Last week I received the shipment of Red Fife and Turkey Red ordered from Breadtopia but didn’t have a chance to bake with them until this weekend. Two side by side loaves were done using the epoxy method Peter Reinhart uses in Whole Grain Bread to compare the wheat in as close to the same conditions possible. Half the freshly ground flour was made into a soaker with water and a little salt and left at room temperature, the other half was mixed with starter and water then retarded after about an hour. The next morning after the leaven had warmed up the two parts were mixed together with .25 tsp ADY, a small amount of additional flour,salt and a little water to make the dough feel right. 4 S&F 15 min apart, an hour bulk fermentation, shaping, and an hour proof followed. Both were baked at the same time in two DOs starting at 500F lowering to 450F immediately after loading then 425F after uncovering total time was 30 min. These loaves are half size compared to my normal which is based on 500g flour.
Similarities and differences : Both handled hydration ( about 75%) and fermentation the same which somewhat surprised me. The Red Fife flour was fluffier than the Turkey Red which was more deeply colored. The Red Fife dough was more elastic, the Turkey Red more extensible. Both crumbs were light and moist for 100% WW. The Turkey Red has a more nutty taste maybe because of the pigmentation, but the Red Fife also has a pleasant flavor. Both performed better than more modern wheat when hand mixing and time is used.
It was an interesting experiment but I think the contest was a draw. I intend to keep using both in the future.
Stu
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Eric, I can’t find the place to upload a picture. Please explain to a technology impaired person.
Thanks
Stu
You can use the upload button:
Or if you have an image file on your computer (on the desktop or in a folder) you can actually just drag and drop the image file right into the message composer where you are typing your message and it will put the image into the message.
Thanks now I know and will do the next time. Drag and drop didn’t work with my tablet it said the site wasn’t enabled.