Glossary of Terms
Acidity: A natural effect from the reactions of yeast and sourdough
bacteria fermenting the dough. The mild lactic acids and tangy acetic acids
add complexity and depth of flavor to the bread. (Acidity also increases
dough strength and lengthens the shelf life of the loaf.)
Artisan Bread: Bread made as it has been for centuries-by trained hands. While the dough contains only flour, water, salt and leavening, other additions, such as olives or nuts, are acceptable. The dough undergos a lengthy fermentation process and is baked directly on a masonry hearth. The result is a bread with more flavor, better crust and a complex texture.
Alveoles: The holes in the crumb of the bread. Alveoles will be of varying size, depending on the type of bread, although for artisan bread that has been properly handled, the crumb should be relatively open.
Baguette: A long loaf of bread about 18-30 inches in length with a very open crumb possessing five to seven slits on the top of the loaf.
Batard: Any loaf which has an oblong shape. Literally translated as "bastard" because it is not a round, yet not a baguette shape.
Biga: Sponge starter made from flour, water and a small amount of yeast. It is used to give breads a light, chewy crumb.
Boule: A round loaf.
Certified
Organic: An independent, third party certification process that requires food producers and manufacturers to follow extensive guidelines, standards and be subjected to annual on-site inspections. Grand Central's Black Bear Bakery is certified organic by Oregon Tilth.
Chef: A piece of dough saved from one day's batch of dough to be mixed into the next day's batch.
Ciabatta: A flatter, rectangular shaped bread with a tan-brown crust. Loaves should be more flat than high and the bread should have large alveoles and lots of them. Ciabatta means "slipper" in Italian and the loaf resembles the shape of a foot slipper.
Couche: A piece of cloth, usually linen, which is used in Artisan bakeries as a vehicle to proof, or rise, the bread. Literally translated from French, means "couch".
Crumb: The bread's interior. The soft part that is surrounded by the crust. It is often judged by holes (alveoles), moistness, color, texture and flavor.
De-gassing: When fermentation gasses trapped in the glutenous web are
expelled by manipulation of the dough.
Elasticity: A property describing a dough's ability to rebound back to its
original state after being stretched. Opposite of extensibility.
Extensibility: A property describing a dough's ability to be stretched
without breaking. Opposite of elasticity.
Fermentation: The length of time dough is allowed to rise after mixing. Fermentation describes the action when yeast feeds on available starch, converting sugars to alcohol and carbon dioxide.
Trapped carbon dioxide stretches gluten, develops complex flavors and is responsible for the development of the alveoles in the crumb.
Forming: Artisan forming entails forming by
hand in a gentle manner to allow for changes in the consistency of the
dough.
Gluten: A unique protein found in wheat that gives cohesiveness to dough. A gluten web traps fermenting gasses that make bread dough rise. Gluten has both elastic (bounces back) and extensible (stretches out) properties.
Hand
Formed: Made and formed by hand, not machine. For true Artisan bread, careful handling is the most crucial aspect to create good bread quality.
Hearth: The floor of the oven , usually made of stone, brick or cement.
Hydration
Rates: Ratio of water to flour in dough.
Levain: A natural sourdough starter made by fermenting a mixture of flour and water. It usually refers to a stiff, firm starter.
Oven Spring: Describes the phase during baking when the bread dough rapidly expands during the first few minutes of baking.
Peel: A wooden paddle used to slide loaves into or out of the oven hearth.
Proofing: Defined as any fermentation that takes place after forming the loaf. Dough that is fully proofed should have doubled in volume. The term "rise" can be used interchangeably.
Retard: To slow fermentation by placing in a refrigerator to slow the rise, allowing flavors to develop more fully over a longer period of time.
Score: To cut or slash the crust of a proofed loaf before baking to create a place for carbon dioxide to escape and the loaf to expand during baking.
Sponge: A mixture of flour, water and a small amount of yeast that is allowed to ferment and then is mixed into dough.
Starter: Wild yeast and bacteria that is fed in
the bakery through regular additions of flour and water. Grand Central has starter that is 12 years old. A healthy sourdough starter is sometimes referred to as "mother".
Strength: In describing a bread dough, this refers to the amount of
resistance a dough has to stretching. A dough's strength is relative to the
balance of elasticity and extensibility - a 'strong' dough being more
elastic; a 'weak' dough, more extensible.
