Another Fabulous Maggie Bread
Oct 17, 2009 | From the kitchen of Rose
I hope by now you've all bought or checked out from the library Maggie's wonderful book Artisan Baking. It's worth it for this recipe alone--The Royal Crown's Tortano, which is one of my very favorite breads. I was enticed to make it by the description that it had holes the size of radishes!
A small amount of potato and honey give the crust a magnificent rustic color and wonderful depth of flavor. There is the most minute amount of yeast (0.3%) which means that the dough rises long and slow developing still more flavor. If these pictures don't tempt you I don't know what will! 
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Rose Levy Beranbaum in reply to comment from Diane
12/21/2011 11:10 AM
diane, the book is now available in soft cover as well and both are on amazon.
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Diane in reply to comment from Woody Wolston
12/21/2011 10:46 AM
Thank you for your reply.. i didn't read the post above just saw the bread and how good it looks.. I'll see if i can find her book in Toronto Canada
thanks again Diane
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Woody Wolston in reply to comment from Diana
12/15/2011 11:55 AM
Hi Diane,
As mentioned above the recipe forThe Royal Crown's Tortano is in Maggie's book: Artisan Baking.
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Diana in reply to comment from susan Bliley
12/15/2011 11:16 AM
hello ...i don't see the recipe for this bread were do i find it.. looks good i love bread....can you email it to me
Thanks Diane
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Rose Levy Beranbaum in reply to comment from susan Bliley
03/22/2011 11:04 PM
susan, this is wonderful to know! i'm really interested in trying many of my breads in the processor as it is such an effective and easy method. the only one so far that i don't like doing is the brioche bc it's so sticky to get out it's not worth it. i MUST try your idea of using the tortano dough for pizza. i bet it has magnificent big holes! thanks for sharing this will all of us.
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susan Bliley
03/22/2011 04:20 PM
Royal crowns Tortano is absolutely the best! I mixed it in the Cusinart, did the French folds at 20 minute intervals and eventually put it in the fridge overnight. Absolutely stunning. And also makes great pizza! I did add tons of steam because I always do. What could top this?
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Rose in reply to comment from Poh Cheng
07/11/2010 11:55 AM
poh, the illustrations are just meant to be helpful but you don't have to follow them to the letter. the idea is to handle the dough gently to maintain the airbubbles but to secure the final roll of the dough well so that it forms a tight loaf which will rise better and have the best shape.
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Rose in reply to comment from Poh Cheng
07/11/2010 11:53 AM
poh, use the amount of banana listed in the volume or weight. the % of peel to banana is just for the purpose of knowing how many bananas to purchase!
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Poh Cheng
05/04/2010 07:07 AM
Hi Rose
Baguette recipe (fr the bread bible), i need to clarify at step 5 Preshape the dough & let it rest - third line down where it says - gently pat each pc into a rectangle, they shape it into a stubby log by rolling the top edge down to the middle, then pushing it back slightly with yr thumbs. Repeat this rolling motion two more times, ending with the seam at the bottom edge of the dough ( see pg 70 for more detail)
1. But when i turn to pg 70, the illustrations shows at 3. Folding up the bottom of the dough to a little past the centre - which is different from what is describe as above.
2. Repeat this rolling motion 2 more times - do u mean to start at - GENTLY PAT EACH PC. INTO RECTANGLE.....?
Thanks & Regards
Poh Cheng
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Poh Cheng in reply to comment from Matthew
05/03/2010 02:45 AM
Thanks Mattew for yr prompt reply and yr suggestion. I will try it out. thanks again
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Matthew in reply to comment from Poh Cheng
05/03/2010 01:25 AM
Poh, this isn't really intended to be a "sweet" bread--I wonder if you would be more happy with the traditional banana "bread" in chapter 2 (baked as muffins, but see variation for a loaf).
Regarding the note at the end, Rose's point is that the peel is 25% of the weight of the banana--so if making a large batch and you need 3 pounds of mashed banana, make sure to buy 4 pounds of bananas.
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Poh Cheng in reply to comment from Rose Levy Beranbaum
05/02/2010 04:12 AM
Hi Rose
Thanks for yr prompt reply.
I prefer more of sweeter taste on the banana feather loaf. So if i alter salt to 3g of salt and add 4g of sugar into flour mixture and dough, the loaf should turn out fine right, without altering any other ingredient !
The reason why i ask about the volume of 113g of mashed banana (skinless) is because under the POINTERS FOR SUCCESS - UNDERSTANDING ( in yr book where u say ) For calculation purposes if making this bread in larger quantity,it's useful to know that banana peel represents abt 25% of the wt of a banana. I think i hv misinterpret that banana peel which is the skin weighs 25% of the wt of banana. Hence if making a larger quantity, i will hv to minus 25% off 113g of mashed banana. So may i hv the right interpretation. thsnks
I dont hv a oven stone so i am using a heavy-duty black sheet pan to replace oven stone. I am relatively new in bread baking. Rose am i right to use top and bottom oven heat to bake most bread provided the recipe specify otherwise.
Thank you so much for taking yr precious time to read and reply my questions.
Regards
Poh Cheng
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Poh Cheng in reply to comment from Matthew
05/02/2010 03:35 AM
Hi Mattew
Thanks for yr reply. Yes i use the teaspoon to measure 6.6 g of salt for banana feather loaf recipe. But still find it salty. I prefer sweeter bread though. May i know, are there a big diff between Austrialian & US measuring spoon ? What i have on hand is Aust measuring spoon. When i measure, i will try to use the weight or the spoon, whichever is the closest. If i use the spoon, i will try to lessen the amount slightly. Thank you.
Regards
Poh Cheng
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Matthew in reply to comment from Poh Cheng
05/01/2010 07:08 PM
Poh, since you mentioned the weight of the salt, I wonder if your bread is too salty because you are weighing it? Most scales can't handle that precision (6.6g), so unless you are sure your scale weighs to that accuracy, you should use measuring spoons.
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Rose in reply to comment from Poh Cheng
05/01/2010 04:29 PM
you can use less salt. it may rise a little faster but maybe not notceably. no need to add sugar unless you want to.
the way the charts work there is the volume,and then the weight of that volume so no 113 grams/ 1/2 cup mashed banana does not include the skins (so you know for other recipes).
if you add more banana you will be altering the liquid balance and will need to add more flour, and more yeast or simply wait longer for it to rise.
i use an oven stone for quick bottom heat and to retain oven heat when opening the door. top heat is fine if you bake low in the oven. only use the fan toward the last 10 minutes of baking or you'll blow out the moisture you need for a good rise. once it's risen the fan is great to get rid of excess moisture!
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Poh Cheng
05/01/2010 05:29 AM
Hi Rose
Enjoy reading yr book as they are so detail that any question that pops up in my mind, i can find the answers. Thanks for being so thoughtful. Rose, i hv 4 question for the Banana feather loaf -
1. Find this recipe too salty. Can i substitude partial amount of salt ( 6.6g ) to sugar instead ? Such as 4g of sugar plus 2.6g salt. If such, do i need to make any alteration to the other ingredients ?
2. Does 113g of Banana inclusive of the Banana skin ?
3. Can i add more banana to the recipe?
4. Am i on the right track to use top and bottom fire (without fan) for my oven to bake bread? For cake baking, i always switch on the fan with top and bottom heat.
Thank you so much for yr time spend.
Regards
Poh Cheng
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Rose in reply to comment from Hibiscus
04/29/2010 11:29 PM
i'm sorry to tell you, but you may have found out already, that if you decrease the water the size of the holes also decreases!
seeing these photos wants me to make the bread again as soon as possible!
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Hibiscus
04/27/2010 07:15 PM
I must say people, this bread intrigued me so much, that I had to burrow the book from the library. After making this bread, I had to cut this bread in half and freeze half of the bread. I didn't believe it at first about the raddish sized holes. But It did occur. The only caveat I have with this dough is that it spreads to wide. So, I would cut back on the water next time. Other than that, Rose is spot on with this bread. My bread looked exactly like Rose's except mine was larger. Thanks Rose for sharing your knowledge. Everyone in this forum should try this bread at least once. You all won't regret it. BTW Rose, is Maggie's hardcover 'Artisian Baking' the same as the Paperback 'Artisian Baking' copy?
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Kathleen
04/24/2010 07:29 AM
Oh my, that looks completely wonderful! Holes the size of radishes? How fun! Thanks for recommending this book. I'm always amazed at the huge variety of bread recipes available. There's always something to inspire just one more loaf...
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Hanaa
10/19/2009 04:25 PM
Beautiful!! Love the holes in the bread. I checked out Maggie's book from the library one time and all I did was drool over the pictures. Didn't get a chance to bake anything from the book before returning it. Will have to borrow it again soon (once I can bake in my kitchen again - the remodeling project is taking a bit longer than anticipated!!).
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Jenn
10/19/2009 12:22 PM
Beautiful bread! This makes me ordered this book from the library :).
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Marie
10/18/2009 08:41 PM
This bread has been on my list of things to try for a long time, and seeing the picture has moved it way up.
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Matthew
10/18/2009 01:39 PM
Beautiful Rose, I need to get this book!
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Julie
10/18/2009 05:16 AM
Very intriguing bread- the hole in the middle shows off the beautiful texture.
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ButterYum
10/17/2009 02:29 PM
Oooh... looks marvelous!
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