Apple, Cinnamon & Walnut

Will waiting for the Starter to mature, I could help myself and decided to try this bread using instant yeast. Guess the waiting game was just a little too slow for me. I know what I'd probably just contradicted myself especially since there is a lot of waiting time involved in baking bread especially the proofing part!!

It proved to be a wise selection as we all liked it, again using a recipe from Avner Laskin's book. Even though I only used 1/3rd of the recipe, it turned out quite HUGE after proofing and baking!! My only complaint is that I had some problems with the crust, not crusty enough. Guess it is a technique I will need to improve on.

Big loaf. Hm, looks like a 'turtle'. Must improve on my baker's slash!! LOLz.

Family loved every bite and crumb...you can tell when it is consumed quickly!

Starter (Days 6&7)

A continuation of the Starter (Days 4&5)

The Alternative Starter, still a little slow in the development. The few bubbles are still a good sign.

See the thumbs up? Wanted to comment that WildYeast's Starter smells really good - it was really sweet. Can't quite described it. Definitely a far cry from the first few days.

More bubbles poping up.

Some bubbles on the Alternative Starter.

If you can see, more activity on WildYeast's Starter compared with the Alternative Starter. Since I've converted the feeding from rye flour to bread floor, the Starters now all smell much better.

D-Day. All ready to be used. *rubs hands*
Got my sights on WildYeast's Sourdough bread recipe!!!

As suggested with WildYeast, tried an experiment on 1:2:1 ratio of Starter, flour and water. This was all in preparation for WildYeast's rye bread. But I was baking all weekend and wanted a rest. So have pegged it for next weekend baking adventure!! ;)