Decorative La Llama Bread by Diego Marín, Spanish Bakery Champion 2024
At the beginning of the year, Diego Marín (from Pandemonium in Vigo, Galicia) was proclaimed Spanish Bakery Champion 2024. A victory that reflects his restless, traveling, sensitive, and fighting spirit, as well as his great ambition. As he himself explains, “what pushes me to participate in these competitions is the desire to improve, not only professionally, but also as a person. In addition, I have always wanted to represent my country in an international competition.”
We share below the recipe for La Llama decorative bread, one of the pieces he presented at the Spanish Championship. “I avoided making a crown, which is the most common choice in competitions. I had seen a similar work by a Japanese team in the past and I wanted to bring that idea to my field,” says the Tenerife chef.
La Llama (decorative bread)
Dough
- 1,000 g T65 flour
- 20 g salt
- 2 g yeast
- 200 g T65 hard sourdough
- 700 ml water
Kneading
Knead all the ingredients, leaving 5% water for the bassinage. Add the rest of the water until fully kneaded. We must obtain a thin and elastic dough.
Resting and shaping
Rest on a block at 5ºC for 24 hours. Cut the pieces, those at the base will be 400 grams and those at the top, 700. Stretch and rest. Stick the bottom to the top by brushing the edges with oil and leave to rise.
Baking and finishing
Before baking, make fougasse-style indentations in the eggs. Cut points around the edges to create the sensation of flames. Dust with flour using a stencil. Bake at 240ºC for about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, allow to cool and apply orange gradients with coloured cocoa butter to increase the sensation of fire.
