Ken Forkish Double Fed Sweet Levain

Ken Forkish's Double Fed Sweet Levain

-  A documentation of my trials with Ken Forkish Double Fed Sweet Levain Recipe.

-  The documentation will start with the latest first and work backwards and I will add on from there.

Original Recipe : (1/2 of what the Book gave with slight modifications)

 

First Levain Feeding  

Mature Active Levain  25 g

White Flour 100g

Whole Wheat Flour  25 g

Water 100g

Second Levain Feeding  (after 3-4 hours)

Levain  from 1st feed 125 g

White Flour 200g

Whole Wheat Flour  100 g

Water 200 g

Final Dough

White Flour 330 g

Whole Wheat Flour 20 g

Water 270 g

Fine sea salt 10 g

Instant dried yeast 1g

Levain  270 g

1. Feed Levain (1st feeding).  
2. Feed Levain 2nd time. after 3 hours from first feed.
3. Autolyse.  After 3 hours from 2nd feed. Mix the flour and water.  Rest for 20 to 30 min.
4. Mix final dough. Sprinkle salt and yeast over dough.  Weigh levain in container with a little bit of water (for easy removal) and transfer the levain to the dough.  Mix by hand alternating with folding and pincer till dough is well integrated.
5. Fold.  Dough needs four folds 1/2 hour apart.  
6. Divide.   Original recipe calls for a divide.  But I am using only half of mine recipe and so while just flour and fold into a boule and let it rest for 30 min.
7. Shape.  Dust proofing baskets with flour.  Shape each piece into a tight ball and place each seam side down in its proofing basket.
8. Proof.    Place each basket in a nonperforated plastic bag and refrigerate overnight. The next morning 12 to 14 hours after the loaves went into the refrigerator, they should be ready to bake, straight from the refrigerator.  They don't need to come to room temperature.
9. Preheat.  At least 45 min prior to baking, put a rack in the middle of the oven and put the Dutch ovens on the rack with lids on.  Preheat oven to 425 degree Celsius.
10. Bake.  Invert the proofed loaf onto lightly floured countertop, seam side up.  Cover and bake for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake for 20- 25 minutes.  Check after 15 minutes incase oven runs hot.
11. Remove the dutch oven and carefully tilt it to turn the loaf out.  Cool on a rack and let it rest at least for 20 minutes before slicing.

Experiment 1 : 17 Dec 2014 

Followed the recipe quite closely in terms of steps.  Didn't record the time nor the temperature (because I haven't got my digital thermometer probe yet...waiting for boxing day sale).

1. Followed through from step 1 - 3.
2. Step 4.   I only have active dry yeast so I added them to dough after I soaked them in water and a tsp of sugar afater 10 min.
3. I only did 3 folds because I needed to go out from dinner.  Came back in about 4 hour after the 3rd fold as I went to have dinner  I hope it wasn't too long.  But by the time I came back I half suspected the dough was a little too over bulk fermented.  Placing my finger in dough, the dough didn't bounce bad.  This is bad.  Starting to smell sour too. 
4. Shaped the dough and put in the proofing basket anyway.
5. Placed the proofing basket in the refrigerator to proof it overnight.  Placed it in at 9:30 pm.
6. Checked the dough at 11:00 pm.  Ah!!! the loaf has proofed beyond the basket and has no where to go dripping at the edges.
7. Pushed the dough back in again....placed the proofing basket into a larger container then back into the fridge.
8. Baked my bread in the dutch oven which was heating in the oven for 45 min in the morining 8 hours after I did the  proof.  While washing up, TW off my timer! by mistake.  I didn't really keep track of the time arggh.....so I baked for another 20 min.
9. Uncovered dutch oven and baked for another 20 min, the outer surface as a  little burnt so I quickly removed the bread.
10. Cooled on rack for 20 min, and I cut it opened

The bread was gummy inside but sweet...okay, I could see bubbles but definitely what I described like gummy ....what in Singapore we would label as kueh....

I should try this again.....I like the taste, sweet with a little tang but not the texture.  What is wrong? 

Possible Problems:

1.  Could it be because TW off the timer and I underbaked when I was covered?  
2. Could it be the proofing basket was too small?
3.  Could it be too much water?
4. Could it be the fact that dough was overproofed?
5. Oven could only set at 220 degrees Celsius as it was limited by the knob.  I need to change the knob.

Another reason to go shopping for a new and larger proofing basket and knob.

Ken Forkish Double Fed Sweet levain #1 - Looks good on the outside.

Ken Forkish Double Fed Sweet Levain #1 - Cut open, with holes.  Don't really see oven spring.  Crumb is holely but gummy like nyonya kueh.  Though still edible.