07/04/07

Sunflower Raisin Fennel Bread

I miss my raisin bread again and since there is leftover sunflower seeds from last week's bake, the choice of bread to bake seem obvious. Actually, I need to finish off the sunflower seeds. It's one of those things about living in the tropics. Everything seems to turn moldy quickly if they are not stored in a refrigerator and since I do not own a huge refrigerator, I have to use up my ingredients quickly or else I will get an earful from the wife about taking up too much fridge space with my stuff.

Raisin Bread with fennel is a personal favorite but this time round, I made a calculation error and added an extra 6 oz of water. This happened because I wanted to double my usual amount of per-ferment. However, I did not factor the water in the pre-ferment when I made my final dough and as a result, the dough was extra gloppy. I had to muster all my skills to rectify the situation during the Stretch and Fold phase. I added and extra S&F and it remains to be seen if my efforts were successful.

As the hydration was too high, shaping and slashing was a little tougher. I ended up with a mango shaped batard. The crumb was satisfactory and the flavor had a pleasant hint of fennel. The toasted sunflower seed gave a nice nutty texture. Overall a success despite my calculation error.