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Sourdough Panettone and Viennoiserie

1st Edition Thomas Teffri-Chambelland


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КНИГА ИЗ ЗАКРЫТОЙ
БАЗЫ
БИБЛИОТЕКИ PRO
ОТ
BEAUTIFUL FOOD
Preface by Chad Robertson

'Levain' from the traditional French baking practice-a fermenting paste or


dough made of flour, water, and wild yeasts working in symbiosis with lactic
bacteria used to leaven bread and other baked goods.
Any baker who has managed to add a bit of natural leaven to recipes in the
family of enriched doughs such as panettone, brioche, and laminated viennoiserie
will swiftly and surely recognize their good fortune with certain discoveries.
First off-improved depth of flavor and generally more supple, moist texture; and
then significantly extended shelf-life or 'freshness', and finally, and increasingly
more important considering today's modern farming practices-that of increased
overall digestibility. Many years ago, at Tartine, we began to incorporate our
levain into this family of baked pastry favorites in addition to our breads and
there was no turning back. In some cases, we were rediscovering ancient tradition
that had been all but lost. In other cases, like so many elegantly articulated in
this book, bakers have built on this tradition by applying these principles and
techniques in new ways.

Thomas Teffri-Chambelland delves deep into the history, theory, microbiology,


science, and practice to more thoroughly illuminate the seemingly invisible art
of baking with sourdough. In doing so, he places the natural leaven tradition
firmly back as both foundation and crown of our most beloved baked goods;
a place where history had since replaced it with the more convenient and pain­
fully compromised practice of straight commercially yeasted dough baking.
Thomas-a generous teacher, scientist, master baker and miller-presents these
innovations/'retro-innovations' with a collection of recipes richly coloring the
story with the various different approaches of a handful of select chef bakers
who have mastered baking with sourdough in their own distinctive ways.
With this book, one gains the knowledge to restore both these lost traditions
with all the benefits they bring to product quality-flavor and texture, longevity
and digestibility-together with the know-how and accompanying confidence to
push innovation forward in the practice of sourdough baking.

7
Introduction

�he panettone and sourdough v iennoiseries presented in this book are all excep­
t1o�al pro ducts requ i r ing specialist know-how shared by just a few hundred
�rt1sa� bakers worldw ide. They are re markably tender with an intense aroma,
mcred1ble softness, and long shelf life (some types of panettone stay fresh for
several months).
The Holy Grail for a new type of baker working with natural leaven (or sour­
dough starter), these products have sparked a veritable passion a mong bakers
and an increasing number of connoisseurs and food lovers. It is our hope that
this book can help increase thei r popularity by making their preparation more
generally accessible.

Traditional or modern?
This book looks at sourdough v iennoiseries in the general sense, a field of baking
that is both ancient and modern-a paradox which merits a br ief explanation.
Let us start with a simplified history of baking in countries where wheat is
the staple bread gra i n. For centuries, all over the world people's daily bread was
enhanced for celebrations by adding sugar, eggs, fat, or dried fruit depending on
what was available. This orig i nal enriched bread became what is now known
as " brio che" in some areas of France and by various other weird and wonder­
ful regional names such as Proven\al oil pu mp (pompe a l'huile proven\ale),
Romans pogne, Landes pastis (pastis landais) and Corsican canestru (canestre
corse). No era or area of France is without its specialty celebrat ion bread.
This history of celebration breads, which has yet to be researched and written,
is the story of people. It tells of their joys and sorrows, thei r far m ing, their
trading, and their social classes. There is the Landes past is w i th spices and
rum that evokes the region's overseas trade; the buttery Parisian br ioche with
egg replacing all the water in the original bread dough recipe, a symbol of the
opulence and luxury specific to the Parisian elite of the late 19th and early 20th
century; and the Proven�al pompe a l'huile, which conta i ns no eggs or butter

9
I'\ I ROIH ( f!O

. · ally poor region of Provence had to settle for olive oil


at all smce the h.istonc .
from usmg fl our to clean the oil. mill . s.
Legend even has 1·t the specialty arose
1 g • This oily dough
· d'n
. ter gnn became the I oca 1 "bnoc ' h 1· 5
· he, " wh1c
after the wm .
nal Christmas desserts eaten to . day. The pompe
st1.11 one of the th1'rteen traditio . ·
· the olive harvest an d 01 · 1 pro d uct1on, the need
a 1 'hU1-1e gives U S a gl ·
i mpse of
. ,
to 1et noth.mg g0 to waste , the poverty of the reg10n s people, but also their
.
. functio
determma · t.10n to maintain their dignity. For that was one of the main ns
• . .
of these enriched breads throughout all these reg10ns: provi ding pleasure and
fueling a proud fight against poverty.
The 20th century, however, brought an excess of food to Western countries,
leading to the seemingly permanent disappearance of �amine �nd the scourg� of
obesity. The traditionally positive image of recipes ennched with substances hke
fat and sugar has changed over recent decades. And rich French cuisine has been
influenced by Asian flavors, uses more vegetables and less fat, and has carved
out a new place in today's world by taking modern issues into account. Enriched
bread doughs no longer play the same role as in the early 20th century, but they
still make an appearance on Sundays and special occasions like Christmas and
Easter as a vestige of tradition in our modern world.
Finally, we should note that prior to the late 20th century, all bakery products
were fermented with natural leaven (or sourdough starter), which is a set of
microorganisms made up of yeast and bacteria.

Note: The purified yeast that is now used in nearly all bakery fermentations only became
widespread in the early 20th century. This is an absolutely key point. It is important to
understand that before the end of the 19th century, all bread dough, whether plain or
enriched, was fermented with leaven. The products had virtually nothing in common
with the ones we are familiar with today such as croissants and Parisian brioche.

These items, which we call viennoiseries, appeared with the use of yeast. In
a way, yeast brought them into being. So they are relatively modern products,
having only been around for just over a hundred years. We also need to bear in
mind that there are at least two very different types of products grouped under
the name "viennoiseries." Although they all arose from a tradition of enriching
bread dough, some have maintained their original natural leaven fermentation
through the ages while others were developed in the 20th century with the use
of yeast, without any real roots in the history of sourdough products.
A final point on this notion of tradition and modernity is that it is clear that
the type of products we have today-which depend greatly on the quality of
the flour used-has changed greatly over time. While the first traces of Itali n
panettone seem to appear in the Middle Ages, the product at that time
nothing like the one we make today since wheat has changed so much.

10
I I , I II

Thoroughly modern!
Thi book offers a resolutely modern take.
Steeped in an often-ancient past, all the viennoiseries featured in this book
are fermented with natural leaven. That is something unique. Some of these
viennoiseries, such as the iconic panettone, have always been fermented with
sourdough. That is what makes panettone so interesting. Other products, such
as the sourdough croissant, are thoroughly modern concoctions since leavened
puff pastry came about with the introduction of yeast in the late 19th century.
So giving the croissant a contemporary twist by fermenting it with leaven is
not a return to an ancient form but an interesting way of moving forward and
shaking up tradition!

.-
S are often made using the following process
OURDOUGH VIENNOISERIES
outlines.
Work begins with a starter management phase, which lasts at least one day
and produces the leaven. The next step is to mix the first dough in the evening
of the first day. For the simplest products, such as brioche, the dough is then
divided, shaped, and left to rise overnight before being baked the following
morning. In more elaborate recipes, like for panettone, this first dough is used
to seed a second dough on the morning of the second day. It is this second dough
that will be divided, shaped, and left to rise for 6 to 8 hours before baking.

SOURDOUGH VIENNOISERIE PRODUCTION CYCLE

L..______ __ Da_ y
_ l_ _______ ll._____ D_ay_2 _____.
Refresh the starter First dough
ONE DOUGH
� � �
refreshment refreshment refreshment

M / D / 5 -----� B
���

_____________
.___ Day 1 _ II Day 2
Refresh the starter First dough Second dough
TWO DOUGHS
���
refreshment refreshment refreshment

M � M � D/5 � B
1 2
�\}_/\_:_)

M:mix S: shape
0: divide B: bake

15
IE W O F S O URDOUGH STARTERS
AN OVERV
G TOGETHER
ST A N D BA CTERIA WORKIN
YEA

flour and water and populated with wild yeasts


A starter is a dough made from
ays lactic acid bacteria. It is used as a fer­
and bacteria, which are nearly alw
menting agent to seed other doughs.
not totally accurate-the yeast and
In "natural" starters-although the term is
in a targeted way by the baker.
bacteria are not introduced intentionally or
nce as a result of competition
They develop naturally, self-select and find a bala
ent in the environment.
and coop eration with strains which are naturally pres
ng characteristics.
This complex flora of yeasts and bacteria has several stro
another. It is
First of all, the populations are highly stable in relation to one
tions
difficult to desta bilize the composition of a starter if the ecological condi
of the fermenting agents are stable, i.e. mainly the dough temperature and
hydration as well as the food availability and pH range in which they develop.
Next-and this is one of the key points-the yeasts and bacteria each produce
different fermentations in the dough.

Dough is a great environment to live in


Sourdough, which is mainly a mixture of flour and water creates an environment
that �ulfils the ecological needs of bacteria and yeast;. The dough hydration
· and yeasts, both of w h'1ch
fh
level 1s perfectly suited to the development of bactena
feed 0� the 1. 1e sugars (maltose, glucose, fructose, etc ) which are plenti ful
. m the oug� · ese simple sugars come directly from th� flour and indirectly
from the breakdown of the starch.
Starch, which is the main comp on ent of. a ll fl ours, is made up of a strin� of
sugars connected in a chain so I ng that it cannot be used by the fermentmg
agents It is broken <lown b� amyfase (an enzyme that occurs naturally in flour)
when �ater is added ' formmg sh orter usable sugars. Th·1s process kno n as
starch hydrolysis ' is the key pro cess that
' produces 8hort-cha1n . sugars. Thes
short-chain sugars are the starting pom . t for a 1 l fermentations in ourdou h.
i\ OVI RVlfW or SOURT)OU(,11 .,., Aln ,�RS: YI.AS I I\NI} IIAC I I !{IA

STARCH HYDROLYSIS

STARCH
complex sugar which cannot be used
by the fermenting agents
• •

+ AMYLASE

Dd GLUCOSE

o--d
•: WATER

MALTOSE

0-0.
·oo

GLUCOSE

SIMPLE SUGARS
which can be used by
the fermenting agents

The three standard starter fermentations


Bacterial fermentations usually produce acids through lactic acid fermentation.
We distinguish between homofermentative and heterofermentative pathways.
The yeasts mainly produce alcohol through alcoholic fermentation. In addi­
tion to the description given below, more details on lactic acid fermentation are
provided in the technical information box on page 26.

17
rnr TllfURY

. , homofermentative pathway (also called the "EMP


m nt ati on
1. L actic acid �er � s, E mbden-Meyerhof-Pa. rnas) . .
its di sco ver er
pathway" .for . . out oxygen) fermentation, the bactena essentially
. .
(with
Durmg. this anaerob1c into lact ic acid , prod ucm g aromat ic residues
m th e su ga rs .
m t h e dough
transfor .
a by-pro du ct of th e reaction.
as

SUGARS � LACTIC A
CID + AROMATIC RESIDUES

by homofermentative bacteria and facultative hete-


Note: Th.IS pathway IS· only used are fermented usmg this
· e bacterI·a • Only sugars with 6 carbon atoms
rof ermentattv . . of v1e . . .
ly gluco se and fructo se). As the vast �a10�1ty �n01sene starter
pathway (main
n 1s not particularly relevant
bacteria are strictly heterofermentative, this fermentatio
to us and will not be described further in this book.

2. Lactic acid fermentation, heterofermentative pathway (also called the "6-PG/PK


pathway")
During this fermentation, which is also anaerobic, the bacteria transform the
sugars in the dough into lactic acid, acetic acid, and e thanol, producing a large
number of by-products such as aromatic residues but also small amounts of
gas (CO 2).

SUGARS => LACTIC ACID + ACETIC ACID + AROMATIC RESIDUES + ETHANOL + CO2

Note 1: This pathway is only used by heterofermentative bacteria (strict or facultative).


Sugars with five and six carbon atoms are fermented by this pathway (mainly glucose,
fructose and all pentoses).
Note 2: The production of acetic aci'd bY the 1 ·
act1c acid bacteria in the starter must
not be confused with acetic ferme n t ation ·
· activated bY acetobacter bacteria. The latter,
. .
wh'ich are used m vmegar production, are aerobic.

3. Alcoholic fermentation
While bacteria cause homolactic
and hetero lactic fermentatio
ponsible for a third type·• ale n, yeasts are res-
0 h o 1.1c f erm ent
transforme d into alcohol (etha . a t ·
100 , durm· g which the sugars are
. . no I) wit .
d 10x1de (CO2). h t h e co nco m1tant product1. 0n of car bon

SUGARS � ETHANOL + CQ2

18
When fermenting agent populations are active in the dough, a certain number
of visible or measurable phenomena occur.
Yeasts (a�d to a lesser ex�ent heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria) produce
CO2, makmg the dough rise as the expanding gas is trapped by the airtight
gluten network. The dough's increased volume thus indicates yeast activity.
_
At the same time, the a�cumulation of lactic and acetic acid in the dough,
_
which can be measured with a pH meter, indicates the fermentative activity of
the bacteria. The activity of a leaven's fermenting agents thus (nearly) always
results in the dough increasing in volume and acidity (lower pH).

Lactic acid bacteria produce exopolysaccharides (EPS)


Independently of their fermentative activity, in some conditions, lactic acid
bacteria can produce long-chain sugars called EPS, whose role is fundamental
to the quality of sourdough products.
EPS are produced by a bacterium "assembling" the simple sugars to produce
longer chains of sugars. This process is described as the bacterium synthesi­
zing the EPS from simple sugars, a process which could be understood as the
opposite of hydrolysis.
The EPS are distinguished by their type (the type of simple sugars assembled:
glucose, fructose, maltose, etc.), their length (according to the number of sugar
units bonded to one another, from a few to tens of thousands), and their location
inside or outside the cell. There are numerous different biological functions and
synthesis pathways for EPS, but the majority have biological resistance functions
in stress conditions (desiccation, unsuitable pH, osmotic stress, etc.).
The EPS that interest us in this book are dextrans composed solely of glucose.
They are secreted outside the bacterium, forming a protective "gel" around it.
Their synthesis is catalyzed by glucansucrase-type enzymes and always uses
sucrose as a substrate. Dextran production is a response to osmotic stress in
particular.
These points are fundamental, and they greatly influence sourdough vien-
noiserie recipes, which always contain large quantities of sugar. We now know
that the presence of dextrans in dough considerably improves the volume of the
finished product (by up to 30%), as well as its softness and shelf life. Control­
ling the conditions in which the starter's bacteria produce dextrans is therefore
extremely important when making sourdough viennoiseries.

19
!Hf IHH)R".t

. .
Refreshing or feeding the starter
An animal population left to grow without being fed will eventually starve
and die out.
In baking, the star ter is fed with flour and water, followed by a phase of grow in
the populations that comprise it (once it �as been tra1;1sformed into a leaven, thi!
process is known as "refreshment"). Dunng the feedmg or refreshment process
the volume of starter increases and its pH decreases. Each fermentin g agen;
which multiplies �u�ing. thi� phase splits or cleaves into t wo n:w fermenting
agents. This mult1phcat1on 1s therefore a form of perpetual reJuvenati on for
them, hence the term "refreshment."
It is important to perform the successive feedings or refreshments correctly;
otherwise the starter or leaven will contain ageing, inactive populations. When
a starter is fed by adding flour and water to an already activated strain which
has produced acidity through fermentation, the acidity is diluted in the "new"
environment. Feeding a starter always increases its pH, before it drops again
during the subsequent fermentative activity.

CHANGE IN pH LEVEL DURING REFRESHMENTS

Population
of fermenting
agents

l
refreshment 2

refreshment 1

......
\
\
\.
---- Time

pH
- - - - lf no refreshment 2

20
\ l\'lll\'lt OJ Ollll<Hl,H'il,l\lll'.-1:Yl,!tl l>HAC lkl

Acidification of starters and doughs


olum in rease and acidification occur in the leaven refreshment phases, a
th y do during the final fermentation of bread dough.
This is one of the fundamental points of sourdough bread making: the combi­
nation of the resulting acids and aromatic molecules improves the taste, shelf
life and digestibility of the product.
However-and this is very surprising indeed-anyone who has tasted a panet­
tone worthy of the name or a professionally made sourdough viennoiserie will
have noticed that there is no trace of acidity! How can a product made with
a sourdough starter have no acidity? As important as this question is, it is not
covered in any current publications.
It is this simple question that prompted the research that led to this book!
--------

ON THE NOTION OF ACIDITY

How do we measure the acidity of a dough?


Lactic acid bacteria produce acids during homolactic and heterolact
ic fermenta­
tion. The change in the quantities of these two acids in the dough tells us
about
the activity of the bacteria populations and of course influences the taste and
structure of the finished product.
An organic acid such as lactic acid or acetic acid is a large molecule with a
radical and a carboxyl function (Coo- H +). This unique part of the molecule
is made up of a carbon atom bonded to two oxygen atoms by a single and dual
bond respectively.

WHAT IS AN ACID?

8 -C

'------.......,.---) "--v,-)
TTA measurement pH measurement

The total acidity measurement is called TTA, which stands for Total Tit_ra-
. . .
· If and is a time-consummg
table Ac1d1ty. This concerns the act•d mo1 ecuIe 1tse
. . • is therefore usua IIY
measurement that 1s difficult to per form m a bak ery. Act· dity
.
measured with a pH meter, wh1c · much qmc
• h 1s · k er and simpler than TTn. ' A The
pH (potential of Hydrogen) measures the hYd rogen (H ) released by the act'd
+

23
)R\l\ltO '
tLJ{fH LR 1,H

. indirec t measurement of acidity


cid m 1 ec 1 e 1·tself. It is an
rather tha n the a
o u
ff .
ffect e d b th e bu ffer e ect . .
whi. ch 1. s a 14. The med ian valu e on this scale 1 s 7, which
c l r n Yges f o Oto
The pH s a e a
� � Values lower than 7 indicate acidity while values
corresponds to a � u �
r � �e basicity ( or alkalinity). A go od example of a highly
over 7 on the s�a e m ic�
cidi c pr od uct is l em on JU ice ' which has a pH value of 2, while caustic soda is
pH close to 13.
a
a very basic product with a

Acid dissociation
in water to become lactates and
L actic and acetic acids naturally dissociate
acetates, resp ectively.
+
lactic acid <=} lactate- + H +
lactic acid <=} acetate- + H
The state of dissociation is an important characteristic a s it modifies the pH
value and affects biological activities.
When the pH of bread or viennoiserie dough decreases, acetic acid dissociates
more quickly than lactic acid. The pKa of acetic acid i s 4. 76 while it is 3.9 for
lactic acid. (The pKa value can be understood a s the pH value at which the
acid is at equilibrium between its n ative and diss ociated form. In ou r case,
with a pH of 4.76 there are as many acetate molecules in the dough as acetic
acid molecules).
The acetate migrates very easily into the yeast cells and deactivates them.
Kazachstania candida humilis is, for example , not very sensitive to pH but is
highly sensitive to acetate. Any increase in acetic acid (decrease in fermentation
quotient) will have a significantly negative effect on alcoholic fermentation and
therefore the dough volume increase, pa rticularly at pH< pKa
.
Belo w pH< 4 • 76 the activity of Ka z achstania candida
humilis is therefore
significantly impaired.

PH and f�rmenting agent activity


Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis
has an optimal d�ve1opment pH of ar��nd 5.
Kazachstania candida humilis 1.. s .
no� v�r y sen s1t1ve to pH bu t is sens1t1ve to
ace tate. Below pH = 4 · 76
· the disso
s1gm·ficant, so that at around pH - ciation of acetic acid in acetate becomes
real competitive advantage over 4 · 5 Lactobactllus sanfranciscensis has a
yeast flora
When the pH is high the develo
m
sella, Streptococcus' E�terococc P ent of opportu nistic bacteria of the Weis-
us, Lactococcus, L
types is facilitated. euconostoc and Ped.zococCUS

24 ------------------
In panettone leaven, for warm refreshments at
· · · relatively high P H values, there
is an· sk of c�ntammation durmg the daytime phase (3 warm refreshments
with
the pH varymg between 5 and 4.2 for each).
There are two ways of preventing this type of contamin ation:
_ adequate seedi ng �equal proportion of starter and flour, 1/1) so fermentation
can start at a sufficiently low pH (5 or lower) and in an environ ment almo st
saturated with fermenti ng agents;
- a night-time purification stage enabli ng the TTA to be increased significantly
and the pH to decrease to around 3 .9 resulting in a decreased population whose
development was opportun istic at a high pH.

Fermentation quotient
The fermentation quotient (FQ) describes the relative proportion of lactic acid
and acetic acid in the dough. The formula used to compare the number of
molecules of each acid takes i nto account the molar mass of each acid (90 and
60 respectively for lactic and acetic acids).

lactic acid
(in g per kg of dough)/90
FQ=------­
acetic acid
(in g per kg of dough)/ 60

Lactic and acetic acids in fluence the taste of the final product in very different
ways. Lactic acid is present i n yoghurt a nd has a less harshly acidic taste than
acetic acid. Acetic acid is present i n vinegar and has a more powerful, sharper
taste which usually triggers salivation .
The standard FQ values i n baking range from 1 to 7. . . .
A low FQ i ndicates a strong prevalence of acetic acid while a hig� FQ mdt­
cates a high relative proportion of lactic acid. Products thus have a milder taSte
when the FQ is higher.

25
ATION -
rllRTHFR I 'FORM

NS AND EPS
ON FERMENTATIO

Details on the heterolactic fermentative pathway (or 6-PG/PK pathway)


Heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria prod uce xylul ose 5-P from glucose
or maltose. This step consumes energy (1 ATP) and requires the reduction of
2 NAD molecules. Note that it produces a CO2 molecule. This CO2 mole cule
is the lactic bacteria's only contribution to the dough rising.
The xylulose 5-P is then converted into acetyl-1-P and glyceraldehyde-3-P
and the glyceraldehyde-3-P is transformed into lactate in several steps. This
produces energy (2 ATP).
What happens to the acetyl-1-P is less certain. The most energy-efficient route
is the production of acetate (1 ATP) but the overall count is deficient in NAD.
Also, unless the NAD is regenerated via other mechanisms, fermentation will
be oriented towards the production of ethanol with regeneration of the two
NAD used at the beginning of the process.
This ethanol production does not enable fermenting agents to produce energy
(beyond NAD regeneration). Acetate production is therefore closely bonded to
the potential to regenerate the NADH into NAD.
The most frequent NAD regeneration mechanisms use the transformation of
fructose int� m�nnitol �nd the transformation of o2 dissolved in the dough into
.
H2 0. The aim 1s to ox1d1ze the NADH in NAD by reducing a third molecule:
fructose, or 02 in this case.

Fructose

NADH + W NADH + W

Mannitol

--- -- ---- - -- ------ 26 -------------


It could therefore be argued that the presence of fructose, on the one hand,
and the presence of oxygen, on the other, facilitate acetate production and
reduce the fermentation quotient by enabling NAD regeneration.
In addition to its influence on the taste of the products, acetate is very harmful
for yeast activity. It also has a strong negative influence on the structure of the
gluten networks since it decreases the pH quickly, thus activating proteases, an
enzyme that breaks down gluten.
Generally speaking, yeasts have the ability to hydrolyze long-chain sugars in
the environment and to break down the sucrose with invertase, with a corre­
lative production of fructose (sucrose=> glucose+ fructose).
The yeasts' action thus indirectly causes the production of acetic acid (acetate).
Acetic acid production is naturall reduced in cold temperatures or above
32 to 35 ° C as the yeasts are less active in these temperature ranges.
Note that, in general, strict heterofermentative lactic acid bacteria such as
Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis produce, via the heterolactic fermentative pathway,
an equimolar quantity of lactate and acetate or ethanol.

EPS (exopolysaccharide) production


EPS formed by the assembly of a single type of sugars are called homo­
polysaccharides (HoPS).
Generally speaking, we distinguish glucans, formed by assembling glucose
molecules, from fructans, which are formed by assembling fructose molecules.
Dextrans are a specific type of glucan. They have a strong affinity for water
and improve gas retention in the dough, thus improving the volume increase.
Their interactions with the components of the dough (starch, gluten) sharply
reduce the retrogradation of starch and are therefore extraordinarily effective
at keeping baked products from going stale.
Glucan and fructan synthesis is catalyzed by glucansucrase or fructansucrase
enzymes respectively. It always occurs from sucrose. This means that glucan­
sucrase and fructansucrase enzymes have the capacity to first hydrolyze the
sucrose into glucose + fructose before synthesizing the HoPS molecule. Note
that the glucose + fructose mixture is what we call "inverted sugar" in the
food industry. In addition to its higher sweetening power compared to sucro e
inverted sugar has a strong affinity for water, thus improving the softness and
shelf life of the finished product.

27
FOR�I -\TIO,
fLRTHFR l�

THWAY)
P K PAT HWAY (HETEROLACTIC PA
E 6-PG/
DETAILS OF TH

Maltose
Sucrose C12
C1 2


Glucose

l
Fructose c6

l
c6 Outside the bacterium

1nside the bacterium

Maltose
/ C 12
NADH
) Fructose Glucose Jc" "-....� Glucose 1-P
c6 -lATP C5
NAD CG
-lATP ergy}
/
�energy) �

Glucose 6-P
Mannitol Fructose 6-P
c6

)+
C5

2NAD C:
CO2
2NADH �
t

Xylulose 5-P
Cs

Acetyl-P

I 2NADH (
C2

I )
I NADH Fructose
2 NAD or if
)
NAO
--1,
Mannitol

Ethanol Acetate Lactate


+lATP +2ATP
(energy) (energy}

I
Note: All the sugars and resulting org

II
anic molecules are built on a carbonated base,
The nu mber of carbon atoms that
make up the described mol
For example, xylulose contains 5 ecule is indicated b . n.
carbon ato ms ( Cs), It w
fermentation to produce a 3-carbon ill be decompo d durmg
(C3) lactate and a 2-
carbon (C2) th no! or etat ·

28
O • I PP. 11 I A I It SA r> I I'

GLUCANSUCRASE CATALYSES THE FORMATION OF DEXTRAN FROM SUCROSE

Sucrose
00
00
00
Glucansucrase activity
hydrolysis of sucrose ( · hydrolysis of sucrose
· polymerization of glucose

0
0 o Glucose

Oo 0 -.__..?I
polymerization of glucose
)
000·
Fructose Dextran undergoing synthesis

Since fructose plays the role of electron acceptor in NAD regeneration (see details
of the "6-PG/PK pathway"), significant production of acetic acid can result from
the glucansucrase activity and therefore from the formation of EPS.
This is the case of Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis glucansucrase activity, for
example. The benefit to the volume increase caused by HoPS production tends
to be counteracted by the increase in the acetate level, which indirectly lowers
the pH and activates proteases.
One key point concerns Weisse/la-type bacteria, which do not transform
fructose into mannitol and are thus an exception to this rule. This means that
the production of dextrans by Weisse/la-type bacteria aids volume increase,
making these bacteria a key component of viennoiserie starter flora!

29
SOURDOUGH VIENNOISER
IES
BASIC INITIAL APPROA
CH

If we had to summarize the technical part of this book in one page, this is
what
we would say: the sta�ters used for viennoiseries behave normally during the
.
refreshment phas�s, with the bacteria and yeasts developing in a standard way.
But when producmg the final dough, which always has a high sugar content
(sugar is the cornerstone of sourdough viennoiserie recipes), the bacteria are
"deactivated" so they no longer produce acidity.
On the other hand, the yeasts that are naturally present in the starter and
leaven show a high level of activity. When they are provided with optimal tem­
perature conditions and long fermentation times (26 to 28 ° C for 12 to 36 hours),
the dough rises perfectly.
As the dough does not become acidic, long fermentation times can be used
with no fear of damaging the gluten networks which normally suffer from the
destructuring activity of proteases in an acidic environment during sourdough
fermentations.

In other words, making sourdough viennoiseries essentially consists in deacti­


vating the starter's bacteria through high sugar concentrations and leaving
the dough to ferment thanks to the starter's naturally occurring yeasts.

This rather simplistic approach works perfectly. The theory is expla�n�d on


page 49, where it is referred to as the "universal method." Not only 1s it the
basis of all the recipes in this book it makes it possible to achieve superb,
non-acidic, well-risen products usin; practically any starter. But it is hard to
understand why, if not to demonstrate that it can be done, we should go t� such
lengths to produce a yeast domma . · true that, if made without
• n ,. It 1s
nt fermentatio
· · . have no
· lar care or a sc1ent1fic approach, these sourdough vien no1senes
part1cu
pro ducts
real ben efit in terms of texture or shelf h'fe compared tO equivalent
fermented directly with commerci al yeast .

31
Jill !HIOH.Y

e . u s su b t let.1e s
detailed later in this book com. e into
th e u ro
This is whe re do not prod uce ac1.d.tty, agam play
n m
cten a a th o u g h they
play. We learn th at ba 'du
1 ion of dextrans in part1cu
ct . l ar.
ro u gh the p ro
a major role th

nique flora
. nn01. sen. e starters have u vien noiseries always have certain characte-
V1e
d ough
The st�rters used for sou r
they can be used to produce sourdough bread,
ristics m �on:i mon . Alth o gh
� -a star ter u sed to make bread is not ne cessarily
the opposite 1s not a1ways :1'ue.
suitable for making vien no1senes . rs used by Italian panettone
Genetic. stud.ies conducted on nume. rous starte . . .
t thel· bacter ial flora 1s massiv ely domin ated by L actobacillu s
bakers show tha r

san11,rancz·scensts· (more than 99% of bacteria. .present), wh 0· 1 hetri e t · yeast flora


are dominated by Kazachstania candida humtlts (93 to 99.9 ¼ of yeast present).
Some strains of Saccharomyces such as Saccharo myces bayanus may also be
present in these starters. Note that the prevalence of S�cchar?m�c�s cerevisiae
in some starters may indicate voluntary seeding, a practice which ts intellectually
dishonest for this type of product.
At first glan ce, it may seem that the composition of panettone starters could
be simplified to the following: Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis for the bacterial
flora and Kazachstania candida humilis for the yeas t flora. To do so, however,
would be a very unfortunate approximatio n. In fact, this dominant flora is
supplemented by over a hundred species of bacteria, which form a tiny mino
­
rity population since, taken together, they generally constitut
e less than 1% of
the star�er's b�c!eria. The same is true for yeasts, wit
h over a hundred species
present m addition to the d ominant flora, alth
oug h not all are fermentative.
Some of these minority bacteria are rem
. ark able and wi ll play a major role
m the rest of the process · These
. are the dextran producer s, particularly the
Wetss ella, Leuconostoc and Strepto
coccus genera.

Lea�ens which behave no


rmally
During the refreshment . .
phases ' viennoise ne leaven s behave like any other
leaven. In particular, the .
. success1ve refresh . . .
wh1ch can be measu ments inc
• rease 1n volume and actd1ty,
. red bY a decrease .
the pH 1s close to 5 (4 1n pH · At t he start
.8 <pH 5 l) b of each refreshment
3 to 4 hours at a tem f re dropping to betwee
n 4 .1 and 4.2 in
. perature:/26 t: � o
Durmg these differen C.
t O
agents rem ains relat refresh ments the population
ively un h n d balance of the fermenting
ns and Kazachs t:/ ge ·The high prevalence of Lactob illu
s anfran cisce is
ta candtda hu
milis can be observ
ed t e ch

32
SOllRDOUC,H Vlf '01<,f:Rll·<i: BA',I , I 11
IAI Al'l•l!()A ti

A dual revolution in the presence of sugar in the final dough


Althou�h the leavens �e�ave normally �uring the refreshment phas
_ es, unique
fermentmg agent actlvity IS observed durmg the fermentation of the final doug
hs
(first and possibly second dough) .
The first extrao�dinary fe�ture is the absence of acidification in the dough,
_
while the second IS the s1gmficant production of EPS, especially dextrans. It
is important to note that all sourdough viennoiserie doughs have a high sugar
content-usually betwee n 11 % and 13 % of the dough's weight (not including
additional ingredients such as candied fruit, raisins, or chocolate). Most of them
also have a high fat, egg, or egg yolk content.
At temperatures of 24 to 30 ° C, depending on the recipe, the fermentation
time of the first dough is around 12 to 16 hours, which is particularly long
compared with fermentations for a bread dough or starter with a similar seeding
and temperature. More surprising still than this slow fermentation is the absence
of acidification, which shows the fermentation inactivity of Lactobacillus
sanfranciscensis. The pH of the first dough usually decreases from 5.5 at the
end of mixing to 5.35 at the end of the rise 12 hours later. The second dough
shows an equivalent change, from around pH= 5.5 at the end of mixing to
pH= 5.35 when it is put in the oven 6 to 8 hours later.

Example of steps and timings involved in the production of sourdough viennoiseries


Preparation Fermentation
Day Time Step Ingredients time + time ro initial pH Final pH
500g starter
6a.m. Bagnetto + 3000gwater at 22° C 20 min + 0 min 28 ° ( 3.8-3.9 3.8-3.9

--- + 6g sugar -�- --


500g drained starter
+ 500g flour 15 min + 3h15 28° ( 4.8 4.15
6:30 a.m. }
st
refreshment (Rl)
+ 175gwater

1000g Rl starter 4.15


l0a.m. 2 refreshment (R2) + 1000g flour 15 min + 3h 15 28 °( 4.9
D + 500gwater

2000g R2 starter 5 4.15


1:30 p.m. + 2000g flour 15 min + 3h15 28 °(
3rd refreshment (R3)
+ 1000g water

300g R2 starter 5 3.8-3.9


1:45 p.m. Purification refreshment + 300g flour 15 min + 16h 18 ° (
+ 150g water
5. 5 5.35
4:30 p.m. according to the recipe 4 5 min 12-14h 25-26°(
First mixing +

5.5 5.35
D+l 4:30- 45-60 min + 6-Bh 26-28 °(
6:30 p.m. Second mixing according to the recipe

33
I 'I
I HI 'I 111 O

ITY
CTERIAL DENS
N RELATION To BA
H I
CHANGE IN P HASES
NG TH E DI FFERENT P
DURI

5.5

4.15

3.8-3.9 j
pH

that when
In addition to the near- absence of acidification, it can be shown
lation
there is a high sugar content, the Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis popu
ties.
decreases considerably in favor of bacterial strains which were initially minori
We are able to write about this exce ptional point here f or the first time thanks
to a quantitative a nd qu alitative de scription of the bacterial and yeast flora
prese nt in the doughs at differe nt stages of production-analyses that are based
on two compleme ntary experiments:
- DNA extractions, followed by their amplification and the analysis of D A 165:
- culturing to count the live yeasts and bacteria in the dough at the different
stages of production (see technical details p. 43).
The a� alys�s show that Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis stop multiplying,
become mactiv� a nd finally die in the first dough stage.
At t�e same time , so�e strains which are present in minute quantitie in tar­
ters with an overw�elmmg pre vale nce of Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis 99 0
(> .
of t�e total bacterial flora) b e ne fit from the resulting space to develop. Thi 1
. . · fla, streptococcus and Leuconostoc g n ra f
particularly true of the w;etsse
bactena, which are known for produci·ng dextran
s.
Th'is reveal_s the unexp ected and fundamen ul ti n
tal role that minorit
can play durmg the process.

34
Remember that Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis, which reigns supreme in the
different refreshments, is inhibited when large quantities of sugar are added.
This inhibition of Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis enables other minority
strains of bacteria, which were dominated by it, to take advantage of the
resulting vacuum and develop.
Despite their strong development, the total bacterial density remains low
compared to that of the leavens, which largely explains the low acidifica­
tion of the final viennoiserie doughs. We rely on these minority strains to
produce dextrans, which are key to the consistency and shelf life of the
finished products.

The twofold question of Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis inactivation and


dextran production should drive changes in the artisan production of sour­
dough viennoiseries and the associated theoretical models, which previously
lacked an objective basis. It should also improve our understanding of empirical
production data, which are currently abundantly documented but ultimately
not very informative.

Which bacteria produce dextrans?


We currently know of a small number of dextran-producing bacteria. Most of
them belong to the Leuconostoc, Weisselia and Streptococcus genera.
This is where the importance of a detailed analysis of the bacterial flora of
viennoiserie starters and detection of productive bacteria becomes clear. The
differences in flora observed from one starter to another could partially explain
the different practices of artisan bakers, particularly Italian bakers. Conversely,
these different practices could, over the long term, explain the development of
different minority strains from the same original starter.
These different practices and strains could also explain the variations in the
shelf life of the finished products observed among the various producers. Note
that these producers all pay special attention to the behavior of their starters
when they feed them. However, and this is a fun fact, although only Lactoba­
cillus sanfranciscensis is super-active, it is not this bacterium which actually
produces dextrans or gives the final dough its specific qualities.
It is crucial to understand that, contrary to all the studies conducted up to
now, it is much more relevant to analyze the final dough just before baking
to determine its bacterial composition than to analyze the starter or leaven at
any stage!
This is the only way of knowing which of the formerly minorit y populations
have developed. These are the strains which give the baked goods their specific
properties. While both of their starters are heavily dominated by Lactobacillus

35
·1 HF ntrOR\

.scensis EIDB's panettone is, for exa mple, particularly rich in Weis-
sa fra nc� any but has an overwhelmin
� ' ra ndin's does not contain
selta, while Mauro M g
o
to e Pa lm ae in th e fin al dough.
ma1·ority of Leuconos usi ng diff erent f
. .
ermentmg agents implies tailored
.
ti n
As .m cheese produc ff ' nt fim. s hed products. In add'1t1. 0n to dextran pr -
o
di ere o
practi. . ces and 1eads to bac
.
teria 1 stra m
.
s, wh .1ch w1·11 event
of minority ually be
ductton, the i. mportanee .
of the b ak e d pro d uct, mu st also
ional quahty be exa-
responsi'ble for the except h spec1 'fi c qua 1·
.
1t1es of v 1ennois. erie
.
.
mmed m . more depth · We understa nd th. at t e
of bactena wh i. ch, at the starter stage, represents
starters rest'de 1·n th'is minority
. '
less than 1% of the popu1 at1on.

Which conditions are favorable to dextran production?


The production of EPS in general and dextrans in particular is relatively well
documented today due to their use in the pharmaceutical industry, for eye drops
for example. The most thoroughly studied bacterium in this field is Leuconostoc
mesenteroides which is found in certain viennoiserie starters.
There are surprising parallels between dextran production by Leuconostoc
mesenteroides in a lab oratory setting and the empiricism that prevails in the
production of sourdough viennoiseries and panettone in bakeries!
Dextran production in a lab oratory requires a high sugar content of over 10%
in the culture media, with around 15 % being optimal. This production also
shows that the m ost effectively transformed sugar is sucrose and the tempera­
tures most favorable to dextran production are between 26 and 30 ° C. Finally,
pro�ucti�n is always slow, often taking 15 to 24 hours to become significant.
.
It is stn kmg to see how close traditional panettone production processes are
to these_ sta�dard practices in terms of technique. The slow rate of dextran
production is the key to understanding certain recip
es. Bacteria need time to
accumulate dextran_s in the final dough. The
more time they have, the more
they produce. That is why a sourdough
brioche, made with one dough which
has fermented for around 15 h ours, ·ts
. not as soft and does not keep as we11 as
a panettone made usm g two doug h s wh.1ch have fermented
por once, bakers, ms .
. 1st for o ver 20 hou rs.
ence on th e overa1 I length of the ' . a
marketing ploy •, 1ta1.1an artis pro cess isn t 1ust
· . an bak ers Of . ti. me-up
ten
to 30 hours m some cases-as a s·ign f qu . qu ote the fermentation
°
using not two but three doughs a1 1tr Pan ett_one production processes
. m� ke sen se m that light, as part of a quest to
increase the overall fermenta
t1on tim e and th e final
Of course it is clear that on 1 dextran concentration.
y the fermentation time
dough is important · The 1 eav . of the final wee. te·ned
en ref reshment tim
during which there is no de es before the final mt. ing,
xtran product· n ho
fermentation times. Rememb 10_ , s uld not be counted m
er that excessiv · the �e
e qu antities of ugar in hibi t th

36
SOI ,mo '·"VII·.: 'C,J I JI,'); l,A I(. I n IAJ Al'P ,A( f-1

a tivity of microorganisms! In fact, this is the process used to preserve products


lik candied fruit and jam, etc.
So if we want to produce a large quantity of dextrans, we cannot add an
excessive quantity of sugar to the first dough without inhibiting all biological
activity, which would stop the dough from rising and would not produce any
dextrans!
This is why the sugar must be added in several steps when making panettone.
Although the bacteria need to be in an osmotic stress situation to produce dex­
trans, the conditions must not be lethal to them.
More sugar can be added as the sugars are transformed into dextrans or fer­
mented, mainly by yeast. This several-step method (first and second doughs)
maintains a sugar content of around 10% to 15% in the dough, thus ensuring
Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis inhibition and dextran production by the bac­
teria concerned (mainly the Weissella, Streptococcus and Leuconostoc genera).
Finally, as the natural production of dextrans in the dough is a complex
art which is relatively difficult to master, for some time now there has been
interest in the industry in adding exogenous dextrans directly into the dough.
In October 2000, the European Commission Scientific Committee on Food
ruled that it was safe to use exogenous dextrans in bread products at levels of
less than 5% of the final composition. The addition of exogenous dextrans is
obviously not compatible with the spirit or purpose of this book.
RIN G T HE L EAVEN
PREPA
MENT CYCLE
THE REFRESH

rs, refreshing the leaven rejuvenates the yeast and


As is the case for all starte
them, and ensures their activity for the final
bacteria populations, multiplies
leaven, the process involves adding flo ur
phases of production. And like for any
wing it the necessary time to multiply
and water to an initial starter, then allo
y to pop ular belief, successive
in favorable temperature conditions. Contrar
ns of yeast and bacteria
refreshments only slightly change the relative proportio
time. This makes
but do significantly reduce the fermenting agent multiplication
the leaven quicker to work with (see INRA analysis, "Further information on
flora development through the different stages of production," p. 43).
Beyond these general aspects, the traditional Italian management of viennoi­
serie starters and leavens is relatively complex, alternating phases of activity
and rest (or purification).

Basic rules for getting started


1. St�rters are always made from strong white wheat flour (350 <W <400)
iCf. ,
Choose your flour carefully," p. 57).
. Starters �lways hav� a low level of hydration (45% <% hydration<50%)
3 . T he relative proportions of star ter
and fl our for refreshment are usually 1 to 1.
For example, 1 kg of starter 1 kg of fl our and 4 50
'. to 500 g of water.
4 . All the refreshments are mix ed f . . . .
. . or 5 to 7 minutes in a mixer with a hook or
m a mixer on the first settmg then the · ·
until a perfectly smooth doug' h i. s f or
mixture is usually laminated and foIded
m ed.

38
Three key steps: long refreshment, bagnetto (soak) and short refreshments

Creating a leaven that is ready for use is one of the trickiest parts of making
sourdough viennoiseries. It takes at least 10 hours and usually 48 to 72 hours
of fermentatio� and se_veral refresh�ents._ These refreshments will eventually
give the leaven its specific characteristics.
Although the mixing processes and proportions of flour, water and starter
are always virtually identical, there are two types of refreshment which precede
the working phases:

Long refreshment: the "rest," "purification,, or "storage/maintenance,, phase


This usually lasts 12 to 16 hours. The starter is stored at a temperature of around
l8 ° C, usually overnight. Once refreshed, it is kept tightly wrapped in cloth,
sometimes with an extra layer of plastic (the environment becomes completely
anaerobic). The lack of oxygen disrupts the development of yeasts, and the
relative proportion of yeasts compared with bacteria reaches a low point. The
yeasts represent around 4.5% of the total fermenting agents at the end of this
phase (compared with around 5.4% at the end of the first short refreshment
cycle). The temperature of 18 ° C still enables significant acid production and
a considerable concentration at the end of the phase. (The TTA is close to 7.5
and the pH between 3.7 and 3.9). Essentially, the role of this "high" acidity
will be to purify the starter of unwanted strains.

The bagnetto
After each long refreshment-usually in the morning-the starter is soaked in
sweetened water before the subsequent refreshments. This is called the bagnetto.
The bagnetto is performed after each long refreshment and before the first
short refreshment of the day. It enables some of the acidity which built up in the
dough overnight to be transferred into the bagnetto water, thus "deacidifying "
the starter. Excessive acidity would be detrimental to yeast development during
the first refreshment. (In technical terms, the TTA value drops by around half a
point during the bagnetto, without any measurable variation in the pH, which
is characteristic of the buffer effect at these pH values). The bagnetto also raises
the temperature of the starter quite quickly, from around 18 to 28 ° C (depending
on the recipe).
In practical terms, after the long refreshment, the starter first has its external
film reinoved, is cut into 1.5 cm-thick slices, and is then soaked in lukewarm
water (22 to 35° C depending on the recipe) and lightly sweetened (1 to 5 g of
sugar per liter depending on the recipe).
After between 5 and 30 minutes (depending on the recipe), the pieces of tarter
have some of the water squeezed out of them by hand and are then used in the

39
THI' TtlfOR'l

first short refreshment of the day, produ cing the initial leaven.
. Note thats·Ince
. .
the starter 1s. sl 1"ghtly rehu midified m this case, the proportio n of water us
ed
for the first refresh ment should � e reduce d to aro: nd 301/o
0
of the w eig ht f
o the
flour to mam • tai·n a fina l hyd rati on of aro und 501/ o.

Short refreshments (multiplication acceleration p hases)


These are usually carried out in the daytime, ��ery 3 to 4 hou rs, and left to rise
t 30 0 c in an open container in aerobic cond1t1ons. It has been shown that the
:elative yeast/bacteria proportions vary little during these refreshments.
On the other hand, and this is doubtless the fundamental expectation for t hese
refreshments, the growth rate of the fermenting agents (bacteria and yeasts)
increases. Between the first and third short refreshments, the bacteri a growth
rate is doubled and the yeast growth rate is multiplied by one and a half. The
overall population therefore has a high reproduction rate and a high level of
activity at the end of the three short refreshments.

Note: Long refreshments for long storage.


Like all starters, if they are not for use in production, starters for viennoiseries can
be stored in the fridge for long periods without being fed. In this case, we carry out
the same process as for a long refreshment but the vacuum-packed starter is kept in
the fridge at 5 ° C rather than l8 ° C. If the planned storage time is longer than a week,
double the proportion of flour used. The following starter/flour/water proportions are
used for feedings: 1 / 2 / 1.

The classic refreshment


The ready-to-use leaven is obtained at the end of the
three short refreshments
(3 refreshments lasting 3¾ hou rs in the diagram belo
w, i.e. 3 x 3¼h). The first
doughs for viennoiseries are always mixed at
the end of the day. This mixing
therefore takes place no less than 9½ to 10
hours after the bagnetto. This, of
course, makes t�e schedule for making
this type of product particularly long.
If the starter 1s used to produce a leav
en directly after a time spent in the
fridg�, you will need to allow at least 48
hours or 2 full refreshment cycles before
startmg to produce sourdough vienno
iseries, an d more usually 3 or 4 cycle s.
ON FLORA DEVELOPMENT
THROUGH THE DIFFERENT STAGES
OF PRODUCTION

For a more in-depth understanding of the biological phenomena at play during


the different stages of production, two complementary lab experiments are
described below.

Counting live yeast cells and bacteria


in the different stages of production
The principle of the experiment is relatively simple. At the end of each fermen­
tation stage, a few grams of dough are removed and diluted in a physiological
liquid. Different dilutions are obtained and spread onto culture media in Petri
dishes then placed in a sterilizer. The live fermenting agents in the dough develop
so that after a few days, the colony resulting from the development of a bacte­
rium or yeast cell becomes visible to the naked eye, enabling it to be counted.
If no colony can be seen in the Petri dish, the dilution is too high. If all the
colonies are touching each other, the dilution is not high enough. We usually
aim to count several dozen or hundred colonies in each dish. Once the dilu­
tion and quantity of liquid spread on the culture medium are known, we can
accurately determine the number of bacteria or yeast cells per gram of dough
when the sample is taken.
The analyses presented here were carried out at France's National Research
Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment, INRAE, in Montpellier under
the supervision of Delphine Sicard from 10 to 12 March 2020. The dough samples
were diluted in 9 times their weight of Tryptone salt before being homogenized
then diluted and spread using an easySpiral Dilute®.
Each Petri dish was seeded with 0.5 g of solution. Two types of culture media
were used to distinguish between bacteria and yeasts:

- MRS 5 medium in anaerobic conditions to study bacteria development;


- YPD medium in aerobic conditions to study yeast development.

The results are listed below.

------ 43
These results tell us about population development during refreshments
. But
the most extraordmary · findmg
• comes from the interpre tation of
the results
from final doughs (dough 1 and dough 2).
The yea�ts grow sig�ificantly in dough 1, with nearly 5 reproduction cycles
in the period and a h igh growth rate, close to one c ycle every two hours on
average. (We do not take the exponential then stationary development phases
into account here).
However, t�is repro�u�tion is practically halted in dough 2 due to the high
starting density (4.5 million yeast cells/g) and low nutritional re source content
(little flour in partic ular).
The results for the bac teria are, however, staggering. While the growth rate
was high during the short refreshments, bacteria development was zero in the
first dough. There were no live bac teria in the c ult ure during the counting
experiment.
This astounding re sult must be qualified with the following elements: the
MRS 5 culture me dium enable s us to study the development of lactobacillus in
general and Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis in partic ular in the leavens, but it is
not ne cessarily suitable for other bac teria to develop effe ctively in the leaven.
We therefore had to use the other analyses detailed below t o count the minority
bacteria.

DNA extraction and barcoding


The general principle of the analysis consists in extracting DNA from the samples
then purifying and growing it (PCR te chnique).
DNA 16S, which has very distinct sequence s, is then analyzed, enabling all
the spe cie s of bacteria and yeas ts in the sample to be determined as well as
their relative prop ortions.
The re sults obtained show the pre s ence of dozens of different yeasts but
the prevalence of Kazachstania Candida Humilis at all stages of production.
Bearing this point in mind, the analyse s below therefore only concentrate on
bacteria populations.
The analyses also show the pres enc e of hundreds of different bacteria and the
prevalence of Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis at all stages of starter and leaven
.
maintenance. They also highlight the extraordinary de crease in the Lac�obaal/us
sanfranciscensis population in dough 1 and dough 2 in favor of sp ecies of the
Weisse/la, Streptococcus and Leuconostoc genera initially present in the starters
but also of the Lactococcus genus, which was initially absent from the starter
and was introduced by the butter in the final dough (see below).
This analysis alone cannot be fully interpreted. The DNA extr� ction does
not sp ecify whether the DNA was taken from living or dead orgamsms. From
ON HORA Of VFI OPME 1 nmo (,fl I llf f)JFI I.Rf· 'T STA<,J <,
<JI Pk.OD C f

We obtained the following results.

Fermenting agent identification and counts via DNA 165 analysis

Refreshment 3 Dough 1 Dough 2

Final total in millions Number of Final total in millions Number of Final total in millions
96 reproduction cycles of bacteria/ g dough Respective 96 reproduction cycles of bacteria lg dough
of bacteria lg dough Respective Respective "

l
I
Lb sanfranciscensis
56,300,0 00
10,706
99.920%
0.019%
0
8.42
t 5,630,000
365,882
t 86.570%
5.626%
0
2.63
t 3,128,000
1,261,328
t 48.80%
19.68%

l'"""""'
Streptococus
12,396 0.022% t 7.90 295,320 4.541% 2.83 1,163,578 18.15%
Weissella
0 0% 4,331 0.067% 7.03 313,441 4.89%

I t = dead fermenting agents

Interpretation of results
During the refreshments, hundreds of minority bacteria cohabit with Lacto­
bacillus sanfranciscensis but constitute less than 1 % of the bacteria occurring
in the starter.
When doughs 1 and 2 are mixed, the Lactobacillus sanfranciscensis population
dies, leaving room for certain minority fermenting agents to develop, particu­
larly species of Weissella, Streptococcus, Leuconostoc and Lactococcus genera.
The density of live bacteria is very low at the end, on the order of 2 to 3 million
bacteria/g of dough, or 20 to 30 times less than in the starters. This makes it
easy to understand why the final doughs acidify so little. (The pH of the final
doughs usually changes from 5.4 at the end of dough 1 mixing to 5.2 when
dough 2 is put in the oven, after around 20 hours of fermentation at 28 ° C!)

47
Note:
al bakery methods and recipe ana-
I have never found tradition
centage or baker's percentages
lysis indicators like hydration per
sourdough viennoiserie
by flour weight really satisfactory for
just flour and
baking. As soon as recipes contain more than
water, these percentages become tricky to use. How should you
handle the eggs in a recipe, for example, when you are looking
for the dough's moisture content? Treating them as water is an
obvious mistake since they are not entirely made up of water.
To resolve those questions, I began to develop what I called the
universal method by breaking down each ingredient and going
back to the basics: solids and total water.
The method is simple and uses 3 familiar indicators which
have been slightly modified: a hydration percentage, a sugar
percentage, and a sugar concentration.
In order to avoid confusing these indicators with others, I have
added a small " u " for " umve
· rsal"-the name of the method' which
I believe is more ob·Jeer·1ve th an t
he methods we previously used.
I hope that you will fin d t
h'1s umversal method as useful as I do!
UNIVERSAL METHOD
EFFECTIVE MANAGEMENT OF SUGAR AND HYDRATION
IN THE FORMULATIONS

One of the fundamental points when making sourdough viennoiserie s is the high
proportion of sugar in the dough. We have already discussed how this sugar
inactivates the de velopment of major bacterial flora and therefore the production
of acidity and how the high proportion of sugar leads to the production of EPS
through the initially minority bacterial flora.
While the percentage of sugar in the dough, excluding extra ingredients is a
key aspe ct in formulations, it is insufficient for e ffective re cip e analysis. What
really counts is the sugar concentration, which require s looking at the dough
hydration at each stage.
When making viennoiseries, osmotic stress causes the inactivation of bacte ­
rial action. When this stress increases, it also leads to the inactivation of all
fermenting agents.

Concept of universal hydration percentage: %Hu ou Hu


The universal hydration percentage of the dough is a key aspe ct in formulations.
It is calculated based on the ingredients of the dough without the extra ingre ­
dients (dried fruit, candied fruit, chocolate, e tc.). This method, like all others,
contains some minor inaccuracies.
Hu is calculated as follows:
Hu= total water quantity /total w eight x100
(with total water quantity= total weight - total solids)
T he principle involves calculating the weight of the solids in the re cipe . aod
finding the total water quantity by subtracting these solids from the total weight.
Everything that is not solids is water!
For example, for the brioche re cip e on page 249:
Total weight of ingredients= 3455 g
Total weight of solids= 2288 g
Total amount of water= 3455-2288= 1167g
%Hu= 1167/3455x100= 33.8%

49
1111 llllllR\

. Often confusion between. the. dough .consistency an<l. hydration· L i·qUl.dS


There lS
softenmg its consistency, but theu specific h ·drafl n
can be added to the dough, . .
. F or exa mp le , but ter 1s m a semi-. 1·1qm"d state at 2soc . It t herefore soften
vanes. s
but onl y con tai ns aro un d 15 0
_1/ o water.
the dough . aw
1n the same way, despite
E and egg yolk soften the dough hole egg
er and egg y lk con taining onl 5 2 %.
con�!ining around 75% wat � �
Unlike bread doughs which only contain water, the consiste ncy of which is
n
directly linked to hydration, this connection is not intuitive for vien oiseries. To
obtain the real hydration of a viennoiserie dough, we must use the calculation
of the solids.

Cu value: clearly distinguish between sugar quantities and concentration


The sugars counted in the following calculations are the sugars in the recipe ,
mainly sucrose to which the solid component of honey is added if the recipe
calls for it.
Note that sucrose can be added as sugar or prepared form (citrus paste in
particular). However, sugars from extra ingredients are not counted (dried
fruit, candied fruit, chocolate, etc.). T his decision is based on the fact that the
migration of these sugars in the dough varies but is fairly minor. The sugar
contained in chocolate chips, for example, does not migrate into the dough
at all while that in candied or dried fruit may migrate in very small amount
We can define Su% or Su as the percentage of sugar in the dough excluding
the extra ingredients.
Su= total quantity of sugar/total weight x 100
In line with the notion of osmotic stress, the best indicator for sugar seem to
be the Cu concentration of sugar rather than the quantity of sugar in the recipe
where Cu= Su /Hu x 100
Where:
Cu is the total sug�r concentration excluding extra ingredients·
Su 1_ � the sugar 0Yo m the total dough excluding extr ingredients·
a
Hu is the total hydration %, also excluding
extra ingredients.
For ex�mple, for t�e panettone recipe on
_ page 233:
Total wei?ht of mgr dients excluding extr
� a ingr edients= 5 58-( 625 +625) = 450 g
Total weight of solids excluding extra ing
redients= 3 016 g
;otal amount of water excluding extra ingredients= 3 455-2288= 1492
¼Hu= 1492/4508 x 100= 33.1% g
ll. 'l\ fR L .\1f.TIIOO: f FFECTIVF• •MA 'AC '..
I· tr • • I 01 • < I Alt • ·r> IIYI>KA'll(J. ,. 1111 IOI
HI! Tl( j,

The majority of sourdough viennoiserie recipes follows the golden rule:


25<Cu<50.
More specifically, most of the recipes have values of between 30<Cu<40. For
these value ranges, the more the Cu increases, the more the fermentation speed
decreases (osmotic stress increases).
Conversely, the more the Cu decreases, the more the fermentation speed
increases (osmotic stress decreases).
Controlling C u is therefore a simple way of adjusting fermentation speeds.
When Cu is over 50, the yeasts and bacteria are often completely inactivated.
Osmotic stress is too high and fermentation stops.
Below 25, fermenting agents are not usually inactivated. The dough rises under
the effect of the yeasts but acidifies under the effect of the bacteria. Osmotic
stress is insufficient to inactivate the major bacteria.
For Cu values of between 25 and 50, we observe staggered inactivation where
the initially majority bacteria are inactivated while the yeasts ferment slowly but
continuously. This is, of course, the range we are interested in for sourdough
. . .
v1enno1senes.
Since the Cu value is calculated without the extra ingredients, it is important
to qualify it in some cases. For example, in cramique brioche recipes which
have very low Cu values of around 25, we need to bear in mind that raisins are
going to absorb much of the water or add (which is another way of saying it)
soluble sugars into the dough, making the actual Cu of the dough higher than
the stated value (closer to 26 than 25 in this case).
When candied fruit is added, some of the sugars it contains also dissolve in
the dough. This is not the case for chocolate chips, for example.
This point calls for a certain vigilance when reading Cu values depending on
the type of extra ingredients, if there are any.
BAKING

AND DEXTRIN PRODUCTIO

baking is to transform the dough


Like with all baked goods, the purpose of
processes come into play
into the finished product. The following two main
during this transformation:

- sta rch gelatiniz ation,


- coagulation of gluten (or proteins in general).

These two processes are standard and do not need to be described in detail here.
However, like in all baking, we expect a specific balance in terms of the drying
out of the product. If we are not looking for crispness or a crust, the product
needs to b e baked just to the right point to avoid dehydrating it. In the case of
panettone and brioche, this point is often around 93 C in the middle .
°

The process is more delicate for b aking large viennoiseries, which explains
why they are considered superior to smaller ones.
In the case of panettone, the standard 1 kg format is preferred to 500 g or
sm aller sizes, and l arge 2 kg, 5 kg, and 1 O kg formats are in turn considered
higher quality than 1 kg ones. The difference lies in the production of dextrins
during baking, which is linked to the size of the lumps of dough.
When the oven temperature rises to b etween 60 and 80 ° C, the starch granule
in the flour swell with w ater and lose their inner structure, releasing starch
molecules into the dough. These sta rch molecules form a gel in water; this is the
gelatiniz ation process. As long a s the y a re not destroyed by the heat, howeve�,
the amy!a �es remain active and can hydrolyze this starch. Th e res ult of �his
hydrolysis is the p�oduction of suga rs with varying chain lengths: polysacchandes
_
and dextrms. This phenomenon i s often refe rred to as starch attack. In bre d
making, when this phenomenon is too pronounced it leads to the destruction of
sta rch g I and the sinking of the product.
� _ In vienn�iseries, the high proporc"
of protems (high gluten content in flour and la rge quann y of egg ) al o d
• • . ·r
to s!arch g�latm i zat1 n and dough stabilizat
? ion through prot in c ula
durmg bakmg, meanmg that sinking caused b star
ch attack i not c

52
Much more than with bread, we can therefore seek to achieve significant starch
degradation with high production of dextrins and polysaccharides without a
risk of sinking. This point is expa nded below.
The high pH levels of viennoiserie doughs during baking (5.2<pH<5.5) make
alpha amylases very active. They degrade the starch molecules by releasing long
chains of sugars: various dextrins and polysaccharides with a high affinity for
water. By absorbing some of the free water, these dextrins, a bit like dextrans,
will actively contribute to the fresh mouthfeel, the softness of the crumb and
the shelf life of the baked product.
It is clear that when baking large items, the time between the start of gelati­
nization (± 60 ° C) and starch destruction (± 80 ° C), when the alpha-amylases are
active, is longer than for smaller items. Dextrin production is therefore higher
in large items and a sign of their quality. This point is linked to the techniques
used by some panettone bakers which, for the same reasons, involve baking the
panettone at a low temperature (ll0 ° C) at first, until the internal temperature
of the products reaches 75° C, then increasing the oven temperature to around
160 ° C to finish baking and give the panettone its usual color. This initial phase
of baking at a low temperature can increase the quantity of dextrins produced.

Note: Since the composition of wheat naturally has a low alpha-amylase level, many
sourdough viennoiserie recipes add malt, which is naturally rich in alpha-amylases.
These alpha-amylases are active during baking and produce dextrins during the gela­
tinization phase but also during dough fermentation. This results in the production of
simple sugars after beta-amylase action and accelerates fermentation.
As wheat is naturally rich in beta-amylase, adding malt accelerates the fermentation
speed, increasing dextrin production.
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Jänöjussi meni lähempää katsomaan, kurkistipa ikkunastakin.

Tuossa istui vanha mies pienen pöydän ääressä, kirja kädessään,


ja pöydällä oli kuusi ja sen oksilla tuikki muutamia kynttilöitä. Vanha
mies lauloi jouluvirttä hartaana ja lopetettuaan laski kirjansa hyllylle,
kopeloi jotain uunista ja toi sieltä vadin pöydälle, otti sitten
nurkkakaapista leipäpalan ja kastaen sitä vatiin, aloitti ateriansa.
Eipä ollut ukolla herkkuja, mutta kasvoista loisti suuri tyytyväisyys ja
aterioituaan korjasi hän ruuan tähteet ja aloitti taas uuden
jouluvirren.

Jänöjussi oli unohtunut ikkunasta katselemaan tupaan. Kun ukko


lopetti virtensä, sammutti hän kynttilät ja oikaisihe penkille
lepäämään.

Silloin vasta jänöjussi huomasi, että päivä vaikeni. Tilhiparvi


pyrähti pihlajaan, jossa punaiset tertut loistivat aamuhämärässä. Ka,
olipas ukko laittanut joululyhteenkin! Lintuparvi pyrähti jo siihenkin.

Jänöjussi oli unohtanut kokonaan surunsa, katsellessaan tuvan


ikkunasta. Iloisin mielin hän kääntyi äskeiselle polulleen ja verkkaan
laukkaili, silpaisten sieltä täältä jotain suuhunsa. Olikin mentävä
suoraa päätä laihohalmeeseen aamiaiselle, koskapa kaikki metsän
asukkaat näyttivät olevan aamiaispuuhissaan jouluaamun hiljaisessa
hämärässä.

Kissapataljoona sammakkokaartia vastaan.


Kissayhteiskunnassa oli ilmestynyt syvää tyytymättömyyttä siitä,
että sammakot herrastelivat heidän pyyntimaillaan. Kaikki hiirenpojat
joutuivat heidän uhrikseen. Päätettiin pitää asiasta kokous ja
kutsuttiin mirrit koolle erään niittyladon taakse.

Kutsua noudateltiin yleisesti. Valtava kissajoukko marssi


metsätietä kokouspaikalle ja sangen meluavasti keskusteltiin
asiasta, joka oli kohta tuleva kokouksessa esille.

Kun nähtävästi kaikki seutukunnan kissat olivat kokoontuneet


paikalle, aloitettiin kokous ja valittiin vanhin joukosta, Alitalon musta
Maija puheenjohtajaksi.

Kylläpä oli puhevuorojen pyytäjiä! Hännät pystyssä ja silmät sirrillä


pyydettiin puhevuoroja. Maija oli kiivennyt nurkkaa myöten ladon
katolle, jossa istui silmäillen mirriparvea. Jokainen heistä tahtoi
puhua yhteen ääneen. Maijan piti jo kiivastua.

— Ellette tuki suutanne, heitän päähänne kiven katolta.

Muristiin tyytymättömänä. Mikä tämä Maija luuli olevansa, kun niin


uhkaili. Mokomakin mustakylki! Joku jo ehdotti, että valittaisiin uusi
puheenjohtaja.

Selvittiin siitä vihdoinkin kokouksen pitoon ja yksimielinen päätös


tuli, että oli julistettava sota sammakoita vastaan. Johtajaksi valittiin
suuri, kirjava Mikko.

Retkelle oli lähdettävä jo seuraavana aamuna. Ja kun pitkä matka


olisi vaikea marssimalla mennä, päätettiin pyytää Mikkolan suurta
koiraa kyytimään käsikärryillä matkuetta. Aamulla jo varhain
päätettiin lähteä. Aseen sai itsekukin valita mieleisensä.
Tiesivätpä sammakotkin ajoissa tästä mirrien puuhasta ja päättivät
järjestäytyä hekin puolestaan. Ei tarvinnut edes kokousta pitää,
kaikki liittyivät vaaran suuruuden vuoksi sammakkokaartiin, jonka
päälliköksi valittiin rumin joukosta, oikein vanha rupisammakko.

Ja kun saatiin tietää sekin, että kissat aikoivat ajaa heitä vastaan
komeasti kärryillä, päättivät he ottaa auton, että näyttäisi
komeammalta.

Valmistettiin kaikki seuraavaa päivää varten. Johtajat, lähetit ja


vakoilijat. Ei puuttunut muuta kuin aseita. Mutta hyviä
mukulakiviähän oli maantien ojassa. Ne kyllä kelpasivat.

Tuli sitten seuraava päivä ja sotaliikkeet aloitettiin molemmin


puolin. Kissapataljoona lähti ensiksi liikkeelle. Ja kun matkalle
lähtijöitä karttui niin paljon, että kaikki eivät mahtuneet käsikärryille,
joita Mikkolan suuri Moppe veti, niin nuoremmat marssivat jalkaisin,
niinkuin sotamiehet ainakin. Aseeksi oli saanut mikä mitäkin, yksi
kapustan, toinen hierimen, kolmannella keikkui olalla puntari ja
neljäs heilutti luudanvartta, niin että aseistus oli täysin
mallikelpoinen.

Marssittiin eteenpäin ja odotettiin sammakkokaartin hyökkäystä.


Olihan selvää, että sammakot, jotka olivat niin häijyjä, ensiksi
hyökkäisivät, varsinkin kun olivat saaneet tiedon kissojen
liikekannalle panosta.

Ja siellähän sammakkokaarti jo tulikin mahtavasti ja eivätkö


pahukset ajaneet oikein autolla! Kissapataljoona nosti hurjan
sotahuudon ja hoputtivat Moppea eteenpäin. Mutta Moppe, joka oli
lähtenyt vain kyytimään, eikä tappelemaan, karisti valjaansa, jättäen
kissakuorman maantielle, samalla loikkien nauraen metsään.
Siinäkös äläkkä syntyi. Toiset huusivat sammakkokaartille, että
väistyä pois tieltä, toiset lähtivät Mopen jälkeen, kurittamaan petturia,
joka jätti heidät häpeällisesti keskelle tietä.

— Poistukaa tieltä ja meidän pyyntimailtamme! huusivat kissat


kohti kurkkua.

— Pois alta! Me tässä herroja ollaan, kiljuivat sammakot ja ajoivat


uhitellen autollaan muutamien mirrien varpaille.

Mirrit alkoivat hutkia aseillaan sammakoita kukkuroillaan olevaa


autoa, vaatien metsästysmaitten luovutusta heidän
yksinoikeudekseen.

Mutta hyvin järjestetyssä armeijassa on malttia ja reippautta.


Sammakkojohtajat perääntyivät ja vahvistivat hyökkäystä.
Kissapataljoona köyristi selkäänsä voiton huumeessa ja marssi
eteenpäin.

Mutta voi surkeutta! Nyt ne rupikonnat jo taas hyökkäsivät heittäen


kiviä tiheänä sateena kissojen pataljoonaan. Päitä ja silmiä puhkeili,
hierimet ja kauhat jäivät tielle ja yksi toisensa perästä alkoi pötkiä
karkuun. Kohta oli ratkaiseva voitto sammakoilla, jotka eivät kylliksi
osanneet riemuaan ilmaista.

Häpeissään, hännät alhaalla, päät ja käpälät kääreissä palasivat


mirrit sotaretkeltään. Tien vieressä taistelun kulkua seurannut Mikko
Repolainen virnisteli heille ja harakat nauroivat tien kahden puolen.
— Ylpeys käy aina lankeemuksen edellä, huusi vielä Repolainen
mirriparoille, jotka valitellen marssivat kotiinsa.
Koirien kirkko.

Kylän koirat, Moppe, Mikko ja Julle keskustelivat kerran


kirkkomatkasta, joka oli päätetty tehdä ensi sunnuntaina.

— Minusta olisi mukavampi istua venheen kokassa, kun toiset


soutavat. Nythän kuljetaan venheillä kirkoissa, kun ei ole moottoreita
eikä muitakaan vesikulkuneuvoja näin sota-aikana, puhui viisaasti
Moppe, pieni pihakoira.

— Niin minustakin, virkkoi Julle, iso villakoira. Satuin kerran


hevoskyydillä kirkkoon lähtemään ja ruumiini tuli ihan kipeäksi.
Ajoneuvoissa huojutti niin, että ihan pahaa teki. Parasta, että ensi
sunnuntaina lyöttäydymme venheen kokkaan, kun taloista kirkkoon
lähtevät, vai mitä sanoo Mikko?

Mikko, nulikkamainen jäniskoira murahti. — Samapa minulle on,


miten mennään. Omasta puolestani kyllä pidänkin enemmän
hevoskyydistä, varsinkin talvella. On niin mukava haukahdella
hevoselle, joka ottaa aina silloin tuiman ravin.

Näin oli tuumittu ja kerran tehty yritys kirkkoveneen kokkaan.


Mutta se oli ollut turha vaiva koiraparoiille, venemiehet olivat
potkaisseet heidät maalle ja ulisten jäivät nämä katselemaan
menijäin jälkeen.

Matka oli liian pitkä lähteä jalkasin taivaltamaan ja päätettiin jäädä


odottamaan talvea. Pianhan se tulikin ja silloin toverukset vartomaan
tilaisuutta kirkkoon päästäkseen.

— Ja silloin minä istun kuskille ja näytän, miten saan hevosen


laukkaamaan, uhkasi Mikko.
Tulipa sitten tilaisuus. Moppe oli kuullut eräänä päivänä tuvassa
sanottavan, että renkipojan on mentävä kirkolle. Silloin Moppe
juoksuttamaan sanaa toisille, että lähtökuntoon valmistautuvat. Ja
kun poika ajoi raudikolla, niin yks' kaks' hyppäsivät koirat tienvierestä
rekeen ja Mikko asettui kuskille. Poika nauroi eikä kehdannut ajaa
koiria pois reestään. Olihan lämpimämpi koirien kupeessa kovalla
pakkasella.

Ja niin sitä mentiin kirkonkylään. Moppe haukahteli ahkeraan


kuskilla ja ruuna ravasi niin että tierat paukkuivat. Mikko ja Jullekin jo
ihastuksesta haukahtelivat ja poika nauroi. Luminen metsä tien
kahden puolen vain vilahteli kun reki tulista vauhtia luisti eteenpäin.

Päästiin kirkonkylään ja kun oli sunnuntai, kirkkokin oli tulijoille


avoinna. Koirat menivät kirkkoon ja kiertelivät ihmeissään katsellen
joka paikkaa. Olipa soma talo, kun penkkejäkin oli permanto täynnä.
Ja sitten semmoiset soittovehkeet! Ihan selkäpiitä karmi niitä
kuunnellessa.

Mutta suntio huomasi koirat ja suurella kuhmurakepillään ajoi


heidät ulos kirkosta. Ei auttanut sekään, että Julle uhkaavasti murisi
ja Mikko haukahteli. Julle sai vielä suntiolta kengän korolla iskun
takapäähänsä kirkon ovella.

— Samapa se, tuumivat toverukset. Onhan tämä komeus nyt


nähtynä. Parasta, kun tehdään oma kirkko sinne kotimökille, niin ei
tarvitse kenenkään siellä meitä pois ajella.

— Niin tehdäänkin ja tulkoonpas sinne suntio, niin näytetään sille,


murisi Julle.
Matka tosin oli näin talvella hauskaa kirkolle, mutta kun ei aina
onnistuisi hevoskyytiäkään saamaan, niin parasta oli ryhtyä
rakennustyöhön heti.

Mentiin taas samaa kyytiä kuin aamullakin ja päivällisen syötyä


pääteltiin käydä kylän koirien kanssa keskustelemassa asiasta.

Pidettiin kokous, jossa Julle toimi puheenjohtajana.

— Suntioiden ilkeys on teille kaikille tunnettu ja se kuuluu olevan


joka paikassa samanlaista, niin minä ehdotan, että rakennetaan oma
kirkko ja käydään heti käsiksi rakennustyöhön.

Haukahdettiin ja muristiin tyytyväisyydestä. Julle oli sitten mainio!


Osasi puhua kuin mies ja saada innostumaan. Heti vain työhön
käsiksi.

— Ja mitä käytetään rakennus aineena? kysyi Julle nuoleksien


tyytyväisenä partaansa. Kiitos oli hänelle kuin makea herkkupala.

— Jaa, miten sen rakennusaineen kanssa, aprikoivat toiset,


heilutellen mietteissään häntäänsä.

— Ehdottaisin tehtäväksi lumesta, haukahti Julle, kannatetaanko?

Ihan ulistiin ilosta. Se tuo Julle oli sitten nerokas keksimään!


Lumesta tietysti! Ei olisi puutetta rakennusaineesta.

Seuraavana päivänä koottiin kaikki kylän koirat ja kun sattui vielä


suvi sää, oli mainio aloittaa rakennustyö. Hyvin se sujuikin, ja kun
piskit olivat muutaman viikon puuhailleet, niin jopa eräänä päivänä
vietettiin harjaorren nostajaiset. Julle puhui hyvästä sovusta, joka oli
vallinnut rakennustyössä ja toivotti kirkolle pitkää ikää.
Ja seuraava päivänä saatiin katto valmiiksi, eikä puuttunut enää
muuta kuin risti vain kiinnitettäisiin harjalle.

— Minä vanhimpana joukosta pyytäisin sen työn osakseni, pyysi


Julle. Samalla saan sieltä yläilmoilta lausua läsnä olijoille jonkun
mieleenpainuvan sanan.

Julle kiipesi kirkon harjalle risti kainalossaan. Mutta katto oli


rakennettu hutiloimalla ja Julle muksahti sieltä katon mukana alas.
Satuttipa vielä pahasti kuononsa ja koipensa.

— Minä jo varoitin teitä, rakkaat seurakuntalaiset, huonosta työstä,


ulisi Julle. Näin tässä kävi. Käpälä on poikki ja kuono kaikki
kappaleina. Vieköön nyt ristin harjalle kuka vain uskaltaa.

Neuvoteltiin asiasta ja jätettiin katon korjaus toiseen kertaan.


Kellään ei ollut halua lähteä sinne putoamaan.

Tulipa sitten keväiset lämpimät ilmat. Seuraavana sunnuntaina


päättivät koirat lähteä toimittamaan kirkkonsa juhlalliset vihkiäiset.

Mentiin paikalle, mutta voi ilkeys! kirkosta ei ollut muuta jälellä kuin
pahainen hyhmätönkkö ja sekin romahti näkymättömiin ja suli
auringon paisteessa vedeksi.

— Tämäpä oli nyt sangen surullinen juttu, muristiin yleisesti. —


Kuka se neuvoi semmoisen rakennusaineen?

— Tuo Jullehan se oli niin viisas, haukahti Mikko.

Julle lähti häntä koipien välissä jurppimaan pois paikalta, toisten


jäädessä surullisina tuijottamaan kirkkonsa raunioita, vesilammikkoa
ja hyhmäriekaleita sammalmättäiden keskellä.
Kruunajaiset metsässä.

Pikku Pentti kiipesi äidin polvelle.

— Kuulehan äiti, miksi karhua sanotaan metsän kuninkaaksi?


kysyi hän.

— Siksi, kun se on mahtavin ja väkevin kaikista metsän


asukkaista.

— Onko sitten kuningas aina väkevin kaikista?

— On tämä metsän kuningas.

— Onko karhu sitten oikein kruunattu kuninkaaksi?

— Onpa kyllä. Tahtoisit varmaankin, että kertoisin siitä.

— Kerro sitten, mutta oikein hauskasti.

— Jos vain osaan. No, kuule nyt sitten.

Eräänä syksyisenä päivänä kiistelivät kettu, susi ja ilves, kuka olisi


heistä voimakkain. Päätettiin koettaa. Susihan siinä voitolle jäi
voimassa, mutta ilves sukkeluudessa. Tuli koppelo kokoukseen,
lentää kohautti hongan oksalle ja uteli, mistä on kysymys. Sanottiin
kiistainen asia koppelolle. Susi kehaisi koetuksessa voitolle
päässeensä ja virkkoi viimeiseksi:

— Minä olen voimakkain metsässä.

— Hah, hah, nauroi koppelo, kylläpä vähän tiedät. On se vielä


yksi, joka on sinua voimakkaampikin. Kämmenellään se sinut
rutistaa.

— Kuka se on? kysäisi susi hieman nolona.

— No karhupa tietenkin.

— Vähänpäs kyllä, väitteli susi. Tulkoon koettamaan. Olkoon sitten


kuningas metsässä, jos voimakkaammaksi jää.

Kutsuttiin karhu voimain koetukseen.

Valittiin tervaskanto, joka piti nostaa ylös maasta.

Susi kävi ensiksi koettamaan. Hukka parka reutoi ja tempaili niin,


että hiki tippui otsalta. Ärähteli ja suuttui voimattomuuteensa, karjasi
karhulle:

— Ei se nouse sinultakaan!

Karhu kävi vuorostaan koettamaan. Sylkäsi kouriinsa ja iski ne


kantoon.
Jopa kanto rusahteli arveluttavasta. Tarttui uudelleen ja karjasi.
Silloinpa kanto keikahti kumoon ja kontio voitonriemusta hihkasi, niin
että metsä kajahti.

Voimain koetusta oli koko, metsän väki hirvestä hiirenpoikaan asti


katsomassa. Osoitettiin karhulle suurta suosiota.

— Kontio on voimissa väkevin. Susi saa hävetä.

— Kontio kuninkaaksi!

— Suostuuko kontio meidän kuninkaaksemme? kysyivät kurki ja


koppelo, niiaten ja kumartaen mesikouran edessä.
— Kun minä vain osaisin, mörähti karhu. Kyllähän minä koettaisin
jokaista suojella ja auttaa taitoni ja kykyni mukaan.

Tapahtui kuninkaan vaali, ja kontio huudettiin kuninkaaksi.

— Nyt ei sitten muuta kuin kruunajaisvalmistuksiin, kotkotti


koppelo kannon nenässä. Kuka valitaan juhlan valmistajaksi ja
juhlamenojen ohjaajaksi?

— Koppelo ohjaamaan juhlan valmistusta ja Mikko Repolainen


juhlamenojen ohjaajaksi!

Kaikki olivat yksimielisiä ja puheenvuoroja ei tarvinnut käyttää.

— Käydäänpä sitten valmistuksiin käsiksi ja kaikki minua


auttamaan, komensi koppelo. Ylihuomenna on adventtijuhla, se sopii
mielestäni kruunajaispäiväksi. Työhön joka kynsi!

Valikoitiin kaunein paikka korvessa valtaistuin saliksi. Ympärillä oli


kaunista kuusikkoa ja hongikko oli seininä joka puolella. Juhlasalin
keskeltä kohosi valtava mätäs, jonka nenässä törrötti tasapäinen
tervaskanto. Oltiin taaskin yksimielisiä, ettei parempaa paikkaa
juhlasaliksi voisi löytää.

— Ja nyt koristamaan valtaistuinta, komensi koppelo. Sammalta,


kauneimpaa mitä löytyy, kantamaan joka-ainoa. Hukka saa
toverineen taitella kuusen oksia ja tuoda paikalle. Me Repolaisen
kanssa niitä järjestämme mielemme mukaan.

Työ alkoi ja hyvin se sujuikin. Olipa siinä elämää. Teeret,


metsäkanat ja muut linnut repivät sammalta ja kantoivat kannon
juurelle, jossa oli toinen työväki, Repolainen eukkoineen ja poikineen
ja pari kurkea puuhaamassa. Koppelo kääntelehtihe kannon
nenässä ja neuvoi, miten työ oli suoritettava. Susi tovereineen kantoi
kuusen oksia paikalle ja hän murisi tyytymättömänä. Hän oli ollut
kokonaan eri mieltä kuninkaan vaaleissa, ja näin jouduttuaan
häviölle, päätti hän mielessään tehdä kepposet uudelle kuninkaalle.

Oli vain yksi päivä kruunajaisiin ja työtä tehtiin kuumeisella


kiireellä. Hirvi lähetettiin pyytämään Tapiota, juhlapäiväksi
koristamaan juhlasalin lumikoristeilla. Oravat kantoivat naavoja, joilla
valtaistuin oli päätetty verhota. Jänöjussit tepastelivat tietä laitellen,
jota myöten hallitsijan oli määrä saapua paikalle. Olipa siinä iloista
touhua. Kontio hyvillä mielin salaa katseli ja susi poikineen kadehti.

Seuraavan päivän iltana oli kaikki valmiina, katseltiin ja ihasteltiin


valtaistuimen suuremmoisuutta. Sammalista ja havuista oli kaikki
valmistettu koppelon taitavalla johdolla. Poistuttiin juhlapaikalta,
luvaten aamulla jo aikaisin saapua nallea odottamaan.

Mutta hukka mietti jutkua itsekseen. Oli siitä jo puhunut


tovereilleenkin ja saanut heidän suostumuksensa ja kannatuksensa.
Oli huomattu, että kanto, jolle valtaistuin perustettiin, oli laho ja
muutenkin huojuvalla perustalla. Kun vähän kaivettaisiin vain maata
sen alta, olisi hyvä pyydys siinä valmiina kontiolle. Nurin niskoin siitä
kellahtaisi siihen noustuaan.

Yön tultua ryhdyttiin tuumaa toteuttamaan ja kaivettiin kannon alta


maata pois ja asetettiin kanto lahojen pönkkien varaan. Sitten
laitettiin kaikki taas jälleen paikalleen.

— Saa siitä tuleva kuningas aikamoisen pyöräyksen, naureksi yksi


ilkeän työn tekijöistä.

— Hyvä, ettei selkäänsä katkaise, arveli toinen.


Poistuttiin ilvehtien ja odotettiin aamua.

Mutta taivaalta alkoi tipahdella suuria lumihiuteita ja yön tullen tuli


pyry. Aamupuolella lakkasi lumen tulo ja Tapio, jolta oli viimeistä
kaunistelua pyydetty, siirteli taivaan verhoja, että tähdet pääsivät
tuikkimaan. Pakkasukkoa pyyteli vielä Tapio avukseen ja kohta
paukahteli metsässä hänen kuhmurainen keppinsä, kun hän
rakenteli huurrevaippoja puihin ja kuningasistuimen ympärille.

Ja kun tuli aamu ja aurinko nousi, kimalteli juhlasali ja koko metsä


komeimmissa timanteissaan. Metsänväki ryhmittyi valtaistuimen
ympärille odottamaan mesikämmentä.

Hetken kuluttua tulikin kurki eellimäisenä ja hänen perässään


kontio tallustellen hitain ja arvonsa mukaisin askelin paikalle. Kurki
otti juhlallisimman ilmeensä ja kumarteli kontiolle.

— Herra kuningas, suvaitkaa nousta valtaistuimellenne, koko


metsä palvelee nöyränä alamaisena teitä.

Karhu kiitti kunniasta ja luottamuksesta, jota hänelle oli osoitettu ja


alkoi kavuta kannon nenään. Mutta hukka tovereineen naureksi
salaa kouraansa ja jännityksellä odotti, miten nallelle kävisi.

Kontio pääsi kannon nenään, joka alkoi jo arveluttavasti raskaan


painon alla huojua. Koppelo laski kanervanvarsista ja jäähileistä
tehdyn kruunun hänen päähänsä ja aikoi ruveta puhetta pitämään,
mutta silloinpa istuin petti ja nalle kellahti korkealta alas mättään
juurelle suurella ryskinällä.

Hukka päästi tovereineen iloisen naurun, mutta toiset kävivät


sanattomiksi hämmästyksestä.
Nalle oli satuttanut selkänsä kiveen ja hirveästi ärjyen kömpi hän
jaloilleen, karjasi vielä niin, että siivekkäät koholle hypähtelivät ja
kävi kourin käsiksi valtaistuimeensa ja hajoitti sen perustuksiaan
myöten.

Mikko Repolainen oli salaa seurannut hukan työtä ja suhahti nyt


koppelon korvaan tapahtuneesta petoksesta. Koppelo otti nyt
puhevuoron ja kiirehtien karhulta pyytämään anteeksi, ilmaisi
yleisölle hukan salajuonet. Samalla pyysi hän, että nalle olisi heidän
kuninkaansa kaikesta huolimatta.

Hukka käskettiin koko sukunsa kanssa poistumaan ja kun tämä oli


muristen vaatimuksen täyttänyt, voitiin jälleen ryhtyä juhlaa
jatkamaan.

Iltapäivällä, kun istuttiin yhteisellä juhla-aterialla, suli nallen mieli jo


täydellisesti, kun hänelle tarjottiin makea vasikkapaisti marjojen
kanssa.

Ja siitä lähtien on nalle ollut metsän kuningas eikä hänen


valtaansa käy enää kukaan riistämään.

Nallen jouluyö.

Nalle oli joulun edellisenä päivänä kääntänyt kylkeään ja


nukahtanut uudelleen. Mutta seuraavana yönä oli pakkanen
paukutellut niin korvia särkevästi, että nalle oli herännyt ja
haukotellut pitkään ja sitten ärjähtäen ponnahtanut pesästään ulos.
Olihan se tosin vastoin tavallisuutta, että hän unensa katkaisi
keskellä talvea, vaan olipa tässä vielä aikaa maatakin, jos hieman
pistäytyisi töllistelemään, mitä nyt metsässä oikein puuhattiin,
koskapa pakkasukkokin niin mahtavasti moukaroi.

Nalle istui takasillaan ja haisteli ilmaa, kylläpä oli tiukka pakkanen!


Ihan nenänpäähän otti. Kas, miten metsäkin oli vahvassa huurteessa
ja luntakin näytti olevan kovin vahvasti. Eikös kuukin näyttänyt
naamaansa metsän takaa. Olipa laihtunut. Ei ollut kuin puolikas
naamasta jälellä.

Mitähän, jos tekisi pienen kierroksen metsässä. Hyväksi se kai


olisi, kun jäsenetkin tahtovat jäykistyä. Ja olipa korea kuunvalokin
metsään vetämässä.

Nalle vihelsi kämmeniinsä, joita pakkanen oli hieman puraissut, ja


lähti sitten löntystelemään. Ääh, miten jäykäksi ne takaset taas olivat
tulleetkin! Ja kylläpä hankikin upotti. Taitaisi olla parasta, jos kääntysi
pesäänsä takaisin.

Nalle oli löytänyt metsätien ja tarkasteli sitä. Ähäh, sepäs kannatti.


Pitääpä katsoa, minne se menee.

Nalle löntysteli ja raapaisi mennessään pihkaa puun kupeesta


suuhunsa. Vihoiteli ja ärähteli, kun huurretta sattui niskaan
karisemaan puitten oksilta.

Ka, mikäs sieltä nyt tuli kelkkansa kanssa? Ihminen taisi olla, mikä
lienee partaniekka. Heh, eiköhän liene ihan vanha joulu-ukko
liikkeellä. Olipas vain!

— Hyvää iltaa, ukko! Mihin sinä taas tuon kelkkasi kanssa


taivallat? kyseli nalle, lyöden olalle vanhaa joulu-ukkoa
kämmenellään, niin että tämä oli hankeen tuiskahtaa.

— Sitäpä vanhaa tointani hoitelen. Pitäisi vain jouduttaa kilteille


pojille ja tytöille näitä tavaroitani. Mutta mitä vanha veli nyt aikoo, kun
on pesästään noussut. Varmaankin jonnekin joulunviettoon?

— Onko nyt sitten joulu? kysyi nalle ihmeissään.

— Sitä se on, kun aina makaa, ei tiedä joulustakaan mitään. Aatto-


ilta on toki parhaillaan. Pitäisi tässä näitä viimeisiä tavaroitani joutua
jakelemaan. Hauskaa joulua vain sinulle!

Joulu-ukko lähti kelkkoineen eteenpäin ja nalle jäi siihen


ihmettelemään. Vai oli nyt joulu, sepä mukavata! Pitääpä katsoa,
vieläkö metsässä vietetään joulua niinkuin ennenkin.

Nalle tassutteli ja puhalteli kouriinsa Kovinpa se pakkanen nyt


tungetteli. Ihan huurteeseen veti naamankin. Kas, eikös olekin
metsän väki liikkeessä. Tuosta on Repolainen loikkinut joulupaistin
hakuun ja metsäkanat kuppelehtivat tuolla niityllä.

Nalle vihelsi ja riekot vastasivat: — Väkkärä, kärä, kää, pakkanen


on.
Teeriparvi kotkotti ja karisteli lunta koivusta hänen hartioilleen. —
Malttakaahan, ärähti nalle, jospa pääsen sinne puuhun, niin…

— Jäykätpä ovat takasesi, ilvehtivät koppelot. Tassuta vain siellä


maassa.

Nalle tunsi tulevansa juhlatuulelle. Olikin virkistävää lähteä kerran


talvessa jaloittelemaan, varsinkin näin jouluyönä. Kah, jänöjusseja,
mitä iloaan pitävät! Kylläpä niillä on hauskaa.
Puputit, huomattuaan nallen, tulivat ja ympäröivät hänet piiriin
keskelleen, ja sitten aloitettiin joululaulu.

Hei, hei, nalle kulta, nyt on joulu, metsänväeltä jo loppui


touhu, kilvan käymme kaikki karkeloon. Kopsis, tupsis,
metsän vanha ukko, laita pesäs päälle lumilukko, hei, hei,
kaikki joutaa karkeloon.

— Menettekö siitä! tuhahti nalle ja hotaisi jussukoita


kämmenellään, mutta nämä vain jatkoivat piiriään ja teeret ja metsot
karistelivat lunta lisää hänen hartioilleen. Eivätkös pienet lumilinnan
tontutkin kuulleet, että nalle on lähtenyt liikkeelle. Lumisten näreitten
alta alkoi kiilua iloisia silmiä ja nauravia suita ja kohta tontut
lehahtivat jänöjussien kanssa samaan piiriin. Ja nytkös laulettiin niin
että metsä kaikui. Nalle hörähteli, mutta ei osannut suuttua, vaikka
pikkutontut jo nykivät häntä turkistakin.

Ja koko metsänväki tuli leikkiä katsomaan. Hukka kiipesi isolle


kivelle ja Repolainen tovereineen nousi ladon katolle näytelmää
kallella päin seuraamaan.

— Mitäs nyt keksitte, mörähti nalle hyväntuulisesti, kun laulu oli


loppunut.

— Nyt lähdemme saattamaan mesikämmentä pesälleen, sanoivat


jänöjussit. Ja kun nalle katsoi parhaaksi tämän iltakävelyn lopettaa ja
kääntyi pesälleen, lähtivät ensin jänöjussit, sitten tontut ja näiden
perään koko metsänväki. Olipa komea saattue nallella.

— Mutta ettekö pahanilkiset tarjoa mitään syötävää minulle? ärähti


nalle, olisipa nyt vasikanpaistia ja puolukoita!
— Niitä herkkuja emme sulle saa, mutta muuta hyvää tuomme,
kun istut vain odottamaan.

Nalle istui tien viereen ja mietti mitä hänelle tarjottaisiin. Jokohan


toisivat ihan jouluherkkuja.

Kylläpä metsässä kävi rapina, kun irroitettiin pihkoja puista. Ja


kohta tontut kantoivat sylin täydeltä pihkaa ja sulloivat sitä nallen
suuhun.

Nalle maisteli. Mitä? Pihkaahan se oli, pätö herkkua, ja vielä


jouluyönä. Eipä kestinkiä kehdannut kehua. Parasta, kun lähtee
untaan jatkamaan.

Ja nalle lähti löntystelemään hieman tyytymättömänä muristen,


kun juhlakestitys oli ollut niin keskinkertaista laatua. Ja metsänväki
seurasi kulkueena pesälle saakka, jossa vielä molemmin puolin
toivoteltiin rauhan joulua metsänväelle ja nallelle hyvää unenjatkoa.

Pappilan hiirien joulu.

Vanhassa pappilassa oli joulun edellisenä päivänä pantu kaikki


mullin mallin. Vanha Riitta oli oikein suursiivoustuulella, niinkuin aina
ennenkin suurien juhlien edellä. Mutta nythän oli tulossa kaikista
suurin juhla ja vanha Riitta sai oikein poskensa punakoiksi
puuhatessaan.

Hiiriperhe oli asunut jo vuoden pappilassa. Ruokakonttorin


komeroissa oli hyvä piileksiä vaanivalta kissalta ja sieltä löytyi yhtä ja
toista hyvin makeata maisteltavaakin. Hiiriemo tiesi, että joulu oli
tulossa. Se oli puhunut siitä pojilleenkin ja kaikin odottivat he nyt,,
milloin ruokakonttorin hyllylle ilmestyisi jouluherkkuja. Vesi kielellä
kuvaili hiiriemo niiden makeutta pojilleen.

Hiiriemo ei ollut muistanut ollenkaan juhlien edellä käypää


suursiivousta. Niinpä hän nytkin hämmästyi, kun pappilan palvelijat
kolistelivat huoneissa luutineen ja vesisankoineen ja tulivat viimein
ruokakonttoriinkin, vanha Riitta komennellen ja koluten hyllyillä.
Eivätkös pistäneet kynsiään ihan joka komeroon! Hiiriemon täytyi
sukkelasti käyttää pieniä jalkojaan, päästäkseen pakoon.

Aikansa touhuttuaan ne menivät ja hiiriemo palasi jälleen


katselemaan minkälaista siellä nyt oli. Kylläpä olivatkin osanneet
panna kaikki hyllyt ja komerot puhtaiksi. Haisi vain luudalta ja vedeltä
eikä yhtään ruoka-aineilta. Mitä tässä nyt suuhunsa pistäisi
jouluherkkuja odotellessa. Isähiirikin tuli työstä jo päivälliselle ja
tahtoi ruokaa. Pojatkin siinä jo nälissään vikisivät.

— Mistä minä nyt teille ruokaa annan, kun kaikki on näin


puhdasta, valitteli hiiriemo. Parasta on kai ruveta odottamaan
jouluherkkuja.

Isähiiri jupisi huonosta taloudesta ja pujahti koloonsa. Oli kai


mentävä aittaan nakertamaan raakaa lihaa. Hän olikin ollut sinne
sopivaa koloa etsimässä ja päivälliselle lähtiessään löytänytkin.
Raaka liha ei tosin maistuisi kovinkaan hyvältä, mutta nälkä siitä toki
lähti. Ja isähiiri pujahti kolostaan seinän alitse lumipolulleen ja
aittaan. Huh! kylläpä siellä oli kylmä ja liha niin jäässä, että hampaita
paleli! Mitä se oli! Tuliko sieltä joku? Pakkanen taisi vain nurkissa
paukutella.
Palattuaan perheensä luo, tunsi isähiiri nenäänsä hienon paistetun
lihan lemun. Ruokasalissa kalisteltiin astioita ja kuului vanhan
rovastin ääni. Ahaa, olivat kai päivällisellä. Kohta kai tuotaisiin
tähteet ruokakonttoriin ja silloin saisi emo ja pojat popsia lämmintä
lihaa ja muitakin mukavia ja hän, höperö, oli lähtenyt suotta jäiselle
aterialle aittaan. Harmitti vähän. Emo ja pojat vielä naureksivat
hänen hätäilylleen.

Siinähän Riitta jo toikin ruuan tähteitä. Kun nyt menisi vain pois.
Kas, eikös ollut leipäkorissa tuoretta leipääkin, ja miten herkullisen
näköistä oli liha paistiastiassa! Ei muuta kuin käsiksi vain!

Sopipa nyt kylläisenä jäädä odottelemaan jouluherkkuja. Kai niitä


jo valmistettiinkin, koskapa keittiöstä tuli niin herkullinen tuoksu
nenään.

Hiiriperhe odotti. Vihdoin viimeinkin toi Riitta kopan ja asetti sen


hyllylle. Ihan vesi tuli jo kielelle.

Vai rinkilöitä ja pieniä leipiä! Ah, tämäpä mainiota! Maisteltiin.


Hiiriemo kehoitti isähiirtä tekemään leivoksista kassaa pyhiksi ja
isähiiri ryhtyikin oitis toimeen.

Mutta voi ilkeys! Riitta oli tullut niin hiljaa ruokakonttoriin, ettei
kukaan heistä huomannut, ennenkuin tämä löi käsiään yhteen ja
hihkasi.:

— Hiiriä! Pitääpä hakea kissa!

— Niin se nyt kävi taas sinun huolimattomuutesi takia, porasi


isähiiri emolle. Nyt joutuun piiloon!

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