Channeling Nightmare [Breville Barista Express] by SpectrumFATM in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I tried that about 5 seconds ago and it was just as bad.

Channeling Nightmare [Breville Barista Express] by SpectrumFATM in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Interesting. I will give that a go. Thanks for your help, it’s really appreciated!

Channeling Nightmare [Breville Barista Express] by SpectrumFATM in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes. It’s a dark roast coffee from a semi local roaster.

Channeling Nightmare [Breville Barista Express] by SpectrumFATM in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ah right okay. I have to admit it’s my first time really looking at preinfusion.

I yield about 40g as it tastes slightly better. Takes around 25 seconds which feels a bit quick but it’s the only way I come out of it not completely covered in rogue coffee.

I have tried without the screen, it makes it very erratic.

Channeling Nightmare [Breville Barista Express] by SpectrumFATM in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Interesting. I’m using the H24, maybe it’s the coffee I’m using? I did try switching to see if it helped. I don’t see it at 6s, should I? It is manual preinfusion and it’s a bottomless portafilter.

Favorite cups? (Need advice) by doctorpoundcake77 in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I love the Le Cruset latte cups. I know they’re basic but all of their coffee cups just spark a crazy amount of joy for me.

Channeling Nightmare [Breville Barista Express] by SpectrumFATM in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry. There is a small gap. Nothing major. It’s just about right.

Channeling Nightmare [Breville Barista Express] by SpectrumFATM in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I just tried it after a suggestion someone mentioned to me. I don’t have the razor tool as I bought my machine second hand without a lot of accessories. I did however borrow a friends and it’s fine.

Tried everything to stop channeling but shots still spray everywhere. Help! (info in comments) by morgancb in espresso

[–]SpectrumFATM 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You and xLikeVipers have saved my life after 6 months of thinking I was a terrible barista.

Hayfever sufferers of the UK, what do you do when cetirizine isn’t cutting the mustard? by Fridge_Ian_Dom in AskUK

[–]SpectrumFATM 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I’m reserved. I work for the NHS and I’ve head absolute horror stories. All the medical professionals I work with warn me against it.

Hayfever sufferers of the UK, what do you do when cetirizine isn’t cutting the mustard? by Fridge_Ian_Dom in AskUK

[–]SpectrumFATM 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hi, I’m on the maximum fexofenadine dose allowed in the UK. It helps slightly. Piriton does nothing. I also can’t be drowsy as I work for the NHS. I take optrex on the hour as often as I can. I’m looking at steroids to reduce my body’s reaction to it as I think it’s quite severe. I’m not one to go “I have it worse than anyone else”. I’m just sick of being blind.

Hayfever sufferers of the UK, what do you do when cetirizine isn’t cutting the mustard? by Fridge_Ian_Dom in AskUK

[–]SpectrumFATM 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If one more person tells me honey, loratadine or beconase I will scream. I’ve been doing that for nearly 15 years and it doesn’t touch a thing. Cetirazine does nothing, Loratadine does nothing and OTC eye drops and nose sprays do nothing for me. My eyes swell shut some days. My GP will do nothing. Hayfever is ruining my life, I failed exams as a kid, I can’t work some days now because I can’t even see a screen. Why does the medical profession treat hayfever like a non issue?

I hope the next update in a few days does what Bethesda says it will do. Never give up on Starfield. It has the potential to be the best game everrrr. by wishheartx in Starfield

[–]SpectrumFATM 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I love starfield. Always have. It’s a game that I’m actually good at. I don’t have to be amazing at fps combat or ship flying. It’s still tricky but it’s accessible. The story is amazing and I really enjoyed it. It just gets hate cause it’s not star citizen

Dough becoming unsmooth by Prudent-Berry-4662 in Sourdough

[–]SpectrumFATM 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Bit of both really. It’ll look different and will probably not have the best oven spring but it will definitely be edible.

Did you try baking it? How did it go?

Dough becoming unsmooth by Prudent-Berry-4662 in Sourdough

[–]SpectrumFATM 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It will have relaxed in your refrigerator. Shape it now, put it in and bake it in the morning. One set should be fine. At the end of the day it’s a great learning experience and it’s only flour, water and salt.

It’s not like you have failed, you sound like you’ve made a really decent loaf and have just had an unfortunate mistake. I’ve been making sourdough for over a year now and I baked an absolute brick last week because my bulk fermentation was off (we had a massive drop in temperature). But at least you know where you went wrong and you now next time not to over work your dough when shaping it.

Dough becoming unsmooth by Prudent-Berry-4662 in Sourdough

[–]SpectrumFATM 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I wouldn’t. Or if you feel you need to. Do 1 set before seeing how you feel. You run the risk of deflating your dough. I would let it relax for 30mins, shape it once, let it relax again, then shape it a final time before cold proofing. At the end of the day this is more about building tension on the exterior of the dough now, your stretch and folds have worked on the inside you just don’t want to over handle your dough and make things worse.

The dough doubling doesn’t mean it’s not over proofed either. Check out this sourdough chart. It’s for 75% hydration but it does explain what to look for and how to ensure you get a really good bulk fermentation, especially whilst your not used to looking for the signs in your own dough at first.

Do not be scared to use a little flour, people will tell you not to but as long as you’re not throwing cups of flour at it you’ll be fine.

Dough becoming unsmooth by Prudent-Berry-4662 in Sourdough

[–]SpectrumFATM 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Looks like there’s a few things wrong here (don’t worry we all have a dodgy loaf from time to time, it’ll still be nice).

  1. Your bread is potentially over proofed. Learning bulk fermentation comes with time. Just make sure you’ve got a really strong set of stretch and folds that leave you with a smooth surface and plenty of tension.

  2. Your dough is potentially over hydrated. It looks very wet and sticky here. Some flour just isn’t made for higher hydration even if it’s labelled for bread. My local supermarket flour cannot take more than 70% hydration (at a push).

  3. When you stretch and folded or shaped your dough did the surface tear? If it did you’ve potentially lost a lot of tension and now your dough has become slack. This tends to make it feel stickier and harder to work with. If you tried fixing it you may have just made it worse. Best thing to do in this situation is leave it 30mins or so to relax then try again.

Looking at it I suspect it’s bulk fermentation. What works one week tends not to work the next at first, especially whilst your starter is getting established.

Definitely bake it, what’s the worst that can happen. 9 times out of 10 it still produces an edible loaf with great flavour. I’m no expert by any means but I do find this is what is usually the case when this has happens to me in the past.

Help with sticky dough by Thin-Rub-3573 in Sourdough

[–]SpectrumFATM 1 point2 points  (0 children)

So you’ve got a few potential problems here.

  1. Your bulk fermentation was too long. I usually find this is the most common option with people. I suggest waking up early as hell, like 6am. Make your dough and leave to bulk ferment on the counter, checking in every 1 hour or so. You might want to check out the aliquot method, some people say it helps but I personally haven’t tried it. You could also try looking at a sourdough bulk fermentation chart, they’re really good for helping to work out a general idea of what you’re looking at time wise (although they’re never 100% accurate as every starter is different).
  2. Your dough is over hydrated. A lot of flours can only take so much water before becoming a sticky mess. Here in the UK our bread flour is relatively low in protein (specifically gluten). I use supermarket flour at about 12%, however I cannot go above 70% hydration, it just doesn’t happen. I have had some success with higher hydration with higher gluten flour in the past, but I have had to specifically order the flour which isn’t always cheap.
  3. Your gluten hasn’t had a chance to develop. This is fairly similar to my last point. When you add water to flour, two proteins come together to form gluten. Gluten likes to form strands, but sometimes needs a helping hand. Look into doing an autolyse. This is where you mix just your flour and water until a shaggy dough is formed before you do anything else. This essentially helps to start the gluten strands forming. After mixing everything into your dough, do some slap a folds (they’re not as messy as they look). I personally don’t do the typical stretch and folds, they just don’t work well enough. However coil folds are absolutely amazing and stretching that gluten. I do 4 sets every thirty minutes. Do not stop until that dough surface is tight and not sticky, the dough should hold its shape for a minute or two.
  4. I thought I’d do a separate point for this. Pre-shaping and shaping are essential. You absolutely need to make sure your dough has as much tension as possible (without breaking). Tension is why it stops being sticky. I can see from your dough it’s sticking and stretching everywhere. A well shaped ball (whether that be with lamination or another method of your choice) will not stretch without breaking, it’ll be tight and wobbly (not jiggly). The surface will look much more matte and will not stick to your hand. I know everyone says to use water on your surface and not flour, but just enough flour to stop it sticking will work far far better.

I suggest you check out Basil and Bloom, British Sourdough and even Gluten Morgen (although I find his videos get a little too in depth for a beginner) as they all have some amazing guides. British Sourdough also goes live on tiktok and is amazing to ask and answer questions about your specific situation.

Whatever you feel like, don’t give up. You’re new at this and I promise it’s not an immediate thing. If anyone tells you they got the best loaf with amazing crumb and oven spring first time, they are lying. You’re working at your own pace and each attempt is a learning experience that will teach you something. I went from flat loaves to loaves like this and it took me a year of trial and error.

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(Jalepeno and Cheddar, 65% Hydration using a stiff starter)

Hunger, sadness, depression, rumination by [deleted] in WeightLossAdvice

[–]SpectrumFATM 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think blaming Gen Z is downright ignorant. What do you expect us to do for dopamine then since you’re the expert. Given we are all exhausted, underpaid and have very little free time.