2 French fries in disguise

When the weekend rolls around, it's time to get the hands dirty! After the previous sweet cinnamon walnut bread, it's time to take on the savory path. And thus the Whole Spelt Potato Garlic Bread adapted from Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads.

I halved the recipe to make one loaf, used whole spelt flour instead of whole wheat and skipped the rosemary called for in the original recipe. I'm not sure where the magic lies, but this bread yielded the best texture by far. A crusty shell enclosed a tender springy interior. I would liken the texture of the bread to a trampoline; it's seriously that bouncy! Unfortunately I didn't take pictures of the crumb because I was too eager beaver to dig in. Probably another time then.

Tastewise, there was a slight hint of potato and a strange but pleasant aftertaste of french fries. I suppose potato + oil + heat will make anything taste like fries. The half head of roasted garlic in there wasn't strong enough for the garlic aficionado in me; I would use the whole head the next time.

Whole Spelt Potato Garlic Bread (adapted from Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads)
Makes one small loaf

DAY 1
Ingredients
Potato

• Small potato (~100 g), cut into chunks, skins on
• 240ml water

Soaker

• 113g whole spelt flour
• 2 g salt
• 85 ml potato water (water from boiling the potato)

Biga

• 113g whole spelt flour
• 1g dry active yeast, rehydrated
• 100 ml potato water

Directions

1. Boil potato chunks in water for 10 min or until soft. Strain potato pieces and set aside potato water to cool until room temperature.
2. Mashed cooked potato until consistency of preference (coarse or smooth). Refrigerate until Day 2.
3. Mix soaker ingredients in a bowl for 1 min until it forms a ball of dough. Cover loosely with wrap and leave at room temperature for 12-24 h.
4. Mix biga ingredients in a bowl for 2 min until it forms a ball of dough. Rest for 5 mins, then knead again for 1 min. Cover with wrap and refrigerate for at least 8 h.

DAY 2
Ingredients

• Soaker
• Biga
• Mashed potato
• 1/2 head roasted garlic (or more if desired)
• 28g whole spelt flour
• 4g salt
• 4g (or 1/2 packet) dry active yeast, rehydrated
• 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 1/8 tsp black pepper (optional)
• Extra flour if needed

Directions

1. Chop biga and soaker up into smaller pieces.
2. Mix in remaining ingredients. Knead for 3-4 min. Rest 5 min and knead for another 1 min. Cover with wrap and let rise at room temperature for 45-60 min until 1 1/2 times original size.
3. Punch down dough. Form into rolls, freestanding boules or put in lightly oiled loaf pan. Let rise another 45-60 min until 1 1/2 times original size.
4. Preheat oven to 220C. Place pan in oven. Lower to 180C. Bake 20 min, rotate 180 degrees and bake another 20 min.
5. Allow to cool completely before serving (the hardest part!).

In the afternoon I had a sojourn to Geylang for my durian fix. Of the myriad durian stalls along Sims Ave, I am biased towards the one at Lor 19 for their good service and reasonable prices. This time I decided not to be so atas and settled for D24 durians, priced at 3 for $10, hoping for the best. It was my lucky day: the durian seller had already opened half a durian and upon hacking open the last quarter of the fruit and seeing that it was not fresh or something, he was so kind as to give a fourth durian for free!

While mao shan wang still reigns, these D24 durians remain a class of their own. The flesh was potent in smell and taste, with an airy, almost souffle-like texture. Smooth and creamy, but not as dense or buttery as mao shan wang, D24 will suffice if you're looking to save a bit of money but not willing to sacrifice your durian indulgence. Surprisingly, I found out today that grandma likes durians too! She polished off a fair number of seeds. So cute!