I've been fighting with my sourdough starter for about 6 months now. Kept getting flat loaves that looked like pancakes. My buddy at the bakery in Portland told me I was probably eyeballing the flour to water ratio wrong. Dropped $18 on a little scale that measures grams, and my first loaf came out with actual oven spring. Who knew 10 extra grams of water makes that much difference. Anyone else have a cheap tool that fixed a big problem?
I was at a friend's place last weekend and watched her beat muffin batter for a full 2 minutes until it was silky smooth. She made rocks instead of muffins. The trick is 12 stirs max and lumps are your friend, am I wrong?
I did the cold retard thing for 6 months and got flat loaves every time. Switched to a 4 hour room temp proof with my starter at peak and finally got that oven spring I was chasing. Anyone else ditch the fridge and get better results?
Was making a triple batch of chocolate chip cookies for a fundraiser last Saturday. Pulled out my trusty KitchenAid, put the butter and sugar in, flipped the switch... nothing. Tried again. Nothing. Checked the outlet with a lamp, that worked. So I just figured the mixer finally died after 10 years. Grabbed a whisk and went at it by hand for a solid 2 hours. Arms were killing me. Finally gave up and went to shove the mixer in the car to take it to the repair shop. That's when I saw the cord draped over the counter... not plugged into anything. Plugged it in and it worked fine. Has anyone else ever done something this boneheaded in the middle of a bake?
I woke up at 4am to get a jump on 6 dozen sourdough loaves for a local cafe order. First proofing went fine, but then my oven decided it hated me and dropped 50 degrees right when I loaded the first batch in. Lost 12 loaves to underbaked gummy interiors before I caught it. Took me until 3pm to get the temp stable again and finish the rest of the order. Has anyone else had an oven just give up mid bake like that?
I was killing my sourdough for months. Loaves came out flat every time. Tried everything. Then I tracked the temp in my kitchen. It was 62 degrees. I was proofing for 8 hours like the recipe said. That's way too long at that temp. Cut it to 5 hours and now I get perfect oven spring. Has anyone else adjusted proofing times for winter? How much do you drop it?
I was reading this baking blog from a guy up in Minneapolis and he was talking about how his dough takes almost 4 hours to proof in winter because his kitchen is around 60 degrees. Tried his tip of putting the bowl on top of the fridge where it's warmer and it cut my proofing time by nearly an hour and a half. Has anyone else had to adjust their rise times when the seasons change?
She told me no stand mixer could ever give the same texture as doing it by hand. I spent like 3 hours working a double batch of dough in my Phoenix kitchen last weekend and my shoulders still hurt. The bread came out fine but not any better than my usual KitchenAid batch from 20 minutes. Has anyone else had a family member push some old school method that just isnt worth the time?
I've been fighting with my starter for months. Kept getting flat dense loaves. Last Thursday I finally got that perfect ear and crumb. Took 4 attempts but it opened up like a dream. Anyone else struggle with getting their hydration right on the first try?
I was making croissants at home last Saturday and my butter block broke right through the dough on the third fold... ended up with a greasy, flaky mess instead of layers. Has anyone found a good trick for keeping the dough and butter at the same temperature?
I was just pulling my weekly bake out of the oven (a Saturday ritual for about 3 years now) and I realized my notebook had exactly 500 checkmarks next to my recipe log. I started counting loaves as a joke after my first few disasters in 2021, you know, to track progress or whatever. Then this morning I hit that even 500 and I had to just stand there staring at the steam coming off the crust for like a minute. Has anyone else ever counted up their total bakes and gotten surprised by the number?
I met this older lady at a farmer's market in Nashville last fall, she had a little folding table with jars of her starter labeled "Bertha" and a sign saying it was fed every morning for 37 years. She let me dip my finger in and taste it, told me her grandmother brought the original batch over from Germany in a mason jar wrapped in a wool sock. Has anyone else run into a baker with a starter that old, and did they trust you enough to let you try it?
Had a guy come into the bakery last Tuesday insisting I make him a gluten-free cake that still had gluten in it because he didn't want to miss out on the texture. I just handed him a regular slice and told him it was magic and he walked away happy.
Last December I had a wedding cake order and a 200-person catering event due the same day. The walk-in cooler died at 6 AM and I lost 40 pounds of buttercream that took me two days to make. Has anyone else had a single day that made you question if this career is worth it?
Everyone says it's so simple but my first 4 batches molded over because I kept the lid too tight. Anybody else struggle way longer than the blogs suggest?
For years I would just toss my yeast in with the flour and hope for the best. Then about 6 months ago a baker in Omaha told me to bloom it in warm water with a pinch of sugar first for 5 minutes. Now I know my yeast is alive before I even start mixing. Has anyone else had a simple change like that fix their results?
I was at this small bakery called Tabor Bread in Portland a couple months ago and watched the owner make a batch of croissants. She wasn't using any measuring cups just a scale and a bowl. I asked her about it and she said volume measuring can be off by 20% depending on how you scoop flour. That stuck with me so I bought a $15 scale the next week. Now my bread comes out the same every time. Has anyone else found their measurements changed after switching to grams?
I was making a big batch of Swiss meringue buttercream for a wedding cake order and it just kept splitting. Turned out my kitchen was too cold, like 62 degrees, and the butter never got to room temp. Had to warm the bowl over a simmering pot and remix it like 4 times before it finally smoothed out. Has anyone else dealt with buttercream seizing up in a chilly kitchen?
I was at this small bakery in Chicago last month and the owner told me she lets her sourdough proof overnight in the fridge instead of on the counter. She said it builds way more tang and makes the crumb softer, so I tried it on my next batch and she was totally right. Has anyone else had luck with cold proofing or do you stick to room temp?
I was at a small bakery in Portland last week and the baker told me he never uses the no-knead method because you lose control over the gluten structure. But I've had great results with it at home for years, especially with my sourdough. Has anyone else found that no-knead bread lacks that chewy crumb you get from traditional kneading, or am I just doing it wrong?
I stopped into Beignet Bros Bakery in New Orleans last weekend for my usual Saturday croissant. But their sourdough loaf had this weird tangy taste that wasn't there a year ago. I asked the new baker and he said they switched from a 20 year old starter to a quicker one to speed up production. Has anyone else noticed bakeries cutting corners like this lately?
I tried using Crisco in my apple pies last week after reading it makes flakier crusts. Made three pies for a church bake sale in Portland and they all came out greasy with no flavor. My aunt Dottie tasted one and asked if I forgot the butter. Going back to butter for Thanksgiving even if the crust isn't as pretty. Anyone else have a shortening fail story?
I was in Philadelphia last weekend visiting family and stopped into this tiny bakery called Taffet's. The owner told me their sourdough starter was passed down from a bakery that opened in 1923. I tried a loaf of their country bread and the flavor was way deeper than anything I've made at home. Has anyone else gotten to taste bread from a really old starter like that?
Switched to that longer rest and now the crumb is way more open, but I'm still figuring out the timing with my work schedule-anyone found a happy medium that doesn't mess up your whole day?
I used to toss my discard every time. Felt like a waste but figured it wasn't worth the trouble. Then a lady at the farmer's market gave me a sample of her discard crackers. She wrote the recipe on a napkin right there. Now I make them every Sunday and they sell out at my stall.