What We're Making

[CaptTom]

I can't match some of the finish work here, but I'm pretty handy with rough work.

Latest project was to re-do the kitchen. I mean, rip up the floor and even the floor joists until I had nothing but a hole (with crawl space below) and start from there up.


It's an old house, so nothing is ever perfect. But considering, I think it came out OK.


Now the dining room looks shabby in comparison. I don't know how I ever found the time to w*rk.

[street]

Nice job Captain! Looks very nice and not an easy job to take on. Awesome

[Ronstar]

Looks great, CaptTom!

[FIREd]

I have recently been experimenting with the "no-knead" bread-making method. I was not satisfied with the initial results so I have refined the recipe incrementally. I think that I am nearly there.

[REWahoo]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FIREd I have recently been experimenting with the "no-knead" bread-making method. I was not satisfied with the initial results so I have refined the recipe incrementally. I think that I am nearly there.

Interesting.

I experimented with the "no-need" bread diet - and failed miserably.

[MRG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FIREd I have recently been experimenting with the "no-knead" bread-making method. I was not satisfied with the initial results so I have refined the recipe incrementally. I think that I am nearly there.

Looks good from here. Any tips you can share?

[Ronstar]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FIREd I have recently been experimenting with the "no-knead" bread-making method. I was not satisfied with the initial results so I have refined the recipe incrementally. I think that I am nearly there.

That's a great looking loaf of bread! I'm sure it will taste great as well.

[FIREd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MRG Looks good from here. Any tips you can share?

So far I have learned the following:

Bake the bread in a cast iron pot inside your oven - it's almost like baking bread in a proper bread oven (my grandparents had a wood-fired one and nothing beats that, but the cast iron pot gets you close)
Spray some water on the bread every 10 minutes or so while it bakes to keep the crust thinner and crunchier (that's my preference)
Keep the dough on the drier side when mixing the ingredients. It makes for a better looking bread (if the dough is too wet, the bread will expand horizontally while baking).

[Meadbh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FIREd So far I have learned the following: Bake the bread in a cast iron pot inside your oven - it's almost like baking bread in a proper bread oven (my grandparents had a wood-fired one and nothing beats that, but the cast iron pot gets you close) Spray some water on the bread every 10 minutes or so while it bakes to keep the crust thinner and crunchier (that's my preference) Keep the dough on the drier side when mixing the ingredients. It makes for a better looking bread (if the dough is too wet, the bread will expand horizontally while baking).

I have found that I need to let the yeast prove before adding any other ingredients. This was my latest effort, a plain white country loaf. It was probably the most delicious bread I have ever eaten.

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meadbh I have found that I need to let the yeast prove before adding any other ingredients. This was my latest effort, a plain white country loaf. It was probably the most delicious bread I have ever eaten.

Looks great. I occasionally make bread, and coincidentally, made some today (that turned out very well).

I'm curious about your yeast proving (proofing?) process. In beer making, they used to recommend this, now it is considered outdated, they say it just saps the strength of the yeast, but beer making is far different from bread making (yeast is active in beer for days/weeks and has to be strong enough to survive high sugar levels, then high alc levels)

I've never done anything to prove/proof the yeast for bread making. But I do know that you add salt to most breads, and that is said to control the yeast growth. But if the yeast comes in contact with a high concentration of salt, it will kill/slow-down the yeast. The directions I follow have you get the salt well mixed in before adding the yeast.

What change did you observe before/after proving/proofing the yeast?

-ERD50

[Meadbh]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 Looks great. I occasionally make bread, and coincidentally, made some today (that turned out very well). I'm curious about your yeast proving (proofing?) process. In beer making, they used to recommend this, now it is considered outdated, they say it just saps the strength of the yeast, but beer making is far different from bread making (yeast is active in beer for days/weeks and has to be strong enough to survive high sugar levels, then high alc levels) I've never done anything to prove/proof the yeast for bread making. But I do know that you add salt to most breads, and that is said to control the yeast growth. But if the yeast comes in contact with a high concentration of salt, it will kill/slow-down the yeast. The directions I follow have you get the salt well mixed in before adding the yeast. What change did you observe before/after proving/proofing the yeast? -ERD50

When I follow a recipe that says just add everything and combine, many times my dough does not rise. I bought fresh yeast, but that didn't help. So I decided to add warm water and leave the yeast to sit for about 10 minutes. For pizza dough, I also add olive oil at this time. Within minutes I see a sudden yeast "explosion". They are clearly out to party! Then I combine the salt with the flour to minimize the "shock" to the yeast, and start mixing.

I also find that my kitchen is too cool in winter, so I turn the oven on to the lowest setting while this is going on, and then turn it off before putting the dough inside to proof. I turn the oven light on for some supplementary heat and so I can see what is going on.

This process seems to work well.

[MRG]

Quote:

Originally Posted by FIREd So far I have learned the following: Bake the bread in a cast iron pot inside your oven - it's almost like baking bread in a proper bread oven (my grandparents had a wood-fired one and nothing beats that, but the cast iron pot gets you close) Spray some water on the bread every 10 minutes or so while it bakes to keep the crust thinner and crunchier (that's my preference) Keep the dough on the drier side when mixing the ingredients. It makes for a better looking bread (if the dough is too wet, the bread will expand horizontally while baking).

Thank you very much. I'm sure that will help me.

Your comment about the wood fired oven brings back memories. My dad's older cousin and my mom baking bread and cooking a huge prime rib for dinner in that oven. You're right there's nothing like it.

[CaptTom]

I used to make bread, an especially pizza dough, a lot. Now I use a bread maker but I do sometimes "tweak" things a little. Last thing I made was some dinner rolls using the "dough" cycle. Came out great!

One trick I've learned is to shape the dough BEFORE the first rise, right at the end of the kneading cycle. This is also when I flatten it out, add cinnamon and sugar and roll it back up to make the swirls in cinnamon raisin bread. If you plan to be around (fellow retired folks?) anyway, you can take the kneading paddle out at this point, just make sure you're there to punch it down when you hear the motor run after that.

As for proofing the yeast, I used to add a pinch of sugar to give it something to start eating. Not sure this is the right way, just something I did a lot in winter when the kitchen was cool. Seemed to help get things started.

[Nemo2]

Not bread, but DW made some peanut butter cookies in memory of a recently departed friend of hers who loved them.

[sengsational]

I had this idea and did a sketchup in January 2016. I ordered parts and a TV a few days ago (2/15) and got done on 2/18. TV's are soooo cheap! I just went to dealnews, typed in the size I wanted, and pressed "buy". 1/3 of the expense of this project was in the mounting arm! It was much harder to get the right mounting arm, but luckily, I had that saved in my Amazon wish list.

I had to mount a 5/8 plywood block because there was no structure where I needed it; the placement of the arm was very specific in order to get it to where the TV could be centered in the room, or centered in the recessed area. Along the left side of the block is where the stud is.

And get this: Zero trips to the hardware store! This was one of those rare instances when my "I might need this some day" gene was helpful.

Still, no built-in cabinets. Next year, lol!

[MBAustin]

Very clever! Thanks for sharing!

[Ronstar]

Quote:

Originally Posted by MBAustin Very clever! Thanks for sharing!

+1

[simple girl]

For all of you woodworkers....

We recently purchased bedroom furniture via craigslist which we thought was solid wood...but unfortunately the very top section actually was a veneer (we are novice refinishers!!!). Well, hubby sanded down below the veneer exposing several sections of particle board. Lesson learned!!!!

I've done some research and tried to patch the areas with stainable wood filler, but I think it is a lost cause. The wood filler ended up being a darker color than the wood (I was hoping it would dry lighter. oops).

I think this is a lost cause, and we need to throw in the towel and cover it with a table runner. Hubby would like to keep trying...any suggestions for him?

Here's the sad state of affairs:

[Sunset]

Quote:

Originally Posted by simple girl For all of you woodworkers.... We recently purchased bedroom furniture via craigslist which we thought was solid wood...but unfortunately the very top section actually was a veneer (we are novice refinishers!!!). Well, hubby sanded down below the veneer exposing several sections of particle board. Lesson learned!!!! I've done some research and tried to patch the areas with stainable wood filler, but I think it is a lost cause. The wood filler ended up being a darker color than the wood (I was hoping it would dry lighter. oops). I think this is a lost cause, and we need to throw in the towel and cover it with a table runner. Hubby would like to keep trying...any suggestions for him? Here's the sad state of affairs:

Paint it white or black.
I think if you stain the entire top, that it will still be uneven.

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by simple girl For all of you woodworkers.... We recently purchased bedroom furniture via craigslist which we thought was solid wood...but unfortunately the very top section actually was a veneer (we are novice refinishers!!!). Well, hubby sanded down below the veneer exposing several sections of particle board. Lesson learned!!!! I've done some research and tried to patch the areas with stainable wood filler, but I think it is a lost cause. The wood filler ended up being a darker color than the wood (I was hoping it would dry lighter. oops). I think this is a lost cause, and we need to throw in the towel and cover it with a table runner. Hubby would like to keep trying...any suggestions for him? Here's the sad state of affairs:

Re-veneer it yourself. It's not hard. Or paint as Sunset suggested.

-ERD50