Some loaves are planned.
Some loaves have plans of their own.
This one appears to be the second kind.
The original idea was simple enough: take everything I’ve been falling in love with here in Montenegro and turn it into bread.
Ajvar.
Roasted garlic.
A touch of rye flour for earthiness.
Good olive oil.
A little Vegeta.
A loaf that tastes like this chapter of my travels.
Easy, right?
Famous last words.
The Flavor Experiment Begins
The first step was roasting garlic and tomatoes.
The kitchen quickly transformed into the kind of place that makes you wander back in every five minutes just to smell what’s happening.
The garlic emerged soft, golden, sweet, and practically begging to be turned into something dangerous.
Rather than leaving chunks of roasted garlic throughout the dough, I wanted the flavor woven through the entire loaf.
So the roasted garlic was mashed together with olive oil, Vegeta, salt, and pepper until it became a rich, fragrant paste.
The goal wasn’t garlic pockets.
The goal was garlic everywhere.
Not visually.
Flavor-wise.
Enter McDough
Meanwhile, McDough was hard at work.
The levain had been active, bubbly, and ready to go, which is a nice change from the early days when every loaf came with a side of existential questioning about whether the starter was strong enough.
These days, I know my starter.
McDough may be dramatic, but he shows up when it counts.
The dough came together with bread flour, a little rye flour, water, levain, and eventually the roasted garlic paste.
The rye wasn’t there to dominate.
Just enough to add a little depth and earthiness beneath the sweetness of the roasted garlic.
Things Get Interesting
This is where the adventure part of Adventures in Fermentation earned its title.
The dough wasn’t soupy.
It wasn’t falling apart.
But it was definitely stickier than the doughs I’ve been making lately.
Every stretch and fold improved things.
Every rest period helped.
The dough became smoother.
Stronger.
More cohesive.
But it also kept reminding me that today’s loaf wasn’t interested in following the exact script.
At one point I started reconsidering the timing of the ajvar addition.
The original plan was to incorporate it during the stretch and fold process.
The dough politely informed me that this was a terrible idea.
Or perhaps not so politely.
Adding more moisture to an already sticky dough wasn’t likely to improve our relationship.
So the plan evolved.
Listening to the Dough
One of the things sourdough has taught me is that the dough always gets a vote.
You can have a recipe.
You can have a timeline.
You can have a vision.
And then the dough can look at all of it and say:
“No.”
The longer I bake, the more I realize this isn’t very different from listening to your body, your intuition, or your life.
Sometimes forcing the original plan creates a bigger mess than adapting to what is actually in front of you.
So instead of forcing the ajvar into the dough tonight, I decided to wait.
Tomorrow’s version of me can make that decision with cold dough, fresh eyes, and considerably less stickiness.
The Current State of Affairs
As of tonight:
- The roasted garlic has been fully incorporated.
- The dough completed its stretch-and-fold sessions.
- McDough is alive and well.
- The dough has risen.
- The dough has spread.
- The dough remains slightly dramatic.
- The ajvar remains on standby.
The current plan is to let the dough rest overnight in the refrigerator and revisit the situation tomorrow.
At that point I’ll decide whether the ajvar becomes a beautiful swirl through the loaf, a subtle ribbon of flavor, or whether this entire project takes an unexpected turn.
Because sometimes baking is less about control and more about collaboration.
And right now, McDough appears to think he’s in charge.
To be continued…