One of our members asked about getting good steam in a gas oven. I lost track of the original post in the inbox before I could reply directly, so I'm answering it here for everyone. Before I dig in, let me say this: gas vs. electric matters less than most bakers think. The vent in a gas oven pulls moisture out faster than electric, but the fix is the same either way. Stop trying to fight your oven. Create a sealed chamber instead. The easiest fix: use a Dutch oven. The lid traps moisture released from the dough itself during the first phase of the bake. Doesn't matter what kind of oven you have, the Dutch oven makes its own steam. Bake covered for the first 20 minutes, uncover for the rest. Solves 90% of steam problems for both gas and electric. If you don't have a Dutch oven, layer your steam: A cast iron or steel pan on the bottom rack, preheated with the oven. Pour 1 cup of boiling water into it the moment you load the bread. Boiling, not cold. Cold water cools the pan and produces less steam. A few ice cubes tossed onto the oven floor at the same time. They melt slowly and release sustained steam. Cover the loaf with a metal bowl, roasting pan, or even an inverted aluminum foil pan for the first 15 to 20 minutes. Same principle as a Dutch oven, just scrappier. Works better than you'd think. Why this matters more than gas vs. electric: The first 10 to 15 minutes of the bake are when steam does its job. It keeps the crust soft so the loaf can fully expand (oven spring), then helps the crust crisp and brown later. After that, you actually want the steam gone. So whether your oven holds steam well or vents it fast, the goal is the same: trap moisture early, release it later. The real takeaway: Don't overthink the oven type. Focus on the chamber. If you've been struggling with flat, dense, pale loaves, fix the steam first. Then come back and tell me how it went. I'm dropping two videos from my YouTube channel below that go deeper on this. Lesson 1 covers why steam matters and what your oven is actually doing. Lesson 2 walks through the enclosed baking environment, which is the foundation of every steam method I just described.

This one started with a question. A member asked if I had a recipe for whole, fresh-milled einkorn, the kind you get from a local organic farmer, not the sifted commercial stuff. She'd tried baking with it and ended up with a dense loaf that dried out by day three. She wasn't doing anything wrong. Einkorn just doesn't behave like modern wheat. So I built one. Fresh-Milled Einkorn Sourdough is now live in the Recipe Pantry, and it's designed for the grain as it actually arrives in real kitchens. Whole. Fresh-milled. Full of bran, germ, and flavor. What's in it: - A 100% einkorn levain that adapts your starter to the grain before you bake - Optional 70/30 einkorn-spelt blend for better structure and shelf life - The traditional dough conditioner system (vitamin C and lecithin) that old Amish recipes have used for generations, with the science explained - Gentle handling, short bulk, and cooler bake temps because einkorn is fragile and browns fast - An overnight cold retard for flavor depth This is one of the oldest grains humans ever domesticated. It rewards bakers who learn its rules. Eat it day one, toast it day two, freeze the rest. If you've been curious about ancient grains, this is your way in. Recipe link: https://pantry.bakinggreatbread.com/recipes/fresh-milled-einkorn-sourdough A yeasted version is coming for anyone who wants the same flavor on a same-day schedule. Drop a comment if you bake it. I want to see how it turns out. Henry ⭐🔥

Ever tried einkorn or spelt… and your dough just fell apart? Or felt weak no matter what you did? That’s not you. That’s the grain. 🌾 Less gluten strength🌾 More fragile structure🌾 Way more flavor If you treat ancient grains like bread flour, they’ll fight you. They need: 🖐️ A lighter hand⏱️ Less mixing👀 More awareness Watch the video. You’ll see exactly what’s different… and how to handle it. 𝙄𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙫𝙖𝙡𝙪𝙚 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙚 𝙒𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘿𝙖𝙮 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙩𝙨, 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙮 𝙄’𝙢 𝙙𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙮. 𝙄 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙤𝙣 𝙔𝙤𝙪𝙏𝙪𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝘼𝙘𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙢𝙮 𝙨𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙚𝙧. 𝙊𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚, 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙𝙨 𝙖 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙗𝙧𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙤 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙩. 𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙘𝙠 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙙. 𝘼 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙤𝙞𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙚𝙨. 𝙎𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙞𝙙𝙙𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙖 𝙗𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙬𝙚𝙧 𝙛𝙖𝙨𝙩. 𝙄𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙙𝙤 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥𝙛𝙪𝙡, 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙪𝙗𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚. 𝙄𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙥𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙡 𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙬, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙡𝙮, 𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙨 𝙢𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩’𝙨 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙜𝙜𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝. 𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙛. 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩’𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙄 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙡𝙨, 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙤𝙣𝙨, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪. 𝙎𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙜𝙪𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙔𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧. ~ Henry ⭐🔥

This weekend we're going to baguettes. And there's a reason we're getting to them now. Look at what we've done the past two weeks. We learned the couche on ciabatta. We built a poolish for that same ciabatta and watched what an overnight pre-ferment does to flavor and extensibility. Both of those skills carry straight over to baguettes. We're not learning new things this weekend. We're putting the same tools to work in a new shape. That's the method. Each bake builds on the last one. Nothing wasted. Three recipes in the Recipe Pantry. Pick the one that matches where you are. 🥖 New to baguettes? Start here. Classic French Bread Baguette — four ingredients, overnight cold ferment, 72% hydration. Two loaves, cleanest entry point in the pantry. No pre-ferment, no starter. Just dough, time, and shape. https://pantry.bakinggreatbread.com/recipes/french-bread-baguette?utm_source=skool&utm_medium=community&utm_campaign=recipe-share 🥖 Liked the poolish ciabatta? Run it back. Classic Poolish Baguette — same poolish you just built, in a new shape. 12 to 16 hour pre-ferment, 75% hydration, three baguettes. If you nailed the ciabatta, you already know how this dough is going to feel. https://pantry.bakinggreatbread.com/recipes/classic-poolish-baguette?utm_source=skool&utm_medium=community&utm_campaign=recipe-share 🥖 Sourdough bakers, this one's yours. Sourdough Baguettes — overnight levain, 75% hydration, three baguettes at 265g. Same shaping rhythm we practiced on the ciabatta couche. https://pantry.bakinggreatbread.com/recipes/sourdough-baguettes?utm_source=skool&utm_medium=community&utm_campaign=recipe-share

1. Country sourdough bread. I did a bulk fermentation for too long. I rushed to shape it and rest in the fridge as soon as I could do. It kinda over proofed , I decided to put in the freezer about 20 minutes before baking. I did a 7 minutes scoring to make sure it’s not gonna flat. Dropped some ice cubes in the Dutch oven after scoring. Well, it helped for oven spring, but the crust was so crunchy. Anyway, the crumb was fluffy. 2. Purple sweet potato sourdough bread. I broke the instructions, added the purple sweet potato during stretch & fold on round 3 (Lamination) 3. Purple sweet potato sandwich bread. Tastes great, but it has a gap between the dough.