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.
>
>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).
>
>Grateful to hear what you think might be going on with the second batch.
>Thanks.
>

The dough may have been over proofed, so instead of giving you oven
spring, it collapsed while baking.

If you suspect this might be the case, the next time, do not use the
clock for your proofing, but instead, examine the dough itself for
signs of a full and adequate proof...when you poke it gently, it will
spring back somewhat. If your finger indentation remains, the loaf is
over proofed.

It takes some patience and practice to learn this, and the obvious
signs can vary somewhat with the type of bread flours and hydration of
your doughs. There is no one way to tell across all the bread recipe
variables.

You can practice your poking skills on the first/bulk proof, too, just
to get used to playing around with the feel and tension and texture of
your dough.

As a rough guide - If you recipe calls for 1 hour of a second proof,
start looking and gently poking at the half hour mark, then every 15
minutes after that.

Boron