Read Online Beard on Bread by James Beard - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: James Beard
Tags: Non-Fiction
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halfway good. If it works, fine; if it doesn’t, forget it. I am including it in this collection because it is a worthy recipe, but I do so with a warning that you may be disappointed.
To keep the starter at a steady temperature, which the recipe requires, leave it in an electric oven with the light on—this will provide just enough warmth—or in a gas oven with the pilot light on. In the old days it used to be kept in hot water for 25 hours, the bowl covered with quilts. The foam that forms may not be one, two, or three inches in thickness, but if it foams at all make the loaf and see what happens. Good luck!
[2 loaves]
FOR THE SALT-RISING STARTER:
1½ cups hot water
1 medium potato, peeled and sliced thin
2 tablespoons white or yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
Mix the starter ingredients and pour into a 2-quart jar or deep bowl that has been rinsed well with hot water. Cover with a lid or plate. Put the jar into a larger bowl or pan and surround with boiling water. Cover the large bowl with plastic or a towel, and cover this with three or four towels or a blanket. It should stand at a temperature of 100 degrees when the mixture is finally foaming. The electric oven turned to warm will provide the right temperature, and so will a gas range with a pilot light on. In either case, let the starter stand about 12 hours, or until the topis covered with ½ to 1 inch of foam. Sometimes it will take longer to foam, even 24 hours, but continue to keep it warm.
FOR THE BREAD:
Liquid from starter (see above)
½ cup warm water (100° to 115°, approximately)
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup undiluted evaporated milk or ½ cup lukewarm whole milk
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 teaspoon salt 4½ to
5½ cups all-purpose or hard-wheat flour
Let the liquid from the potato drip through a strainer into a mixing bowl, and then pour the warm water through the potatoes, pressing out as much liquid as possible. Discard the potatoes. Add to the drained liquid the soda, milk, melted butter, and salt, mixing well. Stir in 2 cups of the flour and beat until very smooth. Stir in the remaining flour, a cup at a time, until a soft dough is formed, using up to 4½ cups. Put a cup of flour on the bread board and turn the dough onto it. Sprinkle a little of the flour on top of the dough and knead lightly for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the dough is smooth but still soft. Divide the dough and shape into two loaves (this bread does not have a rising between the kneading and the shaping). Place in well-buttered bread pans, brush the top of each loaf with melted butter, cover, and place in a warm, draft-free place to rise until doubled in bulk. (This will take longer than regular bread—as long as 4 to 5 hours, maybe more.) Bake in a preheated oven at 375° for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the loaves shrink from the sides of the pans. Remove from pans to cool.
SourdoughBread
Despite my own feeling that sourdough bread is much overrated and is difficult to perfect at home, I am including one recipe in this collection because interest in the subject is so tremendous. This recipe came to me from Jeanne Voltz, the former food editor of the
Los Angeles Times
, who worked with sourdough over a period of years in California, where it has long been popular. Jeanne agrees with me that it is a most fickle process. I have found, for example, that the starter can react differently within the same region. In New York City I never had the success with it that I had in Connecticut or Long Island or Massachusetts. I have even found variations in its performance from one neighborhood of New York to another. Certainly it is just as unpredictable as Salt-Rising Bread , and I am not sure it is worth the trouble. I would much rather have you spend your time producing the Buttermilk White Bread or some of the rye breads. But for those who like a challenge, here it is:
[2 long or 2 regular loaves]
FOR THE STARTER :
1 cup milk
1 cup
To keep the starter at a steady temperature, which the recipe requires, leave it in an electric oven with the light on—this will provide just enough warmth—or in a gas oven with the pilot light on. In the old days it used to be kept in hot water for 25 hours, the bowl covered with quilts. The foam that forms may not be one, two, or three inches in thickness, but if it foams at all make the loaf and see what happens. Good luck!
[2 loaves]
FOR THE SALT-RISING STARTER:
1½ cups hot water
1 medium potato, peeled and sliced thin
2 tablespoons white or yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
½ teaspoon salt
Mix the starter ingredients and pour into a 2-quart jar or deep bowl that has been rinsed well with hot water. Cover with a lid or plate. Put the jar into a larger bowl or pan and surround with boiling water. Cover the large bowl with plastic or a towel, and cover this with three or four towels or a blanket. It should stand at a temperature of 100 degrees when the mixture is finally foaming. The electric oven turned to warm will provide the right temperature, and so will a gas range with a pilot light on. In either case, let the starter stand about 12 hours, or until the topis covered with ½ to 1 inch of foam. Sometimes it will take longer to foam, even 24 hours, but continue to keep it warm.
FOR THE BREAD:
Liquid from starter (see above)
½ cup warm water (100° to 115°, approximately)
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup undiluted evaporated milk or ½ cup lukewarm whole milk
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 teaspoon salt 4½ to
5½ cups all-purpose or hard-wheat flour
Let the liquid from the potato drip through a strainer into a mixing bowl, and then pour the warm water through the potatoes, pressing out as much liquid as possible. Discard the potatoes. Add to the drained liquid the soda, milk, melted butter, and salt, mixing well. Stir in 2 cups of the flour and beat until very smooth. Stir in the remaining flour, a cup at a time, until a soft dough is formed, using up to 4½ cups. Put a cup of flour on the bread board and turn the dough onto it. Sprinkle a little of the flour on top of the dough and knead lightly for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the dough is smooth but still soft. Divide the dough and shape into two loaves (this bread does not have a rising between the kneading and the shaping). Place in well-buttered bread pans, brush the top of each loaf with melted butter, cover, and place in a warm, draft-free place to rise until doubled in bulk. (This will take longer than regular bread—as long as 4 to 5 hours, maybe more.) Bake in a preheated oven at 375° for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the loaves shrink from the sides of the pans. Remove from pans to cool.
SourdoughBread
Despite my own feeling that sourdough bread is much overrated and is difficult to perfect at home, I am including one recipe in this collection because interest in the subject is so tremendous. This recipe came to me from Jeanne Voltz, the former food editor of the
Los Angeles Times
, who worked with sourdough over a period of years in California, where it has long been popular. Jeanne agrees with me that it is a most fickle process. I have found, for example, that the starter can react differently within the same region. In New York City I never had the success with it that I had in Connecticut or Long Island or Massachusetts. I have even found variations in its performance from one neighborhood of New York to another. Certainly it is just as unpredictable as Salt-Rising Bread , and I am not sure it is worth the trouble. I would much rather have you spend your time producing the Buttermilk White Bread or some of the rye breads. But for those who like a challenge, here it is:
[2 long or 2 regular loaves]
FOR THE STARTER :
1 cup milk
1 cup
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