Los Angeles Bread Festival This Weekend!

...e only bread menu offerings–special, hearth-baked loaves from Clark Street Bread, cornbread from Horse Thief BBQ, flatbread specials from Madcapra, handmade tortillas from Chiles Secos, “butter flights” from DTLA Cheese, salted caramel bread pudding and fruit bread pudding from Valerie Confections Bakery & Café, cultured butter and Bruce Kalman’s signature giardiniere from Knead & Co. Pasta Bar + Market and much more. The festival will also includ...

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Why You Should Proof Bread in the Refrigerator

...ulk fermentation takes place at room temperature, I almost always proof my bread in the refrigerator. Why? Proofing bread in the fridge slows down the fermentation. Most of my breads are made with a sourdough starter (levain is a better word). A long proofing stage allows the acid producing bacteria in the levain to create a more developed tangy flavor than you would get if the bread just proofed for a few hours at room temperature. Slowing down f...

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I Made a Coffee Sandwich

...onal, for extra coffee flavor) For the sandwich: 8 slices of Japanese milk bread (or any soft bread of your choice) Butter, softened (for spreading) Instructions: In a mixing bowl, beat the heavy cream with powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. In a small bowl, mix the brewed coffee with the instant coffee granules until dissolved. Then fold this coffee mixture into the whipped cream until well combined. Set aside. Take two slices of Japanese mil...

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Three Things I’ve Learned About Baking Bread With Whole Grain

...Keep it wet. Whole grain flour soaks up much more water than white flour. Bread recipes are a ratio between flour and water. In bread baking parlance this is called a hydration ratio (to get the hydration ratio you divide the water by the flour–the quirk of baker’s math is that the flour is always 100% ). Old school bread recipes, most of which require a lot of kneading, have hydration ratios in the 65% range. Popular no-knead white bread recipes...

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Sourdough Rye Bread Class at the Ecology Center in San Juan Capistrano

..., you’ll take home a loaf to bake in your oven. You can’t buy this kind of bread so you better learn how to bake it yourself! By baking bread at home, you’re in charge of what goes into every loaf and can choose to incorporate local and organic ingredients. Other benefits of baking at home include using less energy (used in harvesting, processing, and shipping store-bought bread), using less plastic packaging, and spending less money. Become a bak...

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