Each of us has a little person inside our heads that is just desperate to do something but the big person on the outside refuses to do it, usually out of fear of failure. Sooner or later, there will come a time when one must say, “Enough is enough! I’m not going to be afraid anymore.” For me, that something is learning to bake bread and that time came a few weeks ago.
The process always managed to intimidate me; there’s the mixing, the kneading, the proofing and the baking, all of which are relatively easy to screw up. And since I’m more of a cook than a baker, just imagining myself doing it made me nervous.
For my first attempt, I wanted to make a focaccia as it is one of my favorite breads. I used the easiest recipe that I could find, one which not surprisingly came from Mango & Tomato via cookbook author Pat Sinclair. The recipe didn’t call for kneading, a stand mixer or a long proofing time, so it seemed easy enough. But here’s what happened: the directions said to press the dough into a 15×10″ pan and I guess my dough didn’t rise enough because there wasn’t enough of it for the pan. I stretched the dough into a thin disk, assuming the bread would rise while baking – but it didn’t! The bread ended up sticking to the pan even though I oiled it quite well and whatever I managed to scrape off was more like a cracker than focaccia. Of course I was super disappointed but consoled myself with the fact that this was my first attempt and the second time would probably be better.
The second time (photographed here) was better but the dough still didn’t seem to rise enough. The bread was good but not as chewy or airy as I’d hoped.
Would the bread connoisseurs out there please help me figure out where I went wrong? I checked the yeast package and it wasn’t expired. Could it be that the dough didn’t rise because the water I used wasn’t from the tap but had been previously boiled in a kettle? Or perhaps this is just a faulty recipe?
Are there any foods that you’re afraid of making?
Is there a bread recipe you’d like to recommend for my third attempt?
Focaccia is pretty much the only bread I have tried to make at home. And it is totally worth being a favorite, so crispy and fluffy and the same time
So from what I can see, based on my experience, your dough isn’t nearly wet enough. When I make it, you add enough water until the dough is basically soup. After enough proofing, the dough starts to loosely hold together, but it’s the waterlogged nature that gives you the poofy bread with large holes. Think about it like pasta dough vs cake batter. I’d share a recipe with you if I had one, but I have a baker’s percentage instead. I could share that with you, if you’re interested, it’ll just take some explaining.
Hmm. I haven’t made focaccia in a while. But, I would agree with Abigail that your dough looks a smidge too dry. Also, one thing that raises a red flag for me with the recipe is the 120F-130F water. Since the recipe calls for mixing the yeast and flour before adding the water, you should be ok. But, the water may have been too hot and killed your yeast. I normally try to stick to water around 110F-115F. Possibly that was the problem?
Okay thank you
Sorry, I can`t help you with bread, but I would love to try making focaccia one day!
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/08/dining/081mrex.html
It’s on my list of things to try. Why? I have no idea. I don’t bake much either, but the promise of easy crusty bread is too much to resist. Try it too!
[...] I made bread for the first time… sort of. Although I have not perfected this skill yet, at least I have gotten over my fear [...]