I messed this recipe up in every way possible. I live in China and it's not exactly a country big on baking so I'm not really sure what my flour is - the translation is roughly accurate, but I can't be 100% sure (boy do I miss KAF!). As I was weighing the water into the bowl, my scale suddenly broke. I had to roughly guess how much water was left. When I was about to put the dough into the bread pan, I realized my bread pan was the wrong size. I had never thought to measure it and it came with my oven, but I'm now guesstimating it's around 3 inches wide, not 5. I had to mess with my dough in order to get it to fit (after shaping! Urrgh!). Finally, my oven is a counter-top toaster oven that is practically gaping open around the door - no such things are real ovens here.
Having said all of that, this bread still came out great! I made it so my girlfriend could bring sandwiches to work, but she ate half a loaf while it was sitting on the counter cooling down. It's nutty, whole wheat-y and has just a hint of sourdough tang making a really complex flavored bread. The texture is also great - crunchy and fluffy, dense enough to hold toppings but still be enjoyable for a slice of toast. Mine definitely isn't as pretty as Maurizio's, and I'm sure the texture isn't as good, but I went and ordered real loaf pans 5 minutes after trying this bread because I liked it so much. Delicious.
It was hard to work with - I've never had such a sticky dough, but well worth the effort. If I can mess up this many ways and still think it's great, I can't wait to see what a properly made loaf will taste like.
January 10, 2018 at 2:18am