Bread Machine (10 page)
Place the loaf upright on the rack to cool to room temperature before slicing. If you wish, you can brush the crust all over with melted butter, which will soak in while the bread cools. (Remember that bread technically does not finish baking until it has cooled and the excess moisture created during baking is evaporated, so it will slice and taste different when warm than when cool.)
The Next Step—Using a Starter:
SHEPHERD’S BREAD
T
he way of constructing a dough for this Shepherd’s Bread is known as the sponge dough method. It is an old-fashioned technique used to create a bread with a more rustic texture and crumb, more irregular holes, a slightly more acidic flavor from developed fermentation, and a slightly thicker crust than bread made by the plain dough method. While this takes a bit more time, this bread is really loved for its exceptional flavor.
A semi-liquid sponge starter, usually made from about a third of the flour and water called for in the recipe along with some yeast, can double in volume in thirty to forty-five minutes, but different recipes call for the sponge to sit for anywhere from two to twelve hours before adding the rest of the dough ingredients and kneading. This waiting step is comparable to the first kneading of a plain dough, since the gluten begins to soften and become more supple. The traditional method for creating full-flavored, long-rising, lean country loaves uses such yeast starters, prepared the same way as this sponge, but referred to as a
biga
in Italian bread recipes and as a
poolish
in French ones. The longer the starters ferment, the more the flavor develops and the more irregular the inner crumb will be. Some sponges are allowed to just rise; others to rise and fall back upon themselves. Salt is never added to a sponge starter, as it inhibits the growth of the yeast. Breads made by this method also have an increased shelf life, and a starter is able to give a boost to low-gluten flours, producing light, high loaves.
1
1
/
2
-POUND LOAF
For the sponge starter:
2
/
3
cup water
1 cup bread flour
1
/
4
teaspoon SAF or bread machine yeast
For the dough:
1
/
2
cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon unsalted butter or margarine, cut into pieces
2 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon gluten
1
1
/
2
teaspoons salt
1
1
/
2
teaspoons SAF yeast or 2 teaspoons bread machine yeast
2-POUND LOAF
For the sponge starter:
2
/
3
cup water
1 cup bread flour
1
/
4
teaspoon SAF or bread machine yeast
For the dough:
7
/
8
cup water
1
1
/
2
tablespoons sugar
1
1
/
2
tablespoons unsalted butter or margarine, cut into pieces
3 cups bread flour
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon gluten
2 teaspoons salt
1
3
/
4
teaspoons SAF yeast or 2
1
/
4
teaspoons bread machine yeast
Place the bread machine on a counter that is outside of main kitchen activity, with plenty of room above to open the lid. Make sure there is room around the machine to use as a work area, and so that steam can evaporate freely from the machine’s vents.
Read the recipe, choose the size of loaf you will make, and assemble your ingredients on the work area. For this recipe, this would mean bread flour and bread machine yeast to start. Measure out the
2
/
3
cup water you will need for the starter, and let it, as well as the other ingredients, come to room temperature. Fluff your flour to aerate it by stirring it with the handle of a large spoon. Also, place a long, narrow plastic spatula within reach.
Take the bread pan out of the oven area of the machine and place it on the counter. Mount the kneading blade(s) on the clean shaft and be sure it is correctly in place.
Check your manufacturer’s manual or see the
chart
to be certain of the sequence for adding ingredients to your machine. (Once you have determined the proper order for your machine, follow steps 5, 9, and 10 according to it.)
To make the starter, pour the
2
/
3
cup of water you have measured into the pan. Sprinkle with the bread flour and then with the yeast called for in the starter ingredients. You will fill only a small portion of the baking pan.
Replace the pan in the machine and click it into place on the bottom of the oven floor; fold down the handle, close the lid, and plug in the machine. The display surface will light up. Program for the Dough setting (see your owner’s manual for specifics on programming your machine). As the machine starts to mix (this will occur after the preheat time if your machine has this feature), set a kitchen timer for 10 minutes. After 5 minutes, open the lid and scrape down the accumulated bits of flour with your plastic spatula. When the timer rings, press Stop/Reset. Unplug the machine and let the sponge starter sit in the bread machine, with the lid closed, for 4 hours.
About half an hour before the time is complete for the sponge, assemble the dough ingredients on your work area. This would include sugar, unsalted butter or margarine cut into pieces, bread flour, gluten, salt, and bread machine yeast. Measure out the amount of water called for in the recipe, and let all the ingredients sit to come to room temperature.