On Wed, 30 May 2012 18:10:12 +0100, "D. T. Green"
> wrote:

> Our second attempt at making bread turned out with the crust being really
> hard and the top surface being really flat, almost slightly concave.
>
Not an expert bread baker here, so I don't know bread terms and I'm
always looking for a crispier crust, so I don't have that too hard
problem... but I think you could use milk instead of water in your
recipe and brush it with butter just before you bake it to make a
softer crust. As far as the concave looks, you let it rise too long -
so it over inflated and "popped" on you. BTDT. Keep a better eye on
it next time and put it into the oven just before you think it has
reached its optimal rise because it keeps rising in the oven. Tastes
just fine, looks like H-E-double hockey sticks.

> Yet as far as we can see, the cooking times and settings were the same as
> the previous batch which turned out much better (ie soft crust and rounded
> top).

The heat source might not be as reliable and steady as you think it
is. It could boil down to a thermostat problem which requires a
qualified technician to diagnose and fix.
>
> Grateful to hear what you think might be going on with the second batch.
> Thanks.
>


--
Food is an important part of a balanced diet.