So I’ve wizened up a little on bread baking since my last post. I’ve learned a bit more about my bread pans (see my updated comments on cast iron baking); I’ve learned to always warm or scald milk for a biga; I’ve learned to keep my starter in the fridge, with weekly regular 1:2:2 feedings; I’ve learned to throw away starter I don’t need, instead of creating a gargantuan monster; I’ve learned to use onion or toasted onion powder in my rye breads because, yes, they really do taste better that way.

Today, however, is a post about my first batch of whole wheat potato rosemary bread.

I was expecting an even bigger rise and more open crumb than what I achieved in the picture. But potato rosemary is supposed to be more soft than chewy, so that’s okay—not great, but liveable. On this particular occasion I used Reinhart’s biga formula; next time I may try substituting an equal amount of wild yeast starter, as he suggests in his side-comments. Or I may try scoring the dough to encourage vertical rise. Whatever the case, I will definitely use less garlic. I put in less than the recommended 28.5 grams, and I still used a whole head! The garlic flavor was very overpowering.