c/bakers

I finally dialed in my sourdough after 11 flat loaves

Last month I switched from my usual bread flour to a local milled whole wheat from Portland and my starter went crazy. The first three loaves were still pancake flat because I was autolysing for 20 minutes, not 60. Once I added a longer rest and dropped my hydration to 72%, the crumb opened up like a different bake. Has anyone else had their starter react that strongly to a flour swap, or is mine just dramatic?

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seanlee•1d ago

Disagree with everyone here: sourdough starter discard is actually great for pancakes

I keep seeing people on here trash starter discard, saying it makes flat, sad pancakes. Tried it anyway this past Sunday with my 5 day old discard from my kitchen in Austin. Mixed it with a bit of baking soda and an egg, no flour added. They came out fluffy and tangy, better than my usual buttermilk recipe. Maybe the issue is people are using discard that's too young or not balancing the acidity. Anyone else had success with discard that goes against the grain?

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aaronclark•1d ago

Appreciation post: my grandma's bread proofing rule I ignored for years

My grandma always told me to let the dough double in size and not trust the clock, but I was young and thought I knew better because some blog said 45 minutes was standard. Last January I tried her way on a cold, rainy day in Pittsburgh and the loaves came out with an open crumb I'd never gotten before. She said warm kitchens lie to you and your eyes are better than any timer, which made no sense to me back then. Turns out she was right in a way I couldn't have guessed, because my house's drafty corners make some doughs lag way behind others. Now I stick a small piece of the dough in a glass jar so I can actually watch it double, and I pull it when the jar hits that mark no matter what the clock says. What's a piece of baking advice you fought against and then had to eat your words on?

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riley_taylor•6d ago

Overheard a convo at my local supply shop about bulk flour, y'all need to hear this

Was grabbing baking soda in the city this morning and overheard two guys talking about a flour supplier that got busted for cutting their product with cheaper fillers. They said it's been going on for months and only got caught because a commercial baker's bread kept collapsing. Made me realize how much we trust what's in those 50 lb bags without asking questions. I've bought from the same distributor for 2 years, never checked the mill date or looked up reviews of the actual facility. Anyone here ever verify where their bulk flour comes from or just assume it's legit?

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ellis.mia•7d ago

Lost $300 on a fancy sourdough starter that died in two weeks

Bought that expensive heirloom starter from that California farm online last month and it arrived sluggish, then went moldy by day 12, so now I just feed my own cheap flour and water mix like I should've from the start, anyone else ever get burned by a hyped-up starter?

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oliviagrant•9d ago

Laminated dough after 20 years still surprises me

I tried a new croissant recipe last weekend and the butter leaked out during the first fold, which never happens with my old method. Turns out my kitchen was too warm, so I chilled everything for an extra 45 minutes and the second batch came out perfect. Has anyone else had to adjust their proofing temp after switching flours?

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joseph_torres•12d ago

Bulk ferment in the fridge vs. counter, which one actually wins for you?

I've been doing same day counter ferments for about 3 years, usually 4 to 5 hours at 72 degrees. Last week I tried a 24 hour cold ferment in my fridge, same dough recipe, and the crust came out chewier but the oven spring was weaker. Counter bread had more volume, fridge bread had more flavor. I picked overnight cold because the taste was better, but my wife said it looked like a hockey puck. Has anyone else switched camps and stuck with it, or do you go back and forth depending on the loaf?

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diana20•13d ago

That $260 proofing box from 2018 finally paid for itself

Tbh I bought it on a whim during a slow winter and thought it was a gimmick, but after 7 years of fighting cold kitchen drafts in my basement setup it's the only gear purchase that never let me down, has anyone else got a pricey tool they were skeptical about that ended up being worth every penny?

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lane.eric•15d ago

Rant: oven spring failure at the state fair demo booth

I was doing a bread demo at the Iowa State Fair last month and my first two loaves came out flat as pancakes. Turns out the convention center's proofing cabinet runs 10 degrees hotter than the dial says, I checked with my own thermometer. My recipe that never fails at home turned into a total wash in front of 40 people. Anyone else hit a venue equipment quirk that wrecked a bake, and how do you test new ovens or proofers before trusting them?

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riveradams•16d ago

My sourdough got better after a stranger told me my crumb was 'too perfect'

At a farmers market stall in Portland last month, a guy who bakes at home said my loaves looked like they came out of a factory, and it stung, but he was right. I started cutting my bulk ferment short by 45 minutes and shaping with less pressure, and the irregular holes actually made the bread taste better to me. Has anyone else gotten a weird compliment that made them switch up a method they were proud of?

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the_thomas•16d ago

I finally switched to a scale for measuring flour and it changed my bread

After 12 years of using measuring cups, I tried weighing flour for my sourdough last month. The difference was huge, my loaves come out the same every single time now. Cups just pack too differently depending on humidity and how you scoop. Has anyone else made this switch and noticed their crumb texture improve?

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joseph_torres•17d ago

Bread flour vs all purpose, my bagels changed overnight

I used to make bagels every Sunday with regular all purpose flour and they came out dense and flat. Last month I finally tried bread flour at the same hydration and the difference was crazy, they puffed up tall with a shiny crust. But now I'm wondering if I was actually doing something wrong before, or if the extra protein really does that much work. Anyone else see a huge jump switching flours, or do you think it was just technique and timing on my end?

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diana20•17d ago

Proofing in the microwave changed everything for me

I always thought my dough needed a warm oven to rise, but my kitchen was too hot last Tuesday and the dough kept collapsing. Tried the microwave with a cup of hot water for 45 minutes and it came out perfect, fluffy and doubled. Has anyone else had better luck with the steam method over the oven?

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the_hayden•17d ago

Cold dough vs warm dough for laminated croissants, I flipped sides after 5 years

I always proofed my croissant dough overnight at room temp until a baker in Portland told me to chill it to 40F and work it straight from the fridge. Thought it would tear or fight me, but the layers came out way cleaner and the butter never smeared once. Now I'm seeing folks argue that warm dough gives a better rise and I'm honestly torn because mine have been flakier but slightly less puffy. Anyone else switch temps and stick with it, or did you go back after a few tries? What's your butter to flour ratio when you do it cold, I'm at 25% and wondering if that's why I'm getting less spring?

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fiona_young•17d ago

That $40 bread lame was a total dud, my scoring cratered

Bought one of those fancy curved lames last month and my baguettes looked like I attacked them with a butter knife. Switched back to my old straight razor blade taped to a chopstick and got the ears back on the first try. Anyone else find fancy gear makes things worse?

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xena1•18d ago

The week everything went wrong in my kitchen, 42 cakes later

Last month I had that stretch where my buttercream kept splitting and my sponge collapsed 3 times in one week, all because I switched flours without checking the protein content. I ended up donating 42 sad cakes to the local shelter because they were edible but ugly. Has anyone else had a run like that where you just had to laugh and start over, or was it just me?

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lauras83•19d ago

Just got back from a baking class in Portland and the sourdough snobbery was unreal

I took a weekend sourdough workshop at this trendy spot near Powell's Books, and the instructor kept telling people their crumb was wrong if it didn't have giant holes. I've been baking for 6 years, and my sandwich loaf with a tight crumb makes better toast than any artisanal boule. They charged $150 a person and spent 2 hours debating hydration percentages instead of teaching people how to fix a sticky dough. I left feeling like half the class went home discouraged, which is backwards for a hobby that should be fun. Anyone else think the 'perfect crumb' obsession is scaring off new bakers for no reason?

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pat_coleman•20d ago

The day my cake stand became a carousel ride

Last Saturday I had three birthday cakes on order and my kitchen turned into a circus. The first cake slid off the stand mid-carve and landed face down on the dog's bed, and the second one's layers kept splitting no matter how I froze them. Has anyone else had a buttercream day where nothing wants to stay stacked, or is it just my old oven acting up again?

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the_laura•20d ago

My sourdough finally sprung after 14 flat loaves in a row

The only thing I changed was feeding it at 6am instead of 8pm, and yesterday's crust cracked open so loud my neighbor knocked to ask what the noise was, has anyone else had their starter respond to a feeding time shift like that?

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emma_clark•21d ago

Cold fermentation went 3 days too long and gave me the best sourdough crust

I usually do 24 hours in the fridge for my sourdough. Last week I got busy and forgot about the dough for 72 hours. I almost threw it out. Baked it anyway at 475 with a cast iron dutch oven. The crust came out darker and shatter-crisp, and the inside had this open crumb I've never gotten before. The dough was way easier to score too. Has anyone else pushed fermentation way past their normal window on accident and gotten better results, or did I just get lucky?

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ray_miller41•24d ago

Last week a customer asked if my sourdough starter had a name

I laughed at first but then realized I've been feeding this thing since March 2021 and never thought about it. The way people talk about starters like pets finally clicked, now I'm trying to decide between naming it after my grandma or something dumb like Doughvid. Anyone else name their starter or is that just a TikTok thing?

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robin_henderson81•24d ago

Butter temperature chart on a USDA site had me second guessing 12 years of baking

I was looking up safe storage temps and stumbled on their recommended creaming temperature range. It said 68 to 70 F, but I've always gone by the 'soft but not melted' feel, which for me is closer to 62. Has anyone actually pulled out a thermometer for this, or is the touch test fine?

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avery_lopez•25d ago

Swapped my parchment paper for silicone mats after 3 burnt-edged batches

I used to buy the big rolls of parchment from the restaurant supply store, figured it was cheaper and worked fine. Then last month I did a batch of croissants and the edges came out almost black while the centers were still doughy. Happened 3 times in a row. Switched to silicone mats that cost me $28 for a set of 3, and the heat spreads way more even on the tray. No more scorched bottoms either. Anyone else fight with hot spots on their sheet pans? Or am I just using the wrong brand of parchment?

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jamie_white•28d ago

Switching to a dough scraper fixed my sticky sourdough after 6 months of fighting it

I watched that 55% hydration loaf finally release from the bench yesterday and realized my wet hands were the problem all along, has anyone else had a tiny tool change flip their whole routine like that?

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bettyfox•29d ago

I used to think weighing flour was overkill, then Tuesday happened

Was making my usual sourdough in Portland and the dough came out like soup, turned out my cup measure was off by like 40 grams from packing. Now I'm weighing everything and honestly kicking myself for all those flat loaves, anyone else switch late and regret it?

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