Ring Around the Boule

  Mrs PG wasn't enchanted by this slashing pattern  but I think that it has merit.In particular that allows for expansion during the oven spring phase at the beginning of the bake. It's not original in that I saw a loaf with the circular pattern in Clayton's "Breads of France".

I had fun with this loaf in that I just played it by ear again and ended up with a variation on my wheat germ loaf from a while back. I thought I had aimed at a 70% hydration dough but I'm not tasting that higher moisture level in the crumb. Perhaps my expectations are on the high side in this situation.

Starter:
160g at 75% hydration, fed with 75% organic AP and 25% whole rye, in a two stage build.

Soaker
100g whole wheat flour
40g BRM wheat germ
                                                                  140g water at room temperature
                                                               
                                                                   Dough
                                                                   300g bread flour
                                                                   180g water at 85F
                                                                   All of starter
                                                                   All of soaker
                                                                   9g kosher salt

My next off the wall project is a couple of loaves of potato bread. The recipe has been around for a while and I have yet to see it written down in weight measurements. Here's what has been handed down to me in volume measurements.                                      
                                                                   3 C. AP flour
                                                                   1/2 C. mashed potato
                                                                   1 C. water from cooking the potato, 
                                                                   cooled to less than 105F
                                                                   1/2 Tbl salt
                                                                   1 Tbl Butter

Many of the recipes I've seen on the internet call for a baking temperature of 375- 400F.

There was a surprise rain shower on Saturday night that dropped 1/2" of rain but that hasn't been enough to cheer up the local gardeners, myself included. There are signs of mole activity around the back of the house and it perplexes me as to how they can dig through the baked, dry, and hard soil. There's got to be a high level of determination in those critters.
I'm very pleased with cherry tomato plant now that it's producing for me. A healthy handful of them, some diced onion, a sliced cucumber, and a little bit of vinaigrette dressing makes for a healthier addition to my lunchtime 1/2 sandwich than the usual tortilla chips and salsa. It's a start at eating a little bit better, not a slow dance with asceticism.

By some odd chance, viewers from the PRC, China, have found this little corner of the internet.

Comments, humor, and questions are welcome.