I had ripe bananas and needed a quick and easy banana bread recipe. While Cook’s Illustrated’s multiple recipes were interesting, recipe they were not quick nor easy. Fortunately, The Fresh Loaf had the answer.

Moist, rich, and enough banana flavor to make you want more. Next time, either walnuts or chocolate chips for that extra little something something.

This weekend I spent baking sourdoughs in the Haussler.

Saturday, sickness I made two Tartine country loaves and three rye loaves. We had been out and about during the day so the breads over proofed. The ryes in particular were overproofed, nurse and you can see the fallen country loaf in the middle.

Sunday, I did the same breads, but tried different shapes and scores.

While the oven spring did not appear as impressive as the combo cooker, looking at the interior crumb, it was much more even.

My favorite was the batard, placing the entire 1100g loaf in a linen lined elongated basket.

The interior was moist with open crumb.

After a few attempts, medications I was able to finally able to bake a Tartine sourdough county bread. Here’s some step-by-step photos.

After a 5 hour bulk ferment with 4 stretch and folds, pancreatitis here’s the preshaped dough:

 

30 minute bench rest (note that I had portioned a small amount of dough on the side):

 

Following the boule shaping recommended by the book:

 

In the basket for the long proofing period:

 

The extra dough, I made into a mini boule (same degass and shaping) and placed in a plastic Glad container to accurately measure dough rise. My previous attempts failed at this step at the process. Insufficient proofing time killed prior sour dough attempts:

 

At 70 degrees, took 10.5 hours to double in size. In comparison, at 80 degrees it’s supposed to take 4 hours:

 

Transferred to a cool combo cooker bottom. The large top was preheating with the oven at 500 degrees. I find this less dangerous than transferring to a preheated bottom, and allows me to work at a more measured pace:

 

Scored in the box pattern:

 

After 20 minutes at 450 degrees with top on, and 25 minutes with top off:

 

Cooling on a wire rack:

 

The crumb. I’ll have to try a different scoring pattern to get a better rise on top. A little dense in that area:

 

Sourdough continues to vex me.  Thanks to The Fresh Loaf, click I have a good idea what I’m doing wrong (final rise is too short, buy more about the touch test was a false positive).

However, diagnosis since the resulting failure resulted in a bread that looked like a cross section of a cenote (underground cave system in Mexico), I had to take pictures for posterity.

Except for a failed attempt on Friday, sildenafil baguettes are getting better.  Friday night’s attempt of a straight dough proved a little wet.  Subsequently, hygiene I failed to flour appropriately, syringe and made a mess at every step from scaling to shaping to loading in the oven.  At the end, I had mutant baguettes that were half edible.

Saturday’s efforts proved more successful.

While the bread tasted okay, shaping, scoring and loading could have been better.  On Sunday, there was continued progress.

While Sunday’s baguettes were still missing proper ears, the scoring was generally better and started getting deep enough to allow for proper spring.  In addition, the general shape was improved as the baguettes are no longer flat ended.

There are 300g baguettes.  The oven can support longer baguettes, I’m limited to the length of the proofing board peel.