Hi!
Since the Fall/Winter is approaching... I was wondering if anyone ever built a home made proof box before with great success? Last winter I just put my loaf in the microwave with my loaf resting on top of hot water. Today is the first day where my kitchen is just too cool and it's taking my loaf forever to double for my s/f.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Happy baking!
LeeYong Rolfmester@yahoo.com
Proof Box
LeeYong,
I've constructed and used the proof box shown here with good results.
SteveB
www.breadcetera.com
It's a brilliant design
and I can vouch for its versatility. You'll love it!
Yippee
Temporary box
While you are building a more permanent proof box, you could use your unheated oven by using its built-in light bulb. With the door closed, I measure my oven's temperature at near 90ºF and by adjustment in the slightly open door can control it from about 85º to 90ºF.
SteveB's box certainly is the better long term solution ;)
Ron
A box on a shelf
I use a shallower proofing box with the following materials:
2 plastic boxes built to nest (from e.g. bed bath and beyond, or some hardware stores, depending on the size you want).
water
4 pieces of PVC pipe (2" diameter, though this can change based on the size of the box) cut to fit in the box.
3 PVC elbows
1 PVC T (to allow water into the pipes).
1 Aquarium thermostat/heater.
I just keep it plugged in all the time, and on a restaurant shelf in my office. It uses a negligible amount of electricity compared to the computers and routers etc. around it, and I can use it as a rising box and a proofing box. It's pretty broad and low-profile. I can post pics if the description interests you.
Total cost is about $60, though I could have bought the thermostat/heater cheaper on-line.
Pics of the home proofing box
Here are some pictures.
1) The box, open, where you can see the fishtank heater/thermostat. I think this is a 25w model. In this shot you can see that there is a corner where I used a PVC "T" to allow water in so the interior of the pipe is filled with water:
2) The boxes come with lids. Here is a shot from the side with the lid up. It keeps out fruit flies (there's a pear tree that the downstairs neighbor takes care of, and it's heavy with fruit right now).
3) From the side, you can see the stacking, with the PVC pipe acting as a spacer, with the 2 jars of starter inside, and a lid on.
4) Here is some bread that got its start in the box:
The internal space is enough for 3 circular bannetons/brotforms along with the starter jars.
When I check the internal temp. with an IR thermometer, the temperature is always what it's dialed in for, so I've been happy with the safety and convenience of this solution.
Spacey I for one would like to see those pics
I think it would be a nice contribution to have pics posted on the subject. Then others could refer to them, if you did post pics that made the configuration clear.
Spacey, thanks for the great photos
The photos do a great job of "hanging flesh" on your earlier description. Thanks for the informative work.
Ron
Sale on an excellent plastic tote
Now, through about March 23 2012, the Container Store has a sale on several tranluscent file totes that are of a very good size for proofing boxes, one that's watertight, with lids that are hinged in the center so you can open only half the box at a time, if you want. They're made of polypropylene, which is non-reactive and safe for food. All totes are under $20. I'm getting one for sure! Found a Wilton non-stick cooling rack that would sit on top of a Pyrex casserole dish full of hot water, so you can put your bread on top. This is much like the proofing cabinet used in the doughnut shop I worked in years ago.