Bread: The Story, The Savings

I've been reading ratio by Michael Ruhlman, as I've mentioned so many times at this point. The first ratio that is presented in the book is one or a basic bread dough. He calls for a ratio of 5:3 (flour:butter). I mixed 10 oz of flour (~1 cup) with 6 oz of water. Despite never making a brewed dough, I found this ratio to be insufficient and my mix to be too dry. So I added a little bit more water. From there I found the mixture to be too runny and added more flour. In the end, I believe the ratio came out to about 15 oz flour to 12 oz water (3 cups flour to 2 cups water), far from the 5:3 I had planned on.

The bread came out well, nonetheless. It is a little gluten-y, though, and I believe it I the lack of flour that is holding it back. Also, it could use more flavor, in the form of salt or garlic, or even some sweet ingredients. But my priority was to produce a decent loaf of bread, and that I did.

Basic Bread Dough

Ingredients:
2 C of all-purpose white/whole wheat flour (~10 oz)
3/4 C water (6 oz)
1 T yeast
1 T olive oil
dash of salt

Method:
In a bowl add the flour and salt. Measure the water and add the yeast, allow it to dissolve completely.

Add the water/yeast combination to the flour and mix. Add the olive oil and combine.

Let the dough sit at room temperature, covered with a damp towel, for 2 hours. You can bake at this point or keep it in the fridge for two weeks.

Cut out a grapefruit-sized amount and roll into a ball, on top of some dusted white/yellow cornmeal and let it rest for 30-40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place your baking stone in the oven during preheating (if using a baking stone, I don't have one so it's not necessary), and place a saucepan filled with water at the bottom of the oven. This steam that is created will replicate professional steam baking. You can take out the saucepan after the first 10 minutes of cooking, when steam is the most crucial for baking.

Slice the dough three times on top with a serrated knife then slide into the oven on a baking sheet or onto the preheated baking stone. Bake until browned, about 30 minutes.

Let the bread cool completely before slicing. Enjoy with honey butter or olive oil.


Bonus Recipe: Basic Pizza Dough

Ingredients:

2 C of all-purpose white/whole wheat flour (~10 oz)

3/4 C water (6 oz)

A big pinch of yeast

1 T olive oil

dash of salt

Method:

In a bowl add the flour and salt. Measure the water and add the yeast, allow it to dissolve completely.

Add the water/yeast combination to the flour and mix.

Add the olive oil and combine. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic, then let it sit for 2-3 hours. You can bake at this point or keep it in the fridge for 2 weeks, or in the freezer for 2-3 months.

When baking, preheat the oven to 450 degrees, with your baking stone already in it. This step is crucial, as if you put a cold baking stone into a 450-500 degree oven, it will crack and split beyond repair. If using dough that was in the fridge, let it sit for 15-20 minutes, before kneading and shaping.

Enjoy!

Notes: if using whole wheat flour, you may need to adjust the amount of water you use to more than this, or any recipe calls for.

Make-Your-Own Pizza.... Dough

I finally picked up a copy of Ratio by Michael Ruhlman, as I'm sure I've mentioned many times at this point. He focuses for a large part on bread and dough ratios as they are some of the most dynamic of all the cooking ratios. According to Ruhlman, the basic bread dough is 5 parts flour : 3 parts water, plus a pinch of yeast and from there the magic begins; you can make an olive-walnut dough, or a rosemary-garlic dough, or a chocolate-cherry dough. The point of ratios is to provide a framework, and from there flavor it however you want. I've tried to present my recipes in the same sense, showing you what I do, but providing alternatives and emphasizing that it can be amended according to personal tastes.

Anyways, I'm also a big pizza/calzone person. They are quick and easy to make and always so satisfying. Part of the ease of pizza/calzone is the ability to walk into Trader Joe's and buy ready made pizza dough for $0.99, enough to yield 4 servings between Mike and myself. However, Ruhlman has shown that pizza dough is so simple to make that even $0.99 for a pound of dough may not be the best savings you can get. Mixing the dough by hand is therapeutic and allows you to invest even more into a meal that otherwise would not be that special. So, here is a dough recipe. It should yield enough for a medium pie or for 3-4 calzones, depending on how large you shape them.

Ingredients:
20 oz flour
12 oz water
1 pinch of yeast (if it is active dry yeast, dissolve in the water before adding to the flour)
1 dash olive oil
1 t salt

Method:
(if you have a scale, this would be the best method, otherwise a cup of flour is about 4-6 oz)
Mix together all of the ingredients until it is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.

Allow the dough to rise to about twice it size sitting in a bowl on the counter at room temperature.

Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead it to get rid of excess gas and redistribute the yeast, then let rest for 10-15 minutes.

If not baking immediately, refrigerate. It can also be frozen for 3-5 months.