Hey Brenda! King Arthur question

[Jolly]

How about a pizza crust made with beer?

[Optimistic]

@Jolly Sounds delicious!

Ok, that´s it then, I´m sold on the scale. Most of my baking is cakes and cookies type-stuff, and I mostly stick to my favorite recipes. Working without a scale has not been an issue before. I´m also not really sure why I was able to have success with yeast dough years ago but lately not--but xenon, now I´m wondering if it´s because my baking ingredients are a bit on the older side, and maybe my flour has settled.

Ok, what about about a thermometer to measure water temps for the dough? Necessary?

[mark]

Just took delievry of 10lbs of KA Bread flour. This is a first. I usually just get Gold Medal at the grocery store. Always unbleached and all purpose. Although I did get some nice whole wheat flour a couple of weeks ago. I started substituting 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour for the same all purpose flour, in my sourdough bread recipe. Makes for a good hearty bread.

And yes, as you get more loaves made under your belt you will just know by the feel of the dough. I never weigh or measure my flour.

[mark]

I go between 110 and 120 degrees Fahrenheit for the water temp.

[Optimistic]

@mark
Curious to hear what differences you note with the Bread Flour. I used to be just an all-purpose flour user, but recently got the Bread Flour. Actually, let me rephrase that. I decided to finally open the nice KAF Bread Flour I had in my stash, that had a use-by date of mid-2019 --says the gal who wonders why her bread didn´t turn out so great.

I have a fresh bag of the Bread Flour waiting for me after I get a lot of practice with the older bag.

[Aqua Letifer]

[Optimistic]

YUP!

[Mik]

Well, I have pre-cooked the sausage. I think we will sauce it with tomato-ricotta pesto on one and olive oil and garlic on the next. Hot and mild sausage, a blend of Italian cheeses, sliced fresh tomato and basil slivers after the bake.

I had one 17" crust pre-tossed and have cut it into fourths to fit our pans. Now I have a thick half sheet pan upside down in the oven at 550 to get it screaming hot. The pizza will go from a cornmeal dusted flat pan we are using as a peel direct to the hot stone, which is positioned in the bottom of the oven. We will see!

[Mik]

Oh yeah, and a little fennel pollen after the bake too.

[Mik]

First piece. Pretty good.

[jon-nyc]

Damn that looks good.

[xenon]

Very. Good size as well. I always have a tough time stretching the dough out and keeping it thin.

[Mik]

well, this one was bought re-tossed and I cut it it into quarters to fit because I did not want to mess with re-stretching it. It cooked about 5.5 minutes and was a bit overdone. This one I'm trying 4 minutes.

[brenda]

@Optimistic
Yes to the thermometer, too. Doesn't have to be expensive. I like my water to be about 108 to 110F, but anywhere from 108 to 112 is fine. I prefer to have it a little lower than 110, just because it seems like a little longer rise means I'm not rushing to get everything ready for shaping, etc. I tend to make large batches, so the prep for the step of shaping and putting the loaves on trays or in pans can take a little time. Plus, I'm usually multi-tasking, and I may need to finish up the thing that's my in-between project. I've heard that a slightly slower rise develops a nicer crumb, too, instead of the giant blowout bubbles. LOL I don't know that it matters for that reason. Mostly, I just like to have time for a little second project, even if it's just prepping for dinner.

[Mik]

I must preface this with I have never had much luck at pizza especially since it wasn't one of my favorite foods. Until I found real, chewy crust Neapolitan pizzas.

Here's the next one, with a garlic olive oil and Italian seasoning base. It looks better. Turned it down to 500 and less time. The key is putting it on a hot surface down low in the oven.

[brenda]

@mark Yes, swapping some whole wheat into the recipes is yummy!

I really like the bread flour for certain recipes. Not all of them need it. Usually, the recipe will say if it's the preferred type to use. If the recipe recommends bread flour, it's usually for the extra protein, which gives the bread more body.

[brenda]

@Aqua-Letifer LOL, Aqua!

[brenda]

@Mik I add both whole and ground fennel to my homemade sauce. LOVE IT!!! Lots of other spices in the sauce, too, but the fennel puts it over the top and makes it extra good.

If we're having some grass-fed ground pork on the pizza, I sometimes sprinkle a little more ground fennel on it. Pork and fennel are a match made in heaven.

[brenda]

@Mik Darn good pizza there, Mik!

[Mik]

Thanks, Brenda. Best I have done to date. The second one better than the first. This was made with local pasture raised pork sausage, but I'm going to talk to the guy about making me some with half the salt and twice the fennel.