Bread Baking Day #7 – French cobblestone

Petra from Chili und Ciabatta is hosting Bread Baking Day #7. The motto is flatbreads. I am taking part with a French style loaf. The French version of Focaccia maybe. The key to getting the open crumb of this bread is to handle the dough ever so gently. Once you have a smooth piece of dough, do not force anything or tear at it too vigorously. This bread undergoes its final rising in the fridge to develop flavor of the crumb and a brittle crust which browns quickly.

Salzstangerl

In my attempts at learning more about Austrian bread, I stumbled upon a long roll called “Salzstangerl” (salt stick). It’s a straight and thin crescent roll usually made from the bakery’s white roll dough and is sprinkled with coarse salt or a mixture of salt and caraway. The trick is to bake the rolls at a very high temperature for a short time in order to stabilize and brown the crust quickly and seal the soft crumb. That way you will have a thin crispy layer surrounding a soft and uniformly airy interior. Risk a few charred spots before turning the heat of the oven down. Best eaten still warm, super fresh, plain or with any breakfast-roll-topping.

100% rye loaf

Although I am not as much a rye lover as others, you probably cannot argue against the opinion, that a slice of a moist and dark rye loaf is one of the most satisfying things you can eat. Also very good with pickles, any kind of Wurst and beer, which I nornally do not drink, but it just is a perfect combination with rye. You could omit the yeast, in that case using a Detmold-3-Stage rye sourdough is recommended.

Dinkelweckerl (Spelt Rolls)

In Germany spelt has been given a bad reputation as “health grain” eaten by a group of people with long hair wearing Birkenstocks and hugging trees (where do these people live? I want to join in the fun). But spelt was the ancient predecessor to wheat. I find that it has a milder and nuttier taste than wheat and a dry finish when baked into bread. But help is here. A sticky dough, enriched with a little butter, a high oven temperature and something associated with edible bricks becomes a delicious and nourishing breakfast.

Vollkornweckerl

These rolls are made from 100% whole-grain flours. I think, they should be moist on the inside with a light and supple crust, not too crispy, to give a good contrast to the bite of the chopped soy beans and the flax seeds. This roll is the best healthy kick-start into the day I can think of. But it’s hard to stop eating them – which again may annihilate the nutritional value they provide.