I Tried, But It Died

[bjcotton]

I began my 18-Hour bread last night. I added 1 cup Rye flour instead of 3 All-purp. In addition, I added 1Tbs Johnny's Garlic Spread & Seasoning [dry mixture]. Turned on the oven for a while to warm up the kitchen and with the dough mixture covered went about my business. When I took a peek about 8 this morning [making it 18 hours] it was flatter than a pancake. I thought it smelled good, so I'd add the extra flour and even if it didn't rise I bake it anyway. That's where I am now. I'll let you know how it turns out.

[luvnit]

I need help too! I made a sourdough last night that just wouldn't rise. It was also the 18 hour bread. Maybe you, or someone else, has some advice for me.

Here is a picture of my loaf.



It tasted great, smelled great, but just never got more than about 2 inches high.

[cjs]

Billy, have you ever tried the 18 hour without screwing with it????? I would suggest you do that first before you play. See how the method works, then add one thing at a time... Rye flour is so heavy...Did the dough look bubbly at 8 a.m. this a.m.?

maryann, you've made this so often, I can't imagine what might have gone wrong for you...

(BUT I'M NO BAKER!!)

[bjcotton]

Of course I have Jean! It was tasty, but nothing special. Everyone else said it was special so I thought I'd try it again. Last time I just dumped it on a pizza stone, this time it's in a cast iron skillet.

[pjcooks]

Okay, Laura and Billy, my only attempt resulted in a big mess way back when. Remember the No Knead, No Eat Bread? My pan was giving off fumes in a 475 oven so I knocked it down until it stopped fuming. Had to keep it in the oven a long time, it was hard as a rock.

I'm going to give it a try when I get my nerve up, now that I have a pan that can go to 480.

While I'm sorry for your losses well, I was going to say, I'm glad I'm not the only one who screwed this up but that wouldn't be very nice now, would it

PJ

[bjcotton]

Here it is. The recipe says 450 for 30 minutes...it was 20 minutes and the top was cracking...then 15-20 minutes with the lid off...10 minutes and it was starting to burn. Don't know if it's done, but I'll find out shortly.

[luvnit]

I usually do a plain loaf and have never done a sourdough before. Any sourdough tips out there for this 18 hour recipe? I'd sure appreciate it.

My questions about the sourdough:

• How much sourdough starter do you use?
• Do you let it rise the same amount of time?
• Do you still add yeast?
• My batter seems to get runnier during the rise, does yours?
• Do you use a smaller Dutch oven to prevent the dough from spreading?
• Do you still do the second rise? That's really when mine went flat.

Otherwise I will stick to the regular recipe. The regular turns out just wonderful for me.

See!!!
Regular 18 hour bread

[Harborwitch]

See the sourdough starter thread - and check out the Sourdough section on Breadtopia.com, he has a great video on it.

Also - the hint about rising the bread on the parchment and easing it into the container you're going to bake it in really helps - the dough doesn't loose any of it's rise that way.

[bjcotton]

The bread I made today actually turned out pretty good. The crust was harder than hell, but it was tasty inside.

[Harborwitch]

That's all that counts Honey, "tasty as hell" is why we do it!