To pass along a lesson learned, my original question was, "Does the flour really have to be at least room temperature when you're making bread?" Why would this be an issue?..... Since flour can get old and taste funny when not used fast enough, it was suggested that we pre-measure the bread flour for a yummy recipe and store it in the freezer until we were ready to use it, which we did. Then I get a call from a friend who has found the cinnamon chips (like chocolate chips) I've been looking for, to try and make cinnamon chip bread (think Great Harvest bakery). I get the flour out and hear in my head, " let it warm up", but I can smell the bread, I can even taste it. Patience is a virtue I do not possess in great abundance, so I ask, "how much can it really matter?".
Well......when you put hot water into cold flour, instead of getting a dough that is elastic and pretty, you get something like clay going bad...dry, lumpy, unyielding. When I thought about it, it really did make sense, laws of nature and all (chemistry class flashback). Not wanting to waste perfectly good ingredients and with sweet Sister Annette Holm's bread making philosophy sounding in the background (don't give up, don't get discouraged, keep trying) I went into salvage mode.....More water!, More flour!, heck, throw in the cinnamon chips! (they have a very low melting temperature by the way).
By the time Karl got home, the kitchen was clean and the bread was just coming out of the oven. He commented on how good it smelled and I told him the story. He tried to be kind and supportive, but on this occasionally the chuckle gave him away, so we laughed together. He said the bread tasted good, and this morning that it was even better than last night.....I think it's a salvage job, "a sturdy bread", but eatable. I do take comfort in another of Sister Holm's philosophies about bread making...."there is an artistic element to how your bread looks, it's ok for your bread to have its own character." This batch definitely has that going for it. (Ah, if you're interested there are still a couple of loaves....)
