Pumpernickel Bread

On to the next one on to the next one

I am really going to try to push through barm breads so I can be done with them.  Of course, the book ends with two barm breads, so that really means I have to push through the book, which means I am going to try to do what I initially set out to aka no more buying bread, just baking it.  Not New Year's resolution #3429038402384.  Which means I'm going to suffer when we get to fruit breads.

I'm kind of sad the holidays are over b/c I kind of enjoy making fun of them.  Oh capitalism, you're so funny!

Anyway, back to the star of today aka Ryan Gosling (why?) aka pumpernickel bread!

This is barm + dark rye flour (again, substituting this for coarse whole-rye (pumpernickel-grind) flour) + water.  PS: So my stepmom loved my last bread.  Apparently it is like the breads of Austria, which cost a billion dollars here.  I am so euro chic.

Stirred up, this sits for four to five hours, until bubbly.  Like New Year's Eve!  Oh this post is so belatedly festive!

The next day!  You can see the baby bubbles.  Or probably only I can, but they are there.  This gets mixed with bread flour + brown sugar + cocoa powder (for color, I think, although you can't really tell) + salt + yeast + oil + water.  I apparently neglected to take any pictures of the process involved in mixing all of these things together, but I'm sure your imaginations work better than any lame picture.  So:

This sits for two hours, or until it doubles.  I put it in the oven, b/c it's freezing in my apt.  It's like one degree here, people.  Yet, I still wear skirts out.  One of my not New Year's resolutions is to start liking pants again.  HOW?!

Look!  It doubled!  I think.

So I shaped it -- I shaped it into a loaf b/c my mom got me this awesome loaf pan for Christmas!  It's like silicone or whatever flexible-y material, so the bread should just pop right out of the pan, no worries about half of it sticking.  Yay!  I'm so excited to see this work.  This sits to proof for ninety minutes.

I'm not sure if that rose by 1.5.  It certainly didn't rise an inch above the top of the pan, but a lady sometimes has to go to the gym, and bread, if you choose to disrupt my scheduling, you'll just be bad bread, which . . . only punishes me.  Alas!  At least the red pan is pretty.

Going to the gym is a lot more exciting when you come home to freshly baked bread.  My house smells good.  I suggest it if you are lacking motivation in your gym-related resolutions.  Although, idk if baking bread would be good for that either.  Better than baking cookies?

Damn girl damn girl damn girl damn

So, this bread is a great consistency -- yay rising! -- but is not too pumpernickel-y.  4/5.  If only I could meld the results of this bread and the last!  Perhaps the next bread will work out perfectly for me??  *gasp*  Stay tuned, lovers!  <3