32 lbs of bread

[DrakeRemoray]

I baked 32 lbs of bread today
All from Hammelman's Bread
16 lbs Small loaves and baguettes Vermont Sourdough p153
8 lbs Mixed Flour Miche (two 4lb loaves) p166
8 lbs Small loaves and baguettes Pate Fermente p103

I made most of the dough Friday night while answering the door to trick or treaters...

Fired 10 AM - 2 PM (made 4 average pizzas from frozen dough...), wanted to make sure I had a good heat soak...

Started baking with the Pate Fermente first at around 4 and was done with all by 7:30

I would have had more room for at least 2 more loaves of the Miche

I have a pork roast and a giant hubbard squash to cook tomorrow....

Drake

PS the blue ruler in the second picture is 6" long.

[krosskraft]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Wow thats a lot of bread. Good job. Do you have someone buying this bread or will you freeze it? I am very full tonight after cooking pizzas and bread last night, sandwiches for lunch and pizza for dinner. I am ready for some fish, vegies and salad for a few days!

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

I will give some away and freeze some. That is why I made so many small loaves, the freeze better and there are more to give away!

Drake

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Here are some pictures of the hole structure. First the Miche, second is the Sourdough, third is the Pate Fermentee...

[mfiore]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Great bake! That's a lot of bread, and a nice bottle of Rioja to make the process go better! How was the wine? The summer in Rioja was so hot in 2003, making for some very over ripe wines.

[egalecki]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

The bread is lovely. I don't have Hamelman's book, maybe I'll ask for it. The Vermont sourdough looks really tasty.

What do you do with the Hubbard squash, both to cook it and after it's cooked? Does it freeze ok? They're so large.

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

egalecki,
The hubbards are huge, but they do freeze well. I generally cut the thing in half and take out the seeds, then roast it cut side down in a pan, then scrape out the cooked squash. It makes a great soup (Pumpkin Soup with Apple Schnitz "croutons" '21' Club Recipe at Epicurious.com) and is also excellent in Risotto. As to the size, large is an understatement...see the picture.

mfiore,
The Rioja was very nice, but the bottle in this picture was better, then again, I am no expert.

Drake

[egalecki]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

So, do you use a chain saw to cut it in half???? That sucker is huge. I'll try some though, now that I know it freezes well. I usually use butternut squash or delicata, both of which we really like. It's good to try new things!

[mfiore]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

I usually drop the squash on the concrete to split it into manageable chunks. I almost lopped off an appendage trying to cut it with a knife once.

[egalecki]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Ha! I wouldn't have thought of that!

[Dutchoven]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Drake
I thought this was the most appropriate place to post photos of our bake yesterday. I will have to do the math and see how much in total weight it was...if I have the energy...it was fun...there was challah with cranberries and walnuts, challah topped with sesame, and plain challah, potato with caraway, potato cheddar and chive, pane italiano, pain d'campagne, and yeast rolls...lots and lots of yeast rolls...oh and one focacccia(not pictured)
Happy Thanksgiving to all those who celebrate and happy day to all those that don't...haha
All the best!
Dutch

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Beautiful Dutch!

Did you do the Challah in the in the wfo as well? Must have let it cool a lot!

I am planning to fire it up tomorrow for the turkey, sides and rolls. I am planning to let it cool down to about 450 before I put anything in...

Drake

[Dutchoven]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Beautiful Dutch!

Did you do the Challah in the in the wfo as well? Must have let it cool a lot!

I am planning to fire it up tomorrow for the turkey, sides and rolls. I am planning to let it cool down to about 450 before I put anything in...

Drake

Drake
Yes we did the challah in the WFO after the country french and italian bread were done. It was in the 375 range on the floor when they went in. It all together almost 120 pounds of bread(about 80 loaves at an average of about 1.5 pounds each). If I add in the yeast rolls(not bread in our opinion but they have their place)it makes it about 200 but they were not baked in the WFO...
We are doing our turkeys and sides and stuff in the WFO today as well...you can probably plan on similar cook times to your indoor oven if you use a similar temperature range. You might want to put the turkey in just a bit sooner(may 15 to 20 min)uncovered to get the business started and then cover it, maybe remove the cover in the last 15 to 20 as well. Are you doing one of Dave's Turkey methods?
Happy Thanksgiving!
Dutch

[DrakeRemoray]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Dutch,
Again that is an impressive bake! Did the Challah go in on sheet pans or paper or did you bake it on the hearth? I think this thread is a good one for folks trying to decide which oven to build. Do you plan to bake 100lbs or bread (my back hurts thinking about it) or 32 lbs of bread (ok that makes my back hurt too...).

I am cooking two turkeys (14lbs inside - this is the main bird, and a 10 lb one outside - the experiment...). I am not going to stuff it so I bet it will cook in 2 hours out there...If not, that one can wait a bit. The turkey is always ready ahead of time in my experience....it never takes 3 1/2 hours that the cookbook tells me...

I am not using Dave's cooking method particularly. I will drape the bird in buttered cheese cloth, that is my tried and true method. Truth be told, I just eat the dark meat anyway, so let the breast dry out, but get the dark meat perfect.

Drake

[Dutchoven]

Re: 32 lbs of bread

Sheet pans for the challah...with the braids they would have to be bench proofed and we just don't have enough space for all of that...filled the shelves of two different baker's racks for the proofing in the hallway. I have to say...imagine what our oven would bake if I had insulated it better...we have our turkeys in the WFO right now...one 12# one 13# stuffed with fruit and veggies...should be done in about 3 hours...went in about 11AM and the festivities will start about 2PM with hors d'oerves and stuff...roasting asparagus in the oven along with baking the spuds and sweet potatoes too
Best
Dutch

Best
Dutch