Right off the bat, I am confused, I tried making the Biga in the larger bowl this morning at 10am, had trouble putting it in a ball, i just made the second (white bowl) I mixed with my fingers both so dry, is this right?

Good morning, bakers! The doors are open. Today's bake: Cranberry Walnut Loaf, and you get to choose your lane. 🥖 Yeasted version: https://recipepantry.app/recipes/cranberry-walnut-sourdough?variant=yeasted 🍞 Sourdough version: https://recipepantry.app/recipes/cranberry-walnut-sourdough New around here? Here's how the bake-along works. Bake at your own pace, all day long. Post pictures of your bread and your baking process right here in this thread. Questions, concerns, substitution issues, bring them all. I do my best to get back to every one of you, and when I can't, the knowledgeable folks in this community always jump in and help out. That's what makes this place what it is. We've spent the week talking substitutions, so here's the short version. Make this recipe yours. Add your inclusions after the first fold, once you've built some gluten. Some of you like to wait and do it during a lamination at the end, right before shaping. Both work. If the dough tears when you add them, it just needs more folds first. The recipe exists to make you successful, not to box you in. My bake: I swapped the Cranberries for Craisins (soaked 30 minutes before they went in) and added some baker's chocolate, because why not. Drop your first photo when your dough is mixed. Let's see that bread. 👇 Henry⭐🔥

Quick change of plan. The calendar had us making Halloween breads this week, the Mummy Wrapped Breadsticks and the Witch’s Broom Pretzels. Those two are still waiting in the Pantry, and they’re a great one for you and the kids or grandkids to do together whenever you want a fun bake. But I’ve been looking at where this community is right now, and I think we’re ready to take on something bigger. This week we’re baking cranberry walnut bread, and I believe it’s the loaf that carries this holiday season. You pick your route. Sourdough or yeasted, same loaf. 🥖 Sourdough: https://recipepantry.app/recipes/cranberry-walnut-sourdough Build your levain Thursday night, mix Friday morning, shape that afternoon, and let it cold proof in the fridge overnight. Bake Saturday morning. 🥖 Yeasted: https://recipepantry.app/recipes/cranberry-walnut-sourdough?variant=yeasted No starter needed. Mix Friday evening, shape before bed, fridge overnight, bake Saturday morning. Before the weekend, grab dried cranberries, walnuts, and bread flour, and make sure your Dutch oven is ready. Toast the walnuts and soak the cranberries while your dough rests. Wet fruit makes wet dough, so pat those cranberries dry. Now the part I want you to hear. Panettone is coming November 14, and you can’t start that one the week before. ⏳ Start your starter now. Feed it on a steady schedule so it’s strong, active, and smells mild by bake day. A weak starter is where most panettone attempts go wrong. 📦 Order your paper molds. If you haven’t yet, do it this week so shipping delays don’t catch you. 📦 Order your cooling skewers. Panettone cools upside down, so you need them. Everything for the season, including the panettone prep list, is here: https://skoo.ly/holiday-bake Post your crumb shot in the comments after the bake. I or someone in the community will take a look and help you read it.

I made 1½ times my Cranberry Walnut Sourdough recipe, and somewhere along the way, I realized I had a problem. That was going to be one BIG loaf. Too big for my banneton and probably too big for my Dutch oven. So I cut off a piece, shaped a little sister, and baked them separately. Both are out of the oven. Both smell absolutely amazing. And if the crumb on that little loaf is any indication, her big sister is going to be something special. She’s still cooling. As soon as she’s ready, I’ll cut her open and let you in on what’s happening inside. Now, here’s what I really want you to learn this weekend. We’re making Cranberry Walnut Bread in both sourdough and yeasted versions. But the cranberries and walnuts aren’t the point. The point is learning to work with inclusions. And if you’ve ever followed one of my recipes, you already know how I feel about following instructions. 😂 Don’t want cranberries? Use raisins or chopped dried apricots. Don’t like walnuts? Try pecans, peanuts, or leave the nuts out altogether. Make the bread yours. But there’s one thing I want you to pay attention to: WHEN you add those inclusions. We don’t just throw everything into the bowl and hope for the best. Your dough needs time to develop strength before you ask it to carry the weight of dried fruit and nuts. That’s why we’re working with stretch and folds. Give the dough its first set of folds. Feel how it responds. Is it becoming elastic? Does it stretch without tearing? Can it hold itself together? If it can, you’re ready to start incorporating your inclusions. Add about half, fold them in gently, and give the dough another 30 minutes to relax. Then add the rest during the next set. If the dough starts tearing or losing strength, stop. Give it another rest and come back to it. And here’s another little detail. Soak your dried cranberries for about 15 minutes, then drain and pat them dry. Toast your walnuts and let them cool before adding them. We’re not just making cranberry walnut bread. We’re learning to read our dough, develop strength, and incorporate ingredients without sacrificing the structure we’ve worked to build.

I just called one of my sons to check in on him and we wondered what each other has been up to since we hadn’t talked in a while. He lives in Fort Lauderdale and runs a very large business. I told him I’m fairly busy considering I’m probably retired by now and have lots of “spare” time but I picked up another hobby. When he asked what, I told him I’ve been baking bread for about 6 months. “Sourdough?” he asked. Yeah. He said he started making sourdough about 6 months ago too. Then the pictures started going back and forth after I sent my pumpkins his way. And THEN!!! My daughter in law, listening to the conversation in the background, started making fun of us and told us we need a testosterone injection!! 🤣🤣 For some “universal” reason, the two of us have done parallel things at about the same time together without knowing the other has been doing it too. Very random, lots of fun, and hilarious all at the same time. I sent him links to the academy and the pantry. He’s not a joiner as a rule but I do hope he comes over. You all are good for the soul!!