Gaelic Celtic Bread Challenge A ritual bread year, one loaf each month One loaf for each turning of the year, using modern methods to honor ancient ways.Each bake is inspired by: - An Irish mythological deity, spirit, or persona - A solar or lunar threshold - The agricultural and hearth traditions that shaped Irish foodways Bread is where grain, fire, water, and time meet, and that meeting lies at the heart of the Celtic year. #GaelicCelticChallenge My May bake honors: Bealtaine. One of the four cross-quarter days in Irish Gaelic Celtic tradition. Bealtaine is an Irish Gaelic festival marking the beginning of summer. It is celebrated on May 1st, halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. It traditionally marked the time when flocks were driven to their summer grazing lands and would not return until late autumn. The Fire & The Fairies: - On Oíche Bealtaine (May Eve), all domestic hearth fires were traditionally extinguished. They were only relit from the great communal bonfires used to symbolize the sun’s returning power and to purify the cattle and crops. - This is a "thin" time when the veil between worlds is at its wisest. The deep cross and the "fairy holes" are an ancient superstitious nod to "letting the fairies out," ensuring they don't sour the bread or the household's luck. - Yellow flowers (Gorse and Primrose) are scattered here because they were once used to protect the family's butter. It was believed that on May morning, "fairies" or "butter witches" would try to steal the "profit" of the milk, and these solar-colored petals kept the dairy safe. - “Bealtaine Bannock” The Formula & Method are in the comments. #Gramps_Bread #GrampsBread #IrishBread Formula: - Total dough: 1141 g - Total flour: 500 g - 60% Wholemeal flour  (300 g) - 30% Plain (AP) flour 150 g - 10% Wheat bran 50 g  - 100% Buttermilk (500 g) - 10% Egg  (50 g) - 2% salt (10 g) - 1% Baking soda 5 g - 3% Baking powder 15 g - 4.2% Honey 21 g - 8% Olive oil 40 g

Whole Wheat Molasses Pan Loaf A soft, deeply flavored pan loaf with a hint of tang from buttermilk and the rich warmth of molasses. The crumb is tender and fragrant, with just enough whole grain to give it character without losing that classic sandwich bread feel. Formula: (Scaled for a 9 × 5 inch loaf tin) Total dough: 1033 g Total flour: 550 g (100%) • 80% Bread flour - 440 g • 20% Whole wheat flour - 110 g Total hydration: 72% • 47% Water - 259 g • 25% Buttermilk - 137 g • 2% Salt - 10 g • 8% Molasses - 42 g • 5% Olive oil - 26 g • 2% Instant yeast - 10 g Method: (78°F / 26° - stand mixer) - Mix all dry ingredients. Add liquids and mix for 2 minutes. - Mix on speed #2 for 10–12 minutes until smooth and elastic. - Bulk proof until doubled (~60 min). - Shape and place in oiled tin. - Proof to 1 inch over rim (~1 hr). - Preheat oven to 425°F / 220°C. - Egg wash. - Bake 20 min covered (2nd pan), Reduce to 375°F / 190°C and bake for 25 min uncovered.

Two loaves of Pain de Campagne. Both are identical recipes. One pound of flour each. Both were cold retarded in 8-inch oval bannetons. Formula: Total weight: 802g Total flour: 453g; 90% Bread flour & 10% Whole Wheat flour 75% water, 2% Salt, 20% Starter Method: - Levain built overnight (1-5-5) - Mix all and fermentolyze for 45 min. - Bulk fermentation with three stretch & folds @ 45 min. intervals - Shape & cold retard overnight in an 8-inch oval banneton - Preheat oven and pans to 500°F - Baked in a Dutch oven or a 9x5 loaf pan with a cover at 475°F for 20 min. Remove cover and bake for 10 min. @ 450°F 

Gaelic Celtic Bread Challenge A ritual bread year, one loaf each month One loaf for each turning of the year, using modern methods to honor ancient ways. Each bake is inspired by: - An Irish mythological deity, spirit, or persona - A solar or lunar threshold - The agricultural and hearth traditions that shaped Irish foodways Bread is where grain, fire, water, and time meet, and that meeting lies at the heart of the Celtic year. #GaelicCelticChallenge My April bake honors the ‘The Bright-Dark Threshold.’ April in Ireland is the month of the Scairbhín na gCuach (the "rough time of the cuckoo"). Mythologically, this is the final battle between the Cailleach (the Hag of Winter) and the burgeoning spirit of the May Queen. The weather is famously "bright-dark" - sunshine followed by "lamb-killing" snow. This is the ‘Seasonal Turning Point: The Hunger Gap.’ Historically, April was the leanest month in the Irish year. Much of the stored grain is sprouting or rotten, and the new crops are not in. It was a time of stretching resources. This bake honors the "Agricultural Hearth" by using ingredients that would have been scavenged or preserved: - Hazelnuts; The hazel (Coll) is the ultimate symbol of wisdom and poetic inspiration. - Dried Apples: The apple (Quert) represents immortality, healing, and rebirth. - Butter from the early spring churning. - Eggs showing the spring renewal. Tree of Life Hearth Bread A yeast-based hearth loaf built on the past and the promise of the future. This loaf honors the life-giving forest: making the best of what was and having faith in what has not yet grown. Formula: Scaled to fit a 25 cm (10-inch ) cast iron Dutch oven. With 70% inclusions, this recipe makes a dense, fruit-and-nut-forward enriched bread. - Total dough: 1516 g - Total flour: 555 g - 100% Strong (Bread) flour  (555 g) - Hydration:  - 63% Buttermilk (347 g) - 30% Hazelnuts (167 g) - 40% Dried apples (222 g) reconstituted wt. - 10% Egg  (58 g) - 6% Butter (32 g) - 3% Brown sugar (87 g) - 3.5% Mixed spice (20 g) - 3% Instant yeast (17 g) - 2% salt (12 g) -

Happy Easter! I made a Pain de Campagne batard and an Apricot Cardamom Sourdough boule. Total flour: 550g; 90% Bread flour & 10% Whole Wheat flour 75% water, 2% Salt, 20% Starter Inclusions: 20% Apricots, 1.3% cardamom Sorry, no crumb shot; they are gifts for our Easter hosts.