Wanted: Foccacia Bread Recipe

[KYHeirloomer]

Hayden, all those appliences merely make the hard parts a little easier. But people have been making bread for thousands of years with nothing but the four basic ingredients (flour, salt, yeast, water) and their hands. Indeed, kneading bread dough can be therapeutic and self-satisfying.

The whole secret of bread is developing a feeling for what the dough should be like. And that comes only from time in grade.

Even those of us who use power tools for mixing and kneading play with the dough to determine its consistency.

Bread making is an interesting concept. You can blindly follow a recipe, and come up with a more than acceptible loaf. Or you can let it become a passion, and learn as much as possible about the whys and hows of bread, and make a point of visiting every artisan baker you can.

You can use all purpose flour in a bread machine. Or you can seek out stone-ground flours, with just the right protein count, and mix the ingredients lovingly by hand. And argue the merits of active v. instant v. wild yeast.

You can just toss all the ingredients together, let it rise, and bake. Or you can construct soakers, and biggas, and pre-ferments of all sorts, and experiment with delayed fermentation and cold curing and slow rising.

And in the end, no matter which end of the continuum you find yourself, you will find something soul-stirring about baking your own bread.

 

[Jafo232]

I myself use a machine just to get the dough together, and then do the kneading by hand.

 

[Mama Mangia]

I still swear by the plastic bags and not the cling wrap! Sorry. Been baking bread for over 50 years. Cling wrap is a waste in my book. There is no way I would ruin my dough using cling wrap. I don't measure my ingredients - it's all by look and feel. I know just what size bags I need when I am making my dough. Bags are readily available at most bakeries. Usually 1,000 per box and they will last for a while.

I do not believe in using any of these trash bags - they are not fit to touch food!

 

[Mama Mangia]

Just a bit from my notes:

There are many plastics that should be avoided! I do not believe in microwaves, nor do I believe in their plastic cooking dishes and any plastic film that is used in micro waving. And don't microwave anyway. It creates free radicals -- the precursors to cancer -- in your food.

Plastic is made from petroleum.

Cling wraps are nothing but PVC (polyvinylchloride)!

Most North Americans urinate plastics. Sperm counts are at an historic per capita low. Cancer is an epidemic. Birth deformities, sex organ abnormalities and eventual cancers are becoming more common -- all traceable to certain chemical exposures to the fetus. If the human race is not driven extinct by nuclear holocaust or complete distortion of the climate, it may happen through wonderful plastic and other petrochemicals.

There are no safe plastics. All plastics migrate toxins into whatever they contact at all times. It does not matter if it is water- or oil-based; hot or cold; solid or liquid.

Clear plastic food wrap contains up to 30% DEHP [di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate]. This substance is also in intravenous blood bags. This poison was identified by the State of California for its Proposition 65 list of carcinogens and mutagens, but industry pressure got the listing weakened.

In the middle of the Pacific Ocean, it was found that 1,000,000 times more toxins are concentrated on the plastic debris and plastic particles than in ambient sea water;

Six times as much plastic per weight than zooplankton is in any given amount of sea water taken from the middle of the Pacific Ocean;

Triclosan, in plastics as well as antibacterial soaps, deodorants, toothpastes, cosmetics, and fabrics, is shown to cause health and environmental effects and compound antibiotic resistance. Researchers found that when sunlight is shined on triclosan in water and on fabric, a portion of triclosan is transformed into dioxin.

Migration from all seven categories of plastic designated with numerals on packaging, including the recyclable types 1 and 2, are (partial list): Acetaldehde, antioxidants, BHT, Chimassorb 81, Irganox (PS 800, 1076, 1010), lead, cadmium, mercury, phthatlates, and the acknowledged carcinogen diethyl hexyphosphate.

Many more such additives are often present, creating in our bodies synergisms that can be 1,600 times as strong as an estrogen imitator/endocrine disruptor/single chemical may be.

Chemicals from plastic wrap could migrate, or leach, from the plastic into fatty foods such as cheese and meat. These chemicals may interfere with the normal functioning of the hormonal system. Studies in animals show possible links between plastic wrap and reproductive problems, birth defects, and some forms of cancer. Children experience an increased level of risk as compared to adults due to the small size of children?s bodies and to the on-going development of their bodies.

Not all plastics are considered to pose the same health risks. It is important to note that plastic bags are not considered to be problematic. Of greater concern are plastic wraps and plastic containers.

Some plastic cling wraps use a plasticizer known as DEHA which has been shown to be an endocrine disrupter in rats. DEHA use has been banned in Great Britain, but not in the United States. It is often difficult to get information from suppliers about the DEHA content of their product.
Household plastic wraps made from polyvinyl chloride (PVC), such as Glad Microwave Wrap, Saran Classic (formerly Saran Wrap), and Reynolds Plastic Wrap are known to contain DEHA. Wraps made from polyethylene, including Glad Cling Wrap, Saran with Cling-Plus (formerly Handi-Wrap), and plastic bags made by Glad, Hefty, and Ziploc are free of this and other chemicals considered to be problematic.
Many plastic products carry a recycling code on the bottom of the container. By reading those codes and referring to this list, consumers can make informed choices in their use of plastics. The most common plastics, #1 PETE or PET and #2 HDPE, are considered the least harmful at this time. Also considered low risk are #4 LDPE and #5 PP.
Highest on the list to avoid, due to their ability to leach questionable chemicals into foods, are
#3 PVC or V, polyvinyl chloride
#6 Polystyrene, better known by its brand name Styrofoam, and
#7 Other, usually a polycarbonate.
Most Rubbermaid and Tupperware containers are considered acceptable with two exceptions: Rubbermaid Clear Classics container bases and Tupperware?s Rock ?N Serve containers.

 

[Jafo232]

Both of my grandparents, thank god, are well into their 80's and have been using microwaves and plastics since their inception. Other than a bout with prostate cancer (which most men get at an elderly age), they are both cancer free.

Free radicals are everywhere. Whenever you eat, you create free radicals in your system by the process of breaking down food. The use of anti-oxidants helps prevent against the destruction free radicals can cause.

Although ingesting plastics is of course a bad idea, chances are you get more harmful chemicals in your body from organic and non organic produce and meats. There is a plethora of studies showing more links from to cancer via red meat than there is for plastic wrap.

Ideally, yes, you probably want to avoid plastic if you have other options, but I am not one who believes that if you microwave some leftovers in some tupperware covered with clingwrap, that you will catch your death of cancer.

 

[Cook Chatty Cathy]

On the cancer issue, I must seriously consider the evidence. Like Mama said the studies Do Show strong evidence of cancer causing chemicals in certain plastics. As a consumer it is our God-given "choice" or "right" to choose smart alternatives given the EVIDENCE and based on our own knowledge. They say ignorance is bliss, but personally I would rather educate myself enough to make good "choices" to hopefully stave of potential health problems in my future. I like the fact that Tupperware and Rubbermaid do have products that are safe. I am also glad our dear bodies actually eliminate toxins and wastes on a daily basis all we have to do is drink plenty of liquids to help the process along!

Darned nasty cancer anyway

It's wonderful there is at least 1 vaccine out against cancer now (for women) hopefully this is only a first step towards many more becoming available.