Platano Sourdough

Platano Sourdough is a rustic loaf from New World Sourdough. Is that a hefty unripe banana, you say? Looks like banana but does not taste, feel, cook, and this is the rough part, peel like a banana. Not-at-all It took a bit of elbow grease to remove the skin from the fruit. Platano or plantain is the less sweet, tougher, more starchy cousin of the banana–both belonging to the Musaceae family of banana plants.

  

Unripe plantains are green to yellow–and I repeat, difficult to peel!– and the fruit is hard, dry and starchy. Fully ripe, plantains are black and some people liken its flavor that of a banana but less sweet.

Plantains are technically fruit but regardless of the color and stage of ripeness they cannot be eaten raw.

Plantains are a staple in Central and South American, Caribbean, African, and Southeast Asian cuisines.

Dough Specs:

– 70% bread flour — Diamant 13% protein

– 30% whole wheat–de Slaege red winter wheat

– 80% water( main dough)

– 20% levain

– 20% uncooked quinoa

– 2.5% honey

– 2% salt

– 1 large plantain

Notes:

– Taste: Super delicious bread with a perfect balance of sweet and savory. Great carrier for some aged Dutch cheese. Very nice crumb although tighter in the loaf with the sealed-up score. Lovely textures and crunch from the quinoa.

– Recipe: the unripe plantain required more water and cooking time than stated in the recipe. I probably should have used a ripe plantain. As the plantain was very dry and crumbly (even after cooking) it was hard to incorporate in the dough.

– The recipe omitted this but it’s important to rinse and soak the quinoa as it can impart an unpleasant bitterness.

– Not in the recipe, but I seeded the surface with leftover sprouted quinoa (they grew roots overnight )

– I noticed that New World Sourdough has quite a few errors and omissions. As always it’s important to read through a recipe very carefully beforehand. However, I really like the  interesting and creative use of ingredients in the recipes.

 

If you made it through the entire text…. thanks for reading and have a crummy day. 

– Stephania

Country Loaves Recipe

My country loaves.

Specs:

– 80% Diamant bread flour 13% protein

– 18.18% Slaege organic  yellow wheat flour

– 9.09% Slaege organic red winter wheat flour

– 20% starter

– 77% hydration

– 2% fine sea salt


Day 1: Starter fed 3 hours prior and is ripe and fruity smelling. Mixing, folding as per usual. Bulk fermented to 50%. Thereafter put the dough in the fridge to finish bulk fermentation.

Day 2: Shape cold dough. 30 mins. bench rest and back in the fridge.

Day 3: Bake.

 

I baked a second loaf from the same batch of dough today but unfortunately no crumb photo as it was for a customer. 

– Stephania

The Art of the Dark Bake

 As one can tell from the various camera angles, I’m feeling pretty good about this bake. The rare burst of morning sunshine (no rain for a change) inspired me to do a more dramatic bake.

I love a nicely caramelized loaf; not only is the range of hues simply lovely to see, but the flavors are deep and complex, with a rich, almost nutty taste that contrasts beautifully with the natural sweetness of the bread. This sweetness is balanced by a slight bitterness from the dark crust, which adds depth and complexity. The savory taste, or umami, which I find to be present in well-fermented dough, enhances the overall flavor profile, making each bite even more satisfying. The mild saltiness in the loaf not only enhances these flavors but also helps to highlight the natural taste of the grains. This interplay between sweet, bitter, savory, and salty creates a multi-dimensional taste experience that makes each bite of the bread truly delightful.

For some, a well baked loaf is an acquired taste. And some folks absolutely abhor the bitter notes in a dark bake. And…that harder crust might be a bit too much for the dentally challenged…Tastes and preferences differ but in my opinion, a darkly baked loaf brings so much more depth of flavor and texture to table.


Dough specs:
– Organic Supermarket AP 11% protein 71.4%
– Organic Red Winter Wheat 14.3%
– French T65 14.3%
– Starter 20%
– Hydration 75%
– Sea salt 2.3%


Additionally, the dough had been cold retarded for nearly 48 hours, allowing for a slow fermentation that enhances the depth of flavor and improves the overall texture of the bread.

 

– Stephania