[patrick]

Can you share a some information about the bread service at Alinea? Does the bread change as the menu does, or are the offerings the same throughout the year? i really liked the bread and it's pairing, specifically the scones and vanilla rolls. Thanks.

[dave beran]

Can you share a some information about the bread service at Alinea? Does the bread change as the menu does, or are the offerings the same throughout the year? i really liked the bread and it's pairing, specifically the scones and vanilla rolls. Thanks.

You can thank a chef by the name of Michael Carrol for all of our baked goods. he is our baker. he works from 2am until about 2pm. he sources and searches for all of the flours used, has a whole slew of starters in the basement that we feed twice a day, is attempting to brew a handful of beers and sodas at the restaurant and is pretty much a great guy. essentially we hand him an idea of a dish, outline on paper..etc and within a day or two he has about 4 different breads for us to taste, critique and adjust. for the most part all of the breads are either his idea or a collaboration between he and chef (or one of us). he truly has a great grasp of the concepts, flavors and ideas behind what we do and what chef likes.

we shoot for about 5 to 7 bread "parings" on the menu depending on the time of year and weight of the menu. if a dish needs a bread, mike comes up with it. my all time favorite, either the bacon doughnut or the porcini doughnut (which i really wanted to pair with a chocolate dish). he is also responsible for the brioche used in the brioche soup for the chocolate dish (cookbook) and the wheat bread that was used in the wheat cake dish last summer. he is one of the unknown talents at alinea.

he will be doing all of the bread pairings for both alinea dishes and thomas keller dishes this tuesday at the protege/mentor dinner at alinea.

[phomchick]

You can thank a chef by the name of Michael Carrol for all of our baked goods. he is our baker my all time favorite, either the bacon doughnut or the porcini doughnut (which i really wanted to pair with a chocolate dish).

Porcini doughnut? Now that would be an interesting recipe to see.

[michael carroll]

Porcini doughnut? Now that would be an interesting recipe to see.

A few words from the Baker... glad you liked the breads, and unfortunately, the porcini doughnut is yet to make it on to a menu. But it is fairly easy to make. Carmelize porcini's in some butter. Season. Add some heavy cream, and reduce a little. Basically, your making a thick puree in the end of it all. then essentially, make a typical doughnut recipe, substituting the puree for any liquid you may be using, keeping in mind that the puree is thicker than any liquid you may normally use, so you will have to add a lot more of the puree.

I look at the bread making from the view point of a cook, rather than that of a baker, and have found that the limitations are fewer, simply because I have no idea what I am doing:) But purees are fun to work with, as well as juices ( red pepper juice was really nice) and also to cook things like cabbage or parsnips, or radishes, as the main body of the bread. It's a little tricky, but usually works out fine.

[trompe_le_monde]

A few words from the Baker... glad you liked the breads, and unfortunately, the porcini doughnut is yet to make it on to a menu. But it is fairly easy to make. Carmelize porcini's in some butter. Season. Add some heavy cream, and reduce a little. Basically, your making a thick puree in the end of it all. then essentially, make a typical doughnut recipe, substituting the puree for any liquid you may be using, keeping in mind that the puree is thicker than any liquid you may normally use, so you will have to add a lot more of the puree.

I look at the bread making from the view point of a cook, rather than that of a baker, and have found that the limitations are fewer, simply because I have no idea what I am doing:) But purees are fun to work with, as well as juices ( red pepper juice was really nice) and also to cook things like cabbage or parsnips, or radishes, as the main body of the bread. It's a little tricky, but usually works out fine.

that is awesome. i have always thought that with a tasting menu the bread service should be paired according to each dish. i think that we have moved beyond the "generic" bread service of the past. unfortunately most chefs and restaurant owners still want a "filler". my question is how much baking experience do you have? where have you worked? and what type of baking set-up do you have? deck ovens? convections?
thanks

[margaret_kim]

A few words from the Baker... glad you liked the breads, and unfortunately, the porcini doughnut is yet to make it on to a menu. But it is fairly easy to make. Carmelize porcini's in some butter. Season. Add some heavy cream, and reduce a little. Basically, your making a thick puree in the end of it all. then essentially, make a typical doughnut recipe, substituting the puree for any liquid you may be using, keeping in mind that the puree is thicker than any liquid you may normally use, so you will have to add a lot more of the puree.

I look at the bread making from the view point of a cook, rather than that of a baker, and have found that the limitations are fewer, simply because I have no idea what I am doing:) But purees are fun to work with, as well as juices ( red pepper juice was really nice) and also to cook things like cabbage or parsnips, or radishes, as the main body of the bread. It's a little tricky, but usually works out fine.

Yey! So glad to find out more about the bread service - I was lucky enough to secure a last minute reservation on the 4th & I was really impressed by the breads - they show the same creativity & mastery of technique as the dishes. It is a shame that the bread pairings aren't included in the printed menu... and I hope to see more of your recipes posted here on Mosaic. (I'm still amazed at how you managed to preserve the fresh, crisp taste of napa cabbage through the baking process.)

[maria morris]

I would absolutely love to see the bacon doughnut and vanilla rolls recipes on the site. Who knows, you could make a Krispy Kreme-esque chocolate glaze for the bacon doughnut. And as for the vanilla rolls, they sound good enough to be left alone!

[michael carroll]

that is awesome. i have always thought that with a tasting menu the bread service should be paired according to each dish. i think that we have moved beyond the "generic" bread service of the past. unfortunately most chefs and restaurant owners still want a "filler". my question is how much baking experience do you have? where have you worked? and what type of baking set-up do you have? deck ovens? convections?
thanks

Sorry for the late post, I usually check the mosaic about once a week, but with more bread questions, I will definitely be checking in more frequently. For the most part, my baking experience is limited. I am a cook by trade, but have often been lured to the baking world on more than one occasion, usually for being burnt out on kitchen life. I have only worked in two bakeries, for a few months to get some rest from the day to day hectic restaurant world, but my love for bread won in the end, and the opportunity arose to bake at Alinea. Originally, Chef Grant didn't want bread at all at the Alinea, but succumbed to the demands of the diners, and offered some local breads to be served if anyone so desired. So, the kitchen itself is not at all prepared to handle bread baking. First there's the Sodir confection oven I do most of the hand rolls. It is meant to be small and light weight, so as to be moved when necessary, but not exactly designed for baking. A lot, and I do mean a lot of rotation is required to get the color even, and i can only fire a certain amount at a time due to it's rather poor heat retention. But it works in the end. And then there's the Molteni.....I have nothing good to say about a Molteni oven..... It's uneven, hard to light, and goes out from time to time, which in the cooking world is inconvenient, but you can work around it, but not the case for the baking world. So I do most of the larger loaves in this, and again, a lot of rotation is required for even color. But in the end of it all, all you need is some sort of heat source.

[michael carroll]

Yey! So glad to find out more about the bread service - I was lucky enough to secure a last minute reservation on the 4th & I was really impressed by the breads - they show the same creativity & mastery of technique as the dishes. It is a shame that the bread pairings aren't included in the printed menu... and I hope to see more of your recipes posted here on Mosaic. (I'm still amazed at how you managed to preserve the fresh, crisp taste of napa cabbage through the baking process.)

Very glad you like the breads, and i do suppose more sooner than later, some recipes will surface. I have heard rumor of a baking book, and feel free to spread this rumor around:)) Most baking books I find are very confusing, and attempt to make it harder than it needs to be. Formulas, percentages, and a round about way of explaining procedures, I find to be frustrating. So I learned form a baker ( which is the best way to really understand bread) and then learned through trial and error. Especially in a restaurant where nothing is "normal", baking a sour dough won't exactly cut it. I have as well, been lobbying to get the breads printed on the menu. All in due time.

[michael carroll]

I would absolutely love to see the bacon doughnut and vanilla rolls recipes on the site. Who knows, you could make a Krispy Kreme-esque chocolate glaze for the bacon doughnut. And as for the vanilla rolls, they sound good enough to be left alone!

the bacon doughnuts actually had a maple sugar sprinkled on top. But who knows what will happen in the future. This would work well with chocolate though!!

[maria morris]

How about this? The selection of savoury doughnuts and glazes and things of that nature could come out in a Krispy Kreme box, with the window on the front and logos emblazoned on the side, a bit like Heston's 'Sweetshop' concept. You could send them home with the customer, as a little gift. I know it's not exactly in the norm for Alinea, a reasonably formal restaurant, to hand you a box full of doughnuts at the end of a dish, but it worked for Heston!

[jcabney]

Michael, nothing to add to what has been said. Just wanted to say that you rock!! And if you do a bread cookbook I'm buying it. And like the others have said the bacon doughnut and vanilla roll were amazing and definitely my favorite breads in the whole world.

[dave beran]

Michael, nothing to add to what has been said. Just wanted to say that you rock!! And if you do a bread cookbook I'm buying it. And like the others have said the bacon doughnut and vanilla roll were amazing and definitely my favorite breads in the whole world.

the trick to the vanilla roll is to walk by when mike isn't looking, take a fresh one (right out of the oven) and jam a ball of salted caramel and a lump of butter inside of it and throw it back in the oven for a minute. its pretty awesome.

[josephbayot]

the trick to the vanilla roll is to walk by when mike isn't looking, take a fresh one (right out of the oven) and jam a ball of salted caramel and a lump of butter inside of it and throw it back in the oven for a minute. its pretty awesome.

Hahaha this thread is great.

[michael carroll]

the trick to the vanilla roll is to walk by when mike isn't looking, take a fresh one (right out of the oven) and jam a ball of salted caramel and a lump of butter inside of it and throw it back in the oven for a minute. its pretty awesome.

So! It's Dave Beran that eats all of my vanilla rolls!!!!:) Actually, with the caramel, they are quite delicious. Nice to make a mini "burger" out of them by making the roll a little larger. Quite a nice snack. Hard to stay away from them. But I think I may have promised a recipe or two. But one for now, I don't have my recipe book at home, but I will part with my chicory and toasted coriander foccacia.
Now, this is my exact recipe that I use, it makes 120 one ounce rolls, or two half sheet tray size "loaves".

bread flour 1400 grams
toasted and ground(course) coriander 25 grams
chicory granules (ground fine) 14 grams
EVOO 80 grams
sugar 40 grams
*fresh yeast 20 grams
water 720 grams
salt 50 grams
*levain 400 grams

Start with water, evoo, fresh yeast. Add flour. Sprinkle in chicory and sugar. Mix on low speed for a minute and a half. Add levain (optional) I have been using both yeast and levain (starter) in some of my breads. ( If not using a levain, add another 5-10 grams of fresh yeast, and reduce the salt by 5 grams.) Mix on low speed again for 1 minute to incorporate levain. Add course ground coriander and salt. Mix for an additional 30 seconds to incorporate spices. Turn mixer onto medium speed ( the next speed up*) and allow to mix for 4 and a half minutes, turning dough by hand or pulling dough off of the dough hook as necessary. Sometimes you gotta get your hands a little dirty, and a machine can only do so much. And speaking of machines....they are all different. i have used kitchen aid mixers in the past, and have found them to be useless for bread making. Aside from hand mixing on a table, I don't know what a home cook is to do. And I have never used a "bread machine" and probably never will.
Allow the dough to ferment for at least 2 hours, the longer the better, and the "colder" your water the better as well ( if you have the time. If limited on time, a little warmer water will do) Choose your desired shape. Allow loaves to rise (usually about an hour to an hour and a half-same rule applies concerning your temperature levels for all of your dough fermentations) Bake in a hot oven 400 to 430 degrees and cook to a golden brown deliciousness. Brush with EVOO and sprinkle with salt. Cool. Enjoy.
Then make the current lamb dish with coffee, brussel sprouts, and I am sure another thousand ingredients while you are waiting for your dough to rise and you will have an Alinea pairing!!!!!

[maria morris]

I know you don't use them but just out of curiosity, can any of your recipes be adapted to a bread maker? My oven isn't the most powerful...

[michael carroll]

I know you don't use them but just out of curiosity, can any of your recipes be adapted to a bread maker? My oven isn't the most powerful...

I don't know about the bread maker, but any oven will do just fine. I don't actually use a good oven. Any home oven that can get to about 400 degrees and above, you'll be fine.

[christine anschutz]

This is the most exciting thread ever. I attended The French Pastry School and at the risk of making the cakes jealous, I have to say that bread is quite enticing. I also took a class with Jeffrey Hammelman where I got the "kid in a candy shop" feeling. Do you really get to work at 2 am? Nice reason to get up. Do you ever allow someone, say like me, to complete a stage with you? If not, I'll just wait for the cookbook and keep baking in my also unreliable oven.

[chefjasonh]

Good thread topic. Until now I wasn't even sure that Alinea did serve bread. You need to get more hype Chef Carroll! The pairings and types of bread sound fantastic. I love this approach to the fine dining experience as it elevates the expectations and mood even more. I look foward to hearing more about your breads and baking methods in the future.

[derekslager]

Thanks for sharing the recipe, Michael, sounds very tasty.

What is the hydration of your starter for this recipe?

Do you think there would be any issue with doing a 24-hour ferment in the refrigerator? I usually make breads late at night during the week and don't have time to wait for them to (fully) ferment, thus I have found the refrigerator to be a useful tool.