SU: Whereas your caramel apple monkey bread-
JS: Yes.
SU: … was completely the opposite. It was an enriched bread, had the butter and lots of sugar in it, and used the stand mixer.
JS: Yes. And that one had a very, I want to say, organized crumb. You know what I mean?
SU: Yes. Very tight. Almost like when you cut open a kitchen sponge, for instance.
JS: Yes, yes. Versus this one, since it’s so high hydration, when you cut into it, there’s variability. You could have big bubbles, some smaller bubbles. And that’s a good thing.
SU: Yeah. What I like about this bread is that it’s no knead, it uses the stretch and folds. But also I find it fascinating that it’s such a flavorful bread, but you can make it in one day from start to finish. It doesn’t require an overnight rest like so many recipes for lean doughs do.
JS: Yeah. And that’s also why I love adding strategic things to my bread. There is this relationship between time and flavor when you’re making bread. The longer slow fermentation process gives you that flavor, that yeasty, I don’t know, beer developed flavor, which is nice. And when you make dough quickly, it can sometimes taste, I don’t know, bland?
SU: Yeah.
JS: And so here we’re using two incredibly flavorful ingredients, cheese and jalapenos, that only get more flavorful when they burn and cook forever.
SU: True.
JS: So this is a way to make a very, very fast loaf of bread that has a crazy amount of flavor, even though you’re not actually going through a long fermentation process.
SU: I love that actually. That’s quite a smart approach.
JS: Thanks.
SU: I think the short fermentation doesn’t affect the texture. The texture is still perfectly lovely in the bread. But as you said, adding those ingredients ups the flavor.
JS: Yeah. And it has quite a bit of yeast in it too.
SU: How much?
JS: A whole packet.
SU: Oh, really? So that’s like two and a quarter teaspoons, I suppose.
JS: I think it’s exactly that. Yes.
SU: And what kind of yeast?
JS: Instant yeast, which-
SU: Good. It was a test.
JS: Yeah. If you’ve been listening, you know. You know. Which means I can just throw it all together and I don’t have to worry about the yeast needing special attention, or blooming it in some warm water or something, because it’s just going to be fine.
SU: We are going to take a quick break.
JS: And when we get back, we’re going to answer your questions about dough hydration, fillings, and more.
Welcome back to BA Bake Club.
SU: Jesse, I have some listener questions for you.
JS: I’m ready.
SU: First question came via the Epicurious app. “Can you please explain why you chose all-purpose flour for this recipe instead of bread flour? And what would the outcome be if bread flour was used instead?”