New York Rye Bread Food

THE ULTIMATE JEWISH RYE BREAD

Steps:

• In the starter, the caraway seeds can be ground in a coffee or spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle. In the bakery we crush the seeds with a rolling pin. The crushed seeds disappear in the ferment and add a distinctive flavor to the sour. The minced onion helps to hasten the fermentation and adds flavor.
• Starter:
• Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix until smooth. The mixture should have a thin, soupy consistency.
• Cover and allow to stand in a warm spot until bubbly and fermented. It can be left up to 24 hours.
• *Note: Save the rest of the packet for the first dough.
• Rye Sour, Developing and Fortifying: In making sour use approximately ¾ to 1 cup flour to each ½ cup water. (Notice that Stage One calls for a higher ratio. This is done to adjust for the initial consistency of the starter.)
• The object is to make a thick consistency as close as possible to that of a soft dough. It is not necessary to thicken to the point that the mixing becomes burdensome. If the mixture is too soupy, add more flour ¼ cup at a time. Mix until smooth.
• ***
• Stage 1:
• In a large bowl or container, combine the water, 1 ¼ cups of the flour, and the Starter; stir until smooth. The dough should pull slightly and may start to come away from sides of the bowl. Wipe down the sides of the bowl with wet hands or a bowl scraper.
• Sprinkle ¼ cup flour over the entire surface of the sour. Let stand, covered with a cloth or clear plastic wrap, until doubled in size and the floured top appears cracked with fissures spread widely apart. This may take 4 to 8 hours. Avoid letting the sour collapse.
• ***
• Stage 2:
• To the Stage One sour add the water and ¾ cup of the flour; mix until smooth. Wipe down the sides of the bowl.
• Sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup flour over the entire surface of the sour. Allow to rise in a warm area 4 to 8 hours.
• ***
• Proceed with Stage Three:
• As the sour begins to rise, you can refrigerate it at any stage for later use or overnight for mixing the following day.
• Refrigeration retards the rate of growth of the sour, which continues to rise slowly. Whenever time permits, I prefer to make two stages the day before, refrigerating the second stage overnight and preparing the third stage the morning of baking.
• If the dough is to be mixed first thing in the morning, the third stage is prepared the evening before, so it can rise slowly all night and be ready in the morning.
• To the Stage Two sour add the water and the 1 cup flour. Mix until smooth. Additional flour can be added to attain a dough-like consistency. The sour, when fully risen in Stage Three, is ready for use in the dough.
• When the third stage is mixed, set aside ¼ to ½ cup and refrigerate in a covered container with a light film of cold water floated over the top. I have kept sour under refrigeration for months at a time.
• *Note: Use warm water if the sour has been refrigerated.
• It is best to stir down the starter every 3 to 4 days if unused. Periodically (every 10 to 12 days) dispose of half and refresh it by mixing in equal amounts of flour and water. If there is some discoloration on the top, it can safely be skimmed off and the sour used as normal.
• When going away for long periods of time, I freeze a small amount of sour. When preparing a new starter from scratch, I add the frozen sour to preserve my original culture. To ensure the proper strength of the sour, in each stage you can only double the amount of starter you begin with.
• For example, if beginning with ¼ cup starter, you can add up to ½ cup water plus flour to thicken. If Stage One contains 1 cup sour, Stage Two can be prepared with up to 2 cups water plus flour. If a large amount of sour is required, extra stages can be added.
• Sometimes the process goes awry. Perhaps there is insufficient sour left to start the next batch, or the sour might have been forgotten and was left standing to get old or dry. There is a remedy.
• The bakers call it an einfrisch, meaning to refresh. A small amount of sour is thinned down with water to a soupy consistency. Swishing ¼ cup water around in what remains clinging to the sides of the empty bowl can yield enough to restart the sour. Let this einfrisch stand, covered, at room temperature or in a warm spot until bubbly. If desperate, add a pinch of yeast.
• When ready, add enough flour to make a first stage, allow to rise, and proceed with two more stages.
• ***
• For the Rye Bread:
• In a large bowl dissolve the yeast in the warm water and add the sour. Add the altus. Without stirring, add 3 cups of the flour and salt. Gently stir the dry ingredients with your fingertips to incorporate, then stir with a wooden spoon, adding more flour as necessary until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl.
• Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface and knead. If the dough is moist and sticky, add more flour ¼ cup at a time. Knead until the dough feels soft and silky (5 to 8 minutes). Rye dough will be softer than usual and tend to feel sticky.
• Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and turn several times to coat. Cover and allow to rest for 15 to 20 minutes. Punch down, sprinkle with the caraway seeds.
• Shaping:
• Shape the balls into 2 free-standing pan loaves.
• Place on a rye flour- or commeal-dusted baking sheet.
• In the bakery we proof the leaves and bake them on the oven hearth using a wooden peel. Cover and allow to rise until doubled in size. Brush with the cornstarch solution, then cut 3 horizontal slashes on the top of each loaf.
• Baking:
• Bake with steam in a preheated 375 degree F oven until tapping the bottom with your fingertips produces a hollow sound.
• Specifically, the loaves are done when the crust is very firm, the internal temperature is at least 205 degrees and the loaves give a "hollow" sound when thumped on the bottom (35 to 45 minutes).
• When they are done, leave them in the oven with the heat turned off and the door cracked open a couple of inches for another 5-10 minutes.
• The top and sides should feel hard to the touch. Brush again with the cornstarch solution, then let cool on a wire rack. Cool completely before slicing.
• Yield Makes 2 loaves.
• Notes:
• Altus - is European in origin, and little known outside of the bakery establishment. Newcomers to the bakery think of it as a method of using up stale bread.
• However, as with many old-fashioned techniques, bakers find that it enhances the desirable qualities of certain breads. Its use seems to have begun in the making of pumpernickel doughs, and the best of these breads often contain altus.
• Altus is a mash made by slicing and trimming the crusts from leftover sour rye bread, soaking the trimmed bread in water for several hours or overnight under refrigeration, squeezing it dry, and adding small amounts to the bread dough.
• Altus intensifies the distinctive flavor of pumpernickel and rye bread and helps them retain moisture. When using altus, allow for a little extra flour in the recipe. The mash keeps well, covered, in the refrigerator.
• Common flour - called first clear or clear flour, must be obtained from a bakery. You can substitute 3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour plus ¾ cup cake flour, but the bread won't taste as good. 2 cups Rye Sour can be used instead of 3 cups for a milder taste.
• Cornstarch solution is used before slashing the top of the bread and placing it in the oven. Bring 1 cup water to boil dissolve 2 tablespoons cornstarch in ¼ cup cold water; then whisk into the boiling water until it thickens. This solution may be kept for several days. For a high shine, brush a second time as soon as the bread emerges from the oven.

NEW YORK STYLE DELI RYE BREAD

Steps:

• First make the sponge. Combine all the ingredients for the sponge in a large bowl and whisk until a smooth and thick batter results. The idea is to incorporate air in the batter. Keep aside. If you're using a mixer or a processor to knead your dough, you can do this in the bowl of the machine you'll have one bowl less to wash up.
• In another bowl, lightly whisk together the remaining dry ingredients except the oil and the gently sprinkle all of it over the sponge such that the sponge is completely covered by the flour mixture. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and leave this to ferment at room temperature for between one and four hours (I let it sit for 3 hours). You will find that the sponge would have bubbled up through the flour mixture in places.
• When ready to knead the dough, add the oil and knead until the dough is very smooth and elastic. If the dough seems quite sticky stop the machine in between and let the dough rest for about 15 minutes. Then start kneading again, adding a little flour (not too much) if required. When the dough is of the correct consistency, if pressed with a fingertip, the dough should be springy and "jump" back. If it feels sticky, turn it out onto your counter and knead in a little extra flour.
• Put the dough in a large oiled bowl, turning it well to coat with oil. Cover it and let it rise until double in volume. This should take about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. When done, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and press it down gently. Fold it and shape it into square-ish shaped ball (this is an easier shape) and put it back into the bowl after re-oiling, this time for about 45 minutes. (I ended up doing this rise in the fridge for almost 3 hours because I had to step out unexpectedly!)
• When this is done, turn out the dough onto a lightly floured counter and gently deflate the dough. Then shape it into a round or oblong ball and place it on a sheet lined with parchment or dusted with cornmeal or semolina. Loosely cover and let it rise until almost double in volume. This should take about an hour or so. When you gently press the dough with a fingertip, the depression should fill out slowly. If it springs back quickly, let it rise for a little longer and check again.
• If you have a bread stone place it to preheat in the oven, otherwise use a baking sheet. Preheat your oven to 230C (450F).
• To slash and bake the bread: With a sharp knife or singled-edged razor blade, score 1/4- to 1/2-inch-deep slashes in the top of the dough. Spray the top of the dough with a fine mist of water and quickly but gently place the dough on the baking sheet/ stone in the oven.
• Bake for 15 minutes and then turn the heat down to 200C (400F) for another 30 minutes or so, until the bread is done, golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. Let the bread cool down completely before slicing.

REAL NY JEWISH RYE BREAD

Steps:

• Place bread flour, rye flour, potato flakes, caraway seeds, demarara sugar, yeast, and sea salt in the bowl of a large stand mixer. Turn mixer to low and thoroughly mix dry ingredients. Beat warm water, canola oil, and pickle juice into dry ingredients. Fit dough hook onto mixer and beat until dough is rough and shaggy-looking.
• Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rest for exactly 30 minutes. Remove plastic wrap and knead dough in stand mixer with dough hook until smooth, firm, and only slightly sticky, 6 to 8 minutes. Turn dough onto a floured work surface and knead until smooth, 1 to 2 more minutes.
• Form dough into a ball, place dough into an oiled bowl, and turn dough around several times in bowl to coat with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, set into a warm place, and let rise until nearly double, about 1 hour.
• Grease a 5x9-inch loaf pan. Turn dough onto a lightly oiled surface, shape into a log, and place into prepared loaf pan. Cover with a cloth kitchen towel and let rise until top of dough has risen slightly over top of pan, 60 to 90 minutes.
• Place rack in middle of oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake loaf until golden brown and cooked through, about 35 minutes. The internal temperature of the bread should be 190 degrees F (90 degrees C). If loaf browns too quickly, cover loosely with a tent of aluminum foil with shiny side out. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

NEW YORK DELI-STYLE RYE BREAD

Steps:

• In the bowl of a standing mixer, whisk together the flours, caraway seeds (if using), salt and yeast. Put 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water into a small bowl, then stir in the honey and oil.
• Using a dough hook attachment at low speed, gradually pour in the liquid mixture. Mix just until a cohesive dough starts to form and no streaks of dry flour remain, about 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of the bowl halfway through. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let dough rest for 20 minutes.
• Turn mixer to medium-low and knead until smooth and elastic, easily clearing the sides of the bowl, about 8 minutes. The dough should be moist but not sticky; if needed, add more flour 1 tablespoon at a time.
• Lightly oil a medium-size mixing bowl. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead 30 seconds, shaping dough into a smooth round ball. Place seam side down in the oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Stack 2 rimmed baking sheets and line the top sheet with aluminum foil. Punch the dough down to deflate. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Press and stretch into a rough 6-inch square.
• Lift and fold top 2 corners of dough into the center of the square and press gently to seal. Lift and fold down the upper third of the dough toward the center and press gently to seal. Lift and fold down the top half of the dough to form a loaf, and pinch the seam closed. Turn the loaf seam side down, gently slide hands underneath, and transfer to the prepared pan. You should have an oval loaf about 8 inches by 4 inches; use hands to shape as needed. Cover with oiled plastic wrap and let rise until loaf increases in size by about half, 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, place a rack in the lower third of oven and heat to 450 degrees. When the dough has risen, make 3 deep slashes across the top, using a sharp paring knife or razor blade. Place in oven, reduce heat to 375 degrees and bake until deep golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pan once during baking.
• Meanwhile, dissolve cornstarch in 1 cup cold water. Simmer in saucepan or microwave until clear and syrupy. Transfer hot, baked bread immediately to a wire rack and brush top and sides with cornstarch mixture until glazed and shiny. Let cool completely before slicing.

NEW YORK RYE BREAD FOR THE BREAD MACHINE

Steps:

• Add to your bread machine according to manufacturers directions.
• I mix the flours and the gluten and caraway seeds before adding.

RYE BREAD FOR THE BREAD MACHINE

Steps:

• Add ingredients to your bread machine according to manufacturer's directions.
• Use whole wheat cycle for baking. OR use the dough cycle, and bake it in the oven. If doing this let bread rise again in greased bread pan in a warm place and cover with a damp cotten towel till the dough almost doubles.
• Bake for 35 minutes at 350 till golden. I usually remove it from the pan after 25 minutes and continue baking it on a baking stone for a crusty crust!
• Rub cold butter on the warm loaf to make it extra yummy.