Delicious Friendship
(Page 2 of 3)
May / June 2006
Charles Capaldi Small Farmer's Journal
Batches of bread were held overnight in the cool temperatures
that prevailed by the back door. This helped ensure a slow, steady
rise and gave the sourdough a chance to fully develop the flavor of
the flour. Ad?e wheeled more loaves into the baking room for the
final rise, giving them a chance to proof in the warm glow of the
wood-fired oven.
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The bread was baked to golden brown perfection one batch after
another. As the loaves came out of the oven on a wooden peel, they
were deftly turned into wicker baskets placed helter-skelter around
the bakery. The sourdough crackled and popped as it cooled, and its
subtle odor permeated the warm air.
From somewhere under the counter, Adee pulled out a large
plastic pail with a tight-fitting cover. 'I'd like to introduce you
to Popine,' he said. Like a farmer who names his cows, Adee had
named his sourdough starter, passed down from generation to
generation.
Popine was worthy of her name. She was an old girl with
attitude, a bubbling mass of sour-smelling, naturally occurring
wild yeast, which needed to be built (fed) each day in preparation
for making the next day's bread. He mixed in a carefully measured
amount of water, transforming her into a runny mess, reminiscent of
cream-colored Elmer's glue. Then he added flour, first mixing it
and then kneading it, as if it were already bread dough. When he
was done, he gave her a slap, and Popine, now a large, flaccid,
loaf-shaped pile of dough, jiggled like a baby's bottom. She had
grown by twice her original size and would be given a chance to
digest her latest feeding before it was repeated.
By 7 a.m., the bakery was open for business. Baskets of loaves
were stacked on shelves behind the counter, around the shop, and
anywhere else there was room. A table in the center of the shop was
piled high with golden croissants. Multiple tiers of pains au
chocolat topped the pile like the crenulations of a French
chateau. Madame Humeau ran the counter. Adee and I loaded bread
into his small blue Citroen to be delivered to local inns,
restaurants, and cafes.