Douglas Lawrence wrote:
"From her "The Italian Baker" book, this bread is a pain to make but my
wife loves it so I make it once a month just for her (okay, I like it too).
When we get our bakery up and running in the next few months this bread
will be offered. I haven't any idea how to make this bread in a commercial
setting and was hoping someone on this list might descibe how they do it or
at least some helpful suggestions. The dough is very wet and handling is
very difficult. Maybe if someone had Ms. Fields email address I could ask
her how the Italian bakers did it. Thanks for any help."
I have no idea how the Italian bakers do it but from long experience of
making large (by domestic standards) batches (2 -3 kilos of flour) of
Coccodrillo and my own "Quick Coccodrillo Substitute" I have learned that
the dough can be handled easily (relatively<g>) as follows.
Mix several small batches not 1 large one, the dough climbs mixer paddles
with irritating ease. They can be combined after mixing with no problem.
USE LOTS OF FLOUR!! Blindingly obvious but it had to be said, flour the
bench, your hands, the bench knife, the ceiling (for when the dough drives
you to hurl it in frustration <g>).
DON'T "HANDLE" THE DOUGH, move it along the bench, divide it, plump it up,
portion it with a floured bench knife. The dough is extremely elastic and
it will move around a floured bench quite easily if you hold the knife
parallel to the bench at 30-45 degrees and slide the knife UNDER the dough.
Divide the dough into the desired sizes before proof rather than the final
dividing manoeuvre recommended by Ms Field.
Small "Cocodrillo Rolls" are a lot easier to handle and everybody just
loves them.
The bread, in my current version, is inverted, after proof, by flipping
over with a bench knife, picked up and stretched to shape. It is possible
and results are excellent.
See
<http://hometown.aol.co.uk/Wcsjohn/images/DSC00023.JPG>
and
<http://hometown.aol.co.uk/Wcsjohn/images/DSC00031.JPG>
Consider a buying a commercial version of the SuperPeel.
Love
John
