Low-Calorie & Healthy 50% Whole Grain Rye Pullman Loaf

🎈Ingredients: Rye flour 140g, bread flour 140g, 1 egg, old dough (pâte fermentée) 56g, heavy whipping cream 60g, ice-cold milk 100g, salt 3g, sugar 20g, yeast 3g, butter 20g.

See Photo 9 for how to make the old dough.

🎈Method:

1️⃣Add all ingredients except the butter into the mixer bowl. Mix on low speed for about 5 minutes, shape into a tight ball, cover with plastic wrap, and rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

2️⃣Take the dough out of the fridge and continue mixing for about 1 minute until it reaches the thick membrane stage (Photo 5). Add the butter at this point.

3️⃣Continue mixing until it reaches the full windowpane stage (Photo 6). Shape the dough into a tight ball, cover with plastic wrap, and let it proof. For doughs with a high whole grain percentage, never over-mix chasing an ultra-thin windowpane membrane, as that can easily break down the gluten.

4️⃣Shape and do the second proof (Photo 7). Pay attention to pressing out any large air pockets with a gentle hand during this step. This gives the finished loaf a finer crumb structure without big holes.

5️⃣When proofed to 80-90% full in the pan, bake at 180°C on the lower-middle rack for about 36 minutes. Tent with foil in time during baking.

6️⃣Remove from the oven, tap the pan on the counter, unmold, and cool on a wire rack.

❣️Baker's Notes: Different whole grain flours vary in protein content, water absorption, and ash content, so the fineness of the crumb will differ. For example, at the same 50% whole grain ratio, my previous 50% whole wheat loaf had a much finer crumb than this 50% rye loaf because that bag of whole wheat flour had very high protein.

To improve the crumb structure and slow down staling, we can add thick yogurt, old dough, and heavy whipping cream. All of these ingredients work wonderfully to improve the texture of the bread.