The Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book_ A Guide to Whole-Grain Breadmaking - Laurel Robertson [17]
After checking the color of the crust:
Tip the bread out of the pan. Does it slide out easily with just a little tap? That’s a good sign, because when it is done, a loaf will shrink slightly away from the baking pan.
As you hold it, gently squeeze the sides. Do they seem bouncy? Finished bread is resilient; if it is undercooked, the loaf may retain an impression even from your gentlest squeeze.
With your fingertips, tap the bottom sharply. Is the sound thick and muffled? Back into the oven for 15 minutes! If your thump makes a hollow sound, the loaf is done. (Don’t throw up your hands at this. You won’t guess wrong, however farfetched it seems.)
If you don’t think it is a sin to cut into a loaf before it has cooled—and you have a really good, sharp wavy-bladed knife that can cut a fresh loaf without mangling it—there is an infallible test for doneness: slice off one end close to the crust and gently poke the inside. If the bread is done, the poke will spring back; if it is not done, your fingerprint will remain: back into the pan and the oven for another ten minutes or so.
13. Looking at Your Bread
Though you shouldn’t be too critical of your early efforts, it may be fun—and helpful—to look at your finished bread from the viewpoint of professional bakers who have specific criteria for judging their product. These criteria can pinpoint areas that need more attention, and show up places you have done things right that you might never have suspected.
THE LOAF
To start with, look at the loaf as a whole. Is it symmetrical? A big break down the side can be pretty, but if the loaf dips in the middle or has a big hump, the shaping has been careless. A symmetrical loaf, pleasingly slashed or with an even break down the top of each side, is likely to have strong, even slices too.
CRUST
Next look at the crust. How is the color, or “bloom”? It should be neither too pale nor too dark, but warm and rich. Is it evenly colored all the way around? How does the crust feel: is it thick or thin? From this recipe you can expect a mouthwatering crust that is parchment thin, with a delicate crispness quite noticeable when you press your finger into it.
CRUMB
Once the bread has had a chance to cool, slice it open and look at the inside, or “crumb.” Use the same thin, sharp wavy-bladed knife we described above and cut with a light, long sawing motion, with very little downward pressure. It’s easy to squash fresh bread, particularly if it is still warm.
Look at the pattern of air cells in the crumb. Is it even throughout the slice? Are the individual cells tiny, with an elongated shape? Is each cell wall transparent and shiny? If it is the crumb will be bright and light-colored, and each slice will have enough strength to be buttered without tearing.
To a baker, “texture” is how the crumb feels when you stroke it with your finger. It should be velvety soft, and flaky as opposed to crumbly: that is, if you tear a piece of crumb away from the loaf, it should pull off as a flake rather than crumble up. A crumbly loaf can sometimes be soft and springy, like a cake, but often it is rough and dry.
You may find fine, velvety areas together with rough and dense areas in the same slice. That is a good clue that your dough was good, but needed more care during the final handling.
Well. You’ve had quite a day—and we hope you have a magnificent loaf, too, and a head and hands full of new sympathy for bread dough. If this is your first try at breadmaking and you’ve had a real success, there’s no need to encourage you to keep at it; a good bread provides its own congratulations. If only we could be there to sit down with you and sample your masterpiece!
If it didn’t turn out quite so well, think back on the day and see if you can pinpoint the problem areas. (The troubleshooting section may help.) The next time will go better, and you have learned much more than you may suspect.