A barm is best described as an intermediary step between harvesting the naturally occurring yeasts floating in the air and a proper sourdough starter. To create a barm one needs to begin with a seed culture. These cultures can be purchased online, acquired from friends, or made from scratch using whole grain flours and water. Often people find it reassuring to have a culture that is tried and true, but you can have a fully functional and flavorful culture in as little as a month made from scratch.

This post assumes you’ve already got a seed culture in hand and are now nurturing that culture for future loaves of bread. With step one, the seed culture, out of the way we can move on to step two, feeding and maintaining the barm.

The barm is like a pet in that just needs a little love, attention and feeding from time to time. Some people even name theirs. With proper maintenance you can forget about it until a few days prior to making your bread. It can be kept in the fridge where it is mostly dormant for up to three months, or freezer for up to six.  It needs to be fed a few times before moving to the third step, being converted into a starter.

This is Mr. Bubbles, from http://twoalmostmavens.blogspot.com

Whenever I plan on making sourdough bread I will feed my barm at least two times, possibly more if it has been in the fridge a long time, before converting it into the starter which gives it an additional feeding. I find that, in addition to being more active, the flavor gets better the more frequently it is fed. In my experience an 8 hour interval is best between feedings, but it is best to judge depending on the activity and size of the barm as variations in temperature can cause wide fluctuations. An easy way to gauge the proper level of fermentation is when the barm has doubled in size, this can happen in as little as four hours. After doubling it is ready to be fed again, or put into the refrigerator for later use.

For example, a barm can be fed three times in one day by feeding at 8am, 4pm and 12am. This would allow for 8 hours of fermentation between feedings and create a very lively and flavorful barm in 24 hours time. At 8am the following day the barm would be properly fermented and could be stored in the fridge and remain active for up to three days before being converted into a starter.

I use the following maintenance ratio by weight:

• 4 parts starter 
• 9 parts water 
• 12 parts flour 

This is a very wet, 75% hydration, barm. It is later converted in to a drier starter, which helps to create a more rounded, buttery flavor in finished loaves. But in the barm state a wetter consistency helps create a more lively product.

In attempting to minimize the amount of waste in maintaining my barm I like to keep it at a bare minimum. I keep 155 grams of it in my fridge, with a backup in the freezer in case anything goes wrong. Of those 155 grams, the following is the breakdown:

• 25g barm
• 55g water 
• 75g bread flour 

Simply reserve 25 grams of the last batch of barm, combine with water and flour and stir until combined into a shaggy mass.  Knead for two minutes, place in a lightly oiled bowl and ferment for 4-8 hours.  

This adheres roughly to the 4:9:12 ratio previously mentioned. The numbers don’t have to be exact, but they should be close. I use grams as they are the most precise method for measuring and also the easiest for such small amounts.

Every time I feed this barm I take 25 grams of the last batch to build upon and throw away 120 grams or roughly 75% of it, which is why I like to keep it at a minimum. Of course through careful planning you can simply build the barm up and utilize every bit of it to create your starter, saving a small amount of course for later use.

From what I read about this recipe, this bread is a cross between a ciabatta and baguette. This recipe has a 76% hydration.

Unfortunately, I forgot to do some conversions. I only had active dry yeast and not instant yeast, but it turned out alright. Here is a website that can help you do conversions… CLICK HERE!

This is a time consuming recipe. There is a lot of time fermenting. I started my poolish (starter dough) the day before I actually started making and baking the bread. It takes about 12 to 16 hours to actually ferment until it’s ready.

The bread turned out alright! It wasn’t the crust I was looking for, but it tastes really good! I only sprinkled flour on top of one of them. I wish I put flour on all of them because it does make the bread look nicer. It’s a time consuming recipe, but totally worth it! It’s going to go great with some delicious tomato soup!

Anyway, I guess I’ll start to show you the recipe now!

Pane di Como Antico o Pane Francese
Como Bread of the Past, French Bread

(Makes 3 Pane Francese)

For the Poolish (Starter Dough)

Ingredients

Bread Flour                               3.625oz or 103 grams
Water, 90 degrees F                  3.625oz or 103 grams
Instant Yeast                             1/8 tsp

Mix the poolish ingredients until evenly distributed and place in a covered bowl.
Let stand at room temperature for about 12 to 16 hours before using in the final dough.

Final Dough

Ingredients

All the Poolish
Bread Flour                              2 2/3 cups or 11.875oz or 336 grams
Whole Wheat Flour                   1/2 cup or 2.375oz or 67 grams
Water, 90 degrees F                 1 1/4 cups or 10oz or 284 grams
Instant Yeast                            1/4 tsp
Kosher Salt                               2 tsp or .25oz or 7 grams

Procedure

Mix all the ingredients together to incorporate them.
Knead the dough for 6 to 8 minutes.
The dough will be very sticky so you might want to either dip your hands in harm water or flour your hands.
Ferment the dough at room temperature for one hour.

Stretch and fold the dough.

1. Stretch out into a rectangle.
   
2. Fold into thirds.
   
3. Fold into thirds again.
   

(Here is a video of Peter Reinhart’s technique on stretching and folding the dough. I recommend watching it!

Let the dough sit again for another 60 minutes.
Stretch and fold the dough again.
This time might be a good idea to preheat the oven to 475 degrees F/246 degrees C.
And let the dough ferment AGAIN for another 60 minutes.
Then, divide the dough into three even pieces.

Let the dough sit for another 15 minutes.
Then shape the dough by gently stretching the dough into strips, about 16” long.

Then, FINALLY, let the dough sit again for 30 minutes at room temperature one more time.
Steam the bread. 1 cup of boiling water poured in a heavy steam pan. Steam the bread for about 5 to 10 minutes or until you see the crust browning slightly. Here is a good video on how to steam bread in a home oven. I recommend watching it!




Then, bake for 20 to 24 minutes at 475 degrees F/265 degrees C, rotating the loaves halfway if necessary.
Cool the bread for about 30 minutes before consuming.

I got the recipe from this lady… Check it out for more bread recipes. They’re good! CLICK HERE!

Pasteurization is not that essential. It just kills bacteria. The EU now how some regulations on raw cheeses. Not every cheese is raw. They’re now, actually, starting to pasteurize more often. Too bad because raw cheeses are delicious!

Ask me anything

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/bakeordie

So, I guess I failed at posting. I think I should put the link of this Tumblr on my Bookmark tabs. Anyway, I just wanted to say that my second semester in school has been interesting. I’m in a cake decorating class and bread class. I don’t feel like I’m learning much, so I’m teaching myself through youtube videos, blogs and books.

Tomorrow I’m going to post a recipe and pictures of Pane Francese. It should work out alright. I made the poolish (starter dough) today so that I can start prepping and baking tomorrow. The poolish takes about 12 to 15 hours to proof. I started it at 2pm before work today, so I’m waking up extra early on my day off to bake the bread.

I hope to be posting more and more every other day or week. I’m going to find some videos and blogs as well that you all should check out for more information on baking and such.

BAKE-or-DIE!

So going to make it!

Milk functions in baked products:
Texture
Flavor
Crust color
Keeping quality
Nutritional value

Pasteurization:
Liquid milk, directly as it comes from the cow and before it has had anything done to it, is called raw milk. Because raw milk may contain disease causing bacteria or other organisms, it is almost always pasteurized before being sold or before being processed into other products. Pasteurized milk has been heated to 161 degrees held at this temperature for 15 seconds to kill disease causing organisms, and then quickly chilled. By law, all grade A liquid milk and cream must be pasteurized. Even after pasteurizing, milk and cream are highly perishable products. Some cream products are ultra-pasteurized to extend their shelf life. Heating the product to a much higher temperature (275 degrees) for 4 seconds kills not only disease causing bacteria but nearly all organisms that cause spoilage. Ultra-pasteurized products must still be refrigerated bother before and after opening.

Fresh Milk Products:
Whole milk is fresh milk as it comes from the cow, with only vitamin D added. It contains 3.5% fat, 8.5% nonfat milk solids and 88% water.
Skim or Nonfat Milk has had most or all the fat removed. Its fat content is 0.5% or less.
Low-fat milk has a fat content of 0.5% to 2%. Its fat content is usually indicated, usually 1% and 2%. Natural liquid milk contains fat, which, because it is lighter than water, will gradually separate and float to the top to form cream. Homogenized milk has been processed so the cream doesn’t separate. This is done by forcing the milk through very tiny holes, which breaks the fat into particles so small they stay distributed in the milk. Nearly all liquid milk on the market has been homogenized.

Fresh Cream Products
Whipping cream has a fat content of 30% to 40%. Within this category there is light whipping cream (30 - 35%) and heavy whipping cream (36% or more).
Extra-heavy whipping cream, also known as manufacturer’s cream, has a fat content of 38 - 40% or more.
Half and Half has a fat content of 10 - 18% which is too low to be called cream.

Fermented Milk and Cream Products
Sour cream has been cultured or fermented by adding lactic acid bacteria, which makes it thick and slightly tangy in flavor. It has about 18% fat.
Creme fraîche (kremm fresh) is a slightly aged, cultured heavy cream. It is a very expensive commercial product. It can be made in the kitchen by warming 1 quart of heavy cream to about 100˚, adding 1 1/2oz buttermilk, and letting the mixture stand  in a warm place until slightly thickened, about 6 to 24 hours.

This pie is delicious. I know this is after blueberry season and the end of cranberry season, but just keep this in your records. It’s really delicious. You’ll love it and the color is absolutely beautiful! It’s tart and sweet at the same time. Try it!!!!! It’s one of my favorite pie recipes. For the center of the pie, you don’t can make any kind of vent. It doesn’t have to be like that. You can make it a simple circle or whatever. For the crust I was still experimenting with what would look nice as a crust. Obviously the design wasn’t the best, but it still look nice-ish. Be sure to make your crust look as defined as possible.

Crimson Pie (Makes one 9” pie or 8” pie with some leftover)
PREHEAT OVEN TO 400 DEGREES!

For the pie dough, you can use the sour cream pie dough that you can find in the pumpkin pie recipe or use whatever kind of pie dough you wish to find on the internet or recipe book. Do not forget to let your pie dough rest for at least one hour.

Pie Filling:
One-half of a small orange (peeled), cut into pieces and seeded
Frozen blueberries, thawed                     4 Cups or 24oz
Cranberries                                             12oz
Granulated sugar                                     1 1/2 Cup
Cornstarch                                              3 Tablespoons (or more if the sauce is too thin)
Coarsely grind orange in a processor or coarsely chop with a knife. Transfer to medium saucepan. Add blueberries, cranberries, sugar, and cornstarch. Stirring constantly, boil mixture over medium high heat until thick, about 3 minutes. COOL COMPLETELY!

Pie crust dough, enough for a 9-inch double crust pie
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Milk
Additional sugar for sprinkling

Place rolled piecrust dough ina 9-inch pie pan; press into place. Trim edges to leave 1/4” overhang; reserve trimmings. Spoon the berry filling into crust, mounding in the center. Dot the filling with the butter. Roll the second pie crust out on a lightly floured surface. Transfer to the top of pie; fold the excess underneath the bottom pie crust to make a seal. Add your own decorative border. Make several slashes in the top crust to allow steam to escape. Brush the crust with milk. Sprinkle the pie with a little sugar. Place the pie on a rimmed cookie sheet in case of spills and bake until the crust is golden brown (about 50 minutes). Cool on a rack for at least one hour and Serve.

I suggest that you use a pie shield for your pie to prevent the crust from browning too much. You can make this out of aluminum foil by cutting out a circle and the cut a little crust shield from there. Here is an example:

cupcakesoftheday:

Cherry-Filled Almond Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes.

Ingredients
Cupcakes:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup almond meal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup oil
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 vanilla bean (seeds only) or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Cherry Filling:
1 cup frozen sweet cherries
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cranberry or pomegranate juice, or water
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Almond Buttercream:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, room temperature
2-3 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/2 vanilla bean (seeds only) or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
food coloring (optional)
2-3 tablespoons heavy cream or soy creamer

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pan with cupcake liners.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, almond meal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together oil, coconut milk, vanilla bean, and almond extract. Add sugar and mix until incorporated. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients. Mix until relatively smooth (batter will be slightly lumpy). Fill cupcake liners with 3 tablespoons of batter (papers should be just under 2/3 of the way full). Bake for 20-22 minutes or until golden, and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to cooling rack and allow to cool completely.

To make filling, add frozen cherries to medium saucepan along with sugar and juice. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally and slightly mashing some of the whole cherries. Meanwhile, mix 1 tablespoon cool water with cornstarch in a small dish and set aside. When cherry mixture starts bubbling, add cornstarch mixture and stir until filling is thickened and is no longer milky. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Allow to cool at room temperature for 15 minutes. Move to refrigerator and chill until ready to use.

For frosting, cream butter in electric mixer for 1-2 minutes until fluffy. Slowly add confectioners’ sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until mixture is smooth. Add vanilla bean, almond extract, and food coloring and mix until combined. Add creamer and mix at medium-high speed until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes). Add more creamer and/or confectioners’ sugar as necessary to achieve proper consistency.

To assemble, cut a cone-shaped piece out of the tops of cooled cupcakes, approximately 3/4″ in diameter and set aside. Fill cavities with cherry mixture, and replace tops of cupcakes. Pipe on frosting, covering the seams. Top with a marzipan cherry, if desired.

from Love and Olive Oil

This is a super simple recipe. Obviously for some reason those are the only recipes I have in my book right now. I will find the other stuff soon. But, anyway… This was the third pumpkin pie I ever made in my life. Not bad for a few tries, huh? The thing about pumpkin pies that people have to understand, is that they tend to expand when being baked and contract when cooling causing the the filling to crack. I was lucky to have no cracks in this pie, but that probably was because it was baked at a lower temperature at my house than it was baked at school. Anyway, I hope you enjoy making this delicious pie!!!!

Pumpkin Pie (8” or 9” pie)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Sour Cream Crust (Makes two crusts):
Sour cream                           1/4 Cup + 2 Tablespoons
Water                                    2 Tablespoons
Sugar                                    1 Teaspoon
Salt                                       3/4 Teaspoon

Combine the sour cream, water, sugar, and salt in a small bowl.

All purpose flour                   2 1/2 Cups
Butter                                   4oz
Vegetable shortening           4oz

Place the flour in a mixing bowl. Cut in the butter and shortening. Add the sour cream mixture and stir until the bowl is clean. If you don’t have a mixer that’s fine. Just cut in the butter and shortening with a dough scraper or knife until it looks like a coarse corn meal. Then, add the sour cream and knead the dough until it is like a nice dough that doesn’t stick easily or flake. Divide the dough in half and wrap each as a disk. Refrigerate for at least an hour.

Roll the dough out and place in an 8 or 9 inch pie tin. Poke some holes in the crust with a fork and freeze it for 15 minutes. Then, line the crust with foil and pie weights and bake for 10 minutes. Remove foil and bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Here is the process in pictures that I found on the internet. Super cool!!!

Filling:
REDUCE OVEN TEMPERATURE TO 325 DEGREES!!!!
Sugar                                   3/4 Cup
Brown sugar                         1 Tablespoon
Cornstarch                           1 Tablespoon
Cinnamon                            2 Teaspoons
Ginger                                 3/4 Teaspoon
Salt                                      1/4 Teaspoon
Combine the sugars, cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger, and salt.
Pumpkin puree                    18oz
Whipping cream                   3/4 Cup
Sour cream                          1/2 Cup
Eggs                                    3
Blend in the pumpkin, whipping cream, sour cream, and eggs
Pour the filling into the cool blind baked pie crust and bake until center is almost set, about 55 minutes. It may take more time if your oven isn’t at the correct temperature. I recommend investing in a oven thermometer.

GOOD LUCK!