, the whole wheat kind. I use them for my egg sandwiches that I make for breakfast. The package has six sandwich thins, and costs between $3-4.
The English muffin recipe from King Arthur Flour makes sixteen muffins, using about four cups of flour, a little sugar and salt, and two teaspoons of yeast. They take two hours to make, prep included, and cost less than a dollar to make. And I can alter the recipe to include more wheat flour, too. To get the same number of sandwich thins would cost between $9-12.
My goal in learning to make these was to be able to stop buying expensive Sandwich Thins. One batch of these will last about two and a half weeks depending on how many Jameson swipes. Why the heck not.
The dough is made in a mixer and comes together very quickly. Then it rises for an hour or so. While it was doing that I did my meal prep for the week and cleaned up the kitchen. When the dough was ready I dumped it out and cut it into sixteen pieces, rolling each piece into a little ball and flattening it until it was about 3" wide. They weren't all exactly the same size but this ain't a professional bakery, ya know.
I stuck half the little circles directly on frying pans coated with semolina flour and cornmeal, and the other half went on a baking sheet to wait. They all rose for another 20 minutes or so, then I started cooking them just like you would pancakes. When they browned I flipped them, and flattened them a little with the spatula or my cast iron pan.
I could not believe how well they turned out.
They are a little more dense in the middle than I'd like, getting that griddle temperature right is a bit tricky. It may also be that way because I subbed in about 200 grams of white wheat flour for the bread flour. But the nice thing about English muffins is, you're going to be splitting them and toasting them anyway, so the middle is going to crisp up anyway.
Here is one before toasting. Fun fact: no one knows the secret to how Thomas' English Muffins gets such big nooks and crannies in their muffins. Most homemade muffins WILL look something like this.
Here is the same muffin, lightly toasted. As you can see, the more you toast them the better they're going to get!
I was very pleased with these, and am absolutely willing to make them once or twice a month to replace my expensive sandwich thins from the store. Also, now I really want eggs Benedict...
The rest of my afternoon was spent cleaning up and relaxing.
My sister posted some pregnancy photos, and God, she is so beautiful.
I'm jealous of her, and I love her, and I hope delivery goes smoothly for her. Seeing these pics makes me nervous that she'll have the baby before I even get there!!
I started prepping for dinner around 4pm because Jameson has a dress rehearsal tonight.
He has poured his heart and soul into this production, and I'm extremely proud of him.
I wish I were playing in the pit on his show. BUT, no trombones. Useless instrument.
For dinner I made simple chicken roulades stuffed with ricotta, spinach and tomatoes, served with lemon orzo on the side.
While Jameson was at rehearsal I took a trip to Target for some LaCroix "Limoncello" because one of my friends has not stopped raving about it for two weeks and I wanna try it. Also got some mini black-and-white cookies for no reason other than I love them and miss them. And some other random things that I'd need for meals for the week.
Back home, put the groceries away, packed my lunch, wrote this post up, emptied the dishwasher, and then it's time to watch anime until Jameson gets home.
