Anadama Bread

Wanting to break free of the monotony of the constantly making 100% whole wheat, I decided to try a variation in the Reinhart book. For this bread, the soaker is made with a significant amount of cornmeal and instead of honey I used molasses. Aside from that the process was pretty much the same as the 100% whole wheat bread. The end result was tasteful, though more crumbly than a more traditional whole wheat bread. Because of the cornmeal, gluten could not form in the way that bonds normally exist in bread. I personally think that this bread would make better buns than sandwich bread. Then again I also probably didn’t hydrate the yeast properly and I used regular filtered water instead of potato water.

Difficulty: Average

from: Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads: New Techniques, Extraordinary Flavor.

Whole-Wheat Bagettes (Peter Reinhardt)

Using yet another variation of Reinhardts 100% whole wheat bread I tried the leaner hearth style bread, forming it into 4 bagettes (mini bagettes…). In this recipe there is no milk, honey, or oil, just water, flour, and yeast. Baking at higher temperatures and using a steam pan, the crust turned out thick and nutty with a soft , creamy interior. I think I left the bread in the oven a bit too long, leading to a much thicker and harder crust than it should have had, but even over-baked, I am extremely happy with these bagettes, they are perfect for dipping in soup.

Difficulty: Easy

from: Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads: New Techniques, Extraordinary Flavor.

Tips:
1. careful with the baking times and going by temperature alone in deciding when the bagettes are done.