These have been hard times for everyone. And as you probably have noticed – due to the absolute silence here in the blog, it has also hit me.
A struggle in many respects, the details of which I would love to spare you. Giving up without a fight? Was/is never an option for me – and a lot has happened during this long time (big surprises and upcoming announcements included…stay tuned!).
Many new recipes, methods and techniques have emerged, for which now the time has come to release them step by step.
But just “some” new recipe – that wasn’t enough for me after such a long time of recipe silence. It had to be something big, wild, stormy, totally unexpected.
It was supposed to be something making waves, a “Big Bang” recipe comeback. Defying the stormy times. And putting all senses into a so far never experienced bread related “What the Hell” status. A flavor bread at its best. I just say… “more” bread probably is not possible.
Ocean of senses & home sweet home
The ocean I have swum through in the last years, I wanted – no, I HAD to “breadify”. It should cover all flavor facets: salty, sweet, bitter, sour and…umami.
The biggest inspiration in implementing this flavor-adventure? The thought of my second home (for the few who may not yet know: easy to recognize because of my last name: Melanidis – which is literally screaming Greeeeeece)
A picture is worth – a thousand words
Mind game: You stand at the port of Thessaloniki (my second home sweet home), close your eyes, hear the sea and breathe deeply – first through the nose then with the mouth. And exactly what happens on the tongue and at the same time emotionally – that’s what I had to capture and implement into a new bread creation.
A “fairy-tale intoxication” of all senses, with Greek soul and Mediterranean play of flavors. With unpredictable surprises, colors, out-of-the-box ideas…. a wild ride on the ocean (ocean in greek = “Pelagos”) which also carries us through our daily life with all its facets.
salty. sweet. sour. bitter. umami.
Kritamos. blueberry. butterfly pea flower. thyme. sesame. nori.
After this long intro, it’s time for the facts to prepare you for what you can expect from this new and unique creation:
Greek sea fennel (Kritamos | grows near the coast, has a unique aroma and contains a lot of iodine, essential oils and vitamin C – it is also said to have a digestive effect) and nori leaves provide a unique umami touch.
The mild sourdough (and also the pickled sea fennel) comes up with a subtle acidity.
Blueberries caramelized in honey provide a sweet play, while toasted sesame and thyme, respectively, add a marginally bitter point.
Since the pickled sea fennel also contains salt, the amount of salt for the main dough is slightly reduced.
Butterfly pea flower blossoms are getting a special place in this comeback recipe.
We use it to make a tea that serves as water for the dough. By the way, this tea (as well providing a slight sweetness & bitter note) is an absolute Ayurvedic wonder weapon: the tea is non just a color-bomb also incredibly versatile (it is used against stress, depression, pain, inflammation…just to name a few things).
Ready. set. go!
No matter if you are passionate dreamboat cruisers, lake pedal boat drivers, ice divers or flavor/tasting/breadpairing enthusiasts: Pelagos – a new ocean-world is waiting to be discovered by you.
Happy baking!
Tag your results with #brotokoll on Instagram & Facebook. I can’t wait to see your bakes!
For even more tipps, tricks and recipes, join me in one of my workshops! Do you already know my individual #brotokoll Coach sessions? For more information just send me a message!
- 200 g Breadflour, alternative: Italian Tipo 0 available at bongu.de
- 60 g Swiss dark flour ("Ruchmehl") available at bongu.de
- 35 g Semola Rimacinata (e.g. ancient Sicilian variety "Perciasacchi") available at bongu.de
- 58 g Levain 3-4 times refreshed, as described in the recipe below
- 226 g Water
- 6 g Salt
- 58 g Kritamos Greek sea fennel (pickled)
- 12 g Nori leaves
- 40 g Blueberries
- 8 g Honey
- 30 g Butterfly pea flower blossoms
- 10 g Sesame
- 3 g Thyme
TA (Hydration) Ingredients
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60g Swiss dark flour
35g Semola Rimacinata (
226g Water (cold)
30g Butterfly pea flower blossoms
First, soak the butterfly pea flower blossoms in cold water for about 10-25 minutes (the larger the quantity and the longer the blossoms are soaked, the more intense are color and taste). Then pour the tea through a sieve and remove the blossoms.
Mix all flour types with the butterfly pea flower tea and let the dough rest well covered for 2-3 hours at room-temperature (Autolyse).
8g Honey
40g Blueberries
12g Nori leaves
58g Kritamos (Greek sea fennel)
Toast the sesame seeds in a pan without adding oil, empty into a bowl and set aside. Heat the honey in the pan and caramelize the blueberries in it for 2-3 minutes. Meanwhile, toast the nori leaves in the oven at 100-120 degrees for a few minutes until they are completely dry and no longer chewy. Finally, strain the Greek sea fennel (Kritamos), rinse briefly with water and squeeze out the liquid with your hands (the weight refers to the already strained sea fennel without liquid).
58g Levain
6,5g Salt
Add your levain to the autolyse dough and mix it by hand for 5-10 minutes (follow the instruction-video in the basics-section: Basics | Open Crumb - Sourdough Series | Kneading). Cover the dough and let it rest for 20-30 minutes. Now add the salt and knead another 2-3 minutes. Put the dough into a greased container and let it rest well covered for 30 minutes at room temperature.
Thyme
Moisten your working surface with water, release the dough onto the surface and give the dough a light round of stretch and folds. Return the dough into the greased container and let it rest for 45 minutes.
Now laminate (follow the instruction-video in the basics-section: Basics | Open Crumb - Sourdough Series | Lamination) and sprinkle all prepared "ocean life" ingredients onto the dough. At the end, rub the nori leaves over it with your fingers and sprinkle your "ocean landscape" with thyme. Return the dough again into the greased container and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Perform now 2-3 rounds of coil folds with 30-60 minutes in between (judge the right moment of folding always depending on how much your dough is spreading in the container). After the last round of folds, let the dough ferment untouched until it achieves a volume increase of approximately 40-50%.
The indicated recipe quantities are for 1 loaf of 711g.
Do you have specific questions or issues? Contact me via the contact form. I am happy to help you.
Levain buidling timetable - Example:
As most of you are maintaining your starters in the fridge for a couple of days during the week, it is extremely important that your sourdough is fed 3-4 times, before builidng the levain (the last feeding) for your planned bake. Those feedings will reduce the acid load and will increase your starter's activity level. Have a look at the Tutorial-Video.
For the feedings, just work with very small quantities of flour and the according ratios of starter (the sourdough you have stored, or the amount resulting from the stages of the timetable-example shown below) flour and water. All produced discards can be perfectly used for making flavorful Fleur de Levain. HERE is the instruction guide.
Friday morning: 1:3:3 (2g starter: 10g flour: 10g water)
Friday noon/afternoon: 1:5:5 (2g from previous stage: 10g flour: 10g water)
Friday evening: 1:10:10 (2g from previous stage : 20g flour : 20g water)
Saturday morning: LEVAIN: 1:2:2 (previous stage : flour: water) - you should end up with the total amount as indicated in the recipe
This example shall show you the way how you may plan your feedings. Observe your sourdough - and try to estimate the time it needs to rise until it's peak at a certain feeding ratio. On your baking day, you'll use your levain on the young side (4-5 hours young at its peak). This favors both, open crumb and ovenspring.
