As a follow-up to my previous attempts on making plain crusty bread rolls, I made another loaf from the same cookbook. This 'English Bread' has got a nice crisp crust while the crumbs is soft, almost similar to a farmhouse white loaf. Although it is not called for in the recipe, I dusted the surface with some flour to give it a rustic look :)
Whenever I have the time to spare, I will prefer to knead the dough by hand. This way, I will be able to get a feel of the texture, whether the dough is too wet or too dry. Some recipes will yield very wet and sticky doughs whiles others will give tougher, tenser ones. By having a feel of the texture while kneading, I will be able to co-relate it with the finished loaf, and hence, provide a better review of the recipe.
I wonder whether it was the type of flour I had used, this dough was rather easy to knead as it hardly sticked to the work surface. For this loaf, I used Gold Medal's Better for Bread Flour, which is a stronger flour with a higher protein level. It is only slightly more expensive than the usual brand I use, but I believe it gives a better flavour to the bread, and I would think it is very suitable for making rustic, country-style type of bread.
There is nothing more delightful than to have a kitchen filled with a wonderful aroma of freshly homemade bread baking in the oven ;)
I like how the bread turned out...with a lovely crusty crust while the inside remain soft. The crumb has got a nice texture, not cottony soft and yet not overly dense or heavy.
My all time favourite breakfast...a cup of freshly brewed coffee, along with a slice of toasted bread :)
又: 这是第二次尝试用中文书写, 文笔钝拙, 用了好多照片, 就像平时用英文书写一样, 整编文章有如儿子的看图作文, 哈哈哈 ;')
English Bread
Ingredients
(makes one 7.5"x4"x4" loaf)
300g bread flour
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 tablespoon caster sugar
1 teaspoon salt
30ml (2 tablespoons) milk
180ml lukewarm water (about 30 degC)
10g butter, soften at room temperature
Method:
- Mix milk and water.
- Stir bread flour, caster sugar, salt, and instant yeast in a mixing bowl.
- Add in milk mixture. Mix the ingredients with hand and slowly form into a dough.
- Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface. Knead until the dough no longer sticks to your hand, becomes smooth and elastic. This should take about 20 mins. Do the window pane test: pinch a small piece of the dough, pull and stretch it. It should be elastic, and can be pulled away into a thin membrane without tearing/breaking apart. Wrap the butter in the dough and continue to knead until the butter fully incorporates into the dough.
- Place dough in a lightly greased (with vegetable oil) mixing bowl, cover with cling wrap and let proof in room temperature (around 28 to 30 degC) for about one hour, or until double in bulk.
- Remove the dough from the bowl and give a few light kneading to press out the gas in the dough. Smooth into round, cover with a damp cloth or cling wrap and let it rise for another 20mins.
- Divide dough into 2 equal portions, about 265g each. Roll into rounds. Cover with a damp cloth or cling wrap and let the doughs rest for 15 - 20mins.
- On a lightly floured work surface, flatten each dough into a round disc, roll the dough from the centre to the edges until the diameter is about 9". Flip the dough over. Fold the dough 1/3 from the left side towards the centre. Fold over 1/3 from the right side, to form a long rectangle (about 9" x 3"). Starting from the shorter end roll up swiss-roll style. Pinch and seal the seams. Place the two doughs, seam side down, in a well greased pullman tin. (See illustrations below). Dust the surface of the dough with some flour (optional). Cover with damp cloth or cling wrap and leave doughs to proof for the second time for about 40 ~ 50mins, or until double in size, or when the dough has almost reached the rim of the tin.
- Bake in pre-heated oven at 190 - 200 deg C for 30-35 mins or until golden brown. Remove from oven, unmold immediately and let cool completely before slicing.
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