Cypriot breads
Tempo, a local Cypriot supermarket, asked me to help them reduce the “crust” of wrapped and sliced box bread used for sandwiches, which was being baked for 30 minutes at 240ºC. Then the heat was turned off and the bread left in the oven for a further 30 minutes.
The Tempo Loaf
Bread flour - 30kg
Improver - 150g
Yeast - 150g
Sugar - 400g
Salt - 1kg
Unsalted margarine - 500g
Milk - 1kg
Water - 15kg
We successfully reduced the bake time to 28 minutes and the weight of the dough piece by 100g.
However, the real loss leader – the wrapped and sliced of Cyprus – is not wrapped and sliced at all.
It is a most delightful bloomer-style loaf, featuring a thin crispy crust, a light tender crumb, which is amazingly white, with perfect cell structure and a wonderful real bread taste.
The loaf is scaled at 350g and keeps well for 24 hours. It then makes great toast.
The loaves sell at a loss, for about 20p, but the local Cypriots buy them by the dozen, Covered with seeds, it can be sold at 50p. Here is the recipe (or as close as I can get to it).
Cypriot bloomer-style 20p loaf
Bread flour (circa 14% protein) - 120kg
Salt - 1kg 600g
Soya based improver - 1kg 600g
Yeast - 5kg
Sugar - 800g
Water - (circa) 60 kg
The “on sack” declaration reads: Wheat flour, Saccharose, Emulsifier (E472) Soya flour, Oxidising agent (E 300), Enzymes (Fungal alfa amylases).
The nearest I could get to a flour specification is that it is 72% extraction and bakers use a blend of three, from different mills, as the variation is very great.
The soft dough is mixed on a spiral machine for 15 minutes, divided into 350g pieces, moulded, and then given 40 minutes’ intermediate proof. It is then shaped.
If the bread is to be seeded, it is done at this stage – all over with a delicious mix of white and black sesame and a little aniseed. Finally, the loaf is proved and baked.
A bread ring called Simit is the last of the great products I discovered:
The simit bread ring
Bread flour - 1kg
Sugar - 100g
Salt - 50g
Cinnamon - 20g
Yeast - 50g
Oil - 30g
Water - 400g
Black and white sesame seeds (enough to heavily coat the rings)
This is made into no-time dough, divided into 50g pieces, shaped into a twisted rope, heavily coated in seeds and formed into neat rings, proved and baked in a hot oven.
- 07 - 09 September, 2008
Speciality & Fine Food Fair - 15 September, 2008
The 2008 Baking Industry Awards - 17 September, 2008
Manufacturing performance masterclass - 20 September - 05 October, 2008
British Food Fortnight - 21 - 23 September, 2008
SIGEP USA - 26 - 27 September, 2008
Lunch!
