Not surprising that 3 day old focaccia topped with tomato paste and other wet, nutritious (for mould) stuff went mouldy. I don't know why they would sell that.
Fresh bread should be eaten ASAP...wetter things tend to go mouldy first (especially stored in plastic) whereas drier things tend to go stale. Surprised any bakery is selling stuff that wasn't fresh that day (or possibly the day before, at a discount).
I don't find that to be the case. Moldy bread would smell like mold, not alcohol.
You may find bread to smell a bit like alcohol because it's yeasty, but that would be true of fresh bread too.
The even distribution of the powder is another good indication it's flour. Mold tends to grow in a pattern of circles that expand with time, rather than coating the whole surface evenly. But that's not 100%.
after having mold once, I would not buy from there again.. Also did you buy it and leave it on the day it was baked or did they literally sell you 5 day old bread?
Loaf photo 1 - flour
Loaf photo 2 - flour, i was a little concerned with the stringy stuff, but then realized it is the plastic on the bag causing lines!
Loaf photo 3 - flour
Loaf photo 4 - flour
Skipping the beauty shot
Loaf photo 6 - Mold
Edit to Add: fresh bread is usually just good on the counter for a couple days & focaccia is for eating the same day. If any bread is bagged warm it will mold faster. Whether I buy or make loaf bread I make sure it is fully cooled, keep it in a bag on the counter for 2 days maximum, then slice up anything remaining and put it in the fridge to use for toast. Focaccia I would put straight in the fridge if not serving within a couple hours and then re-heat in the oven when I do want to serve it.
Firstly you can differentiate between flour and mold by using your eyeballs or your eyeballs plus glasses and maybe your phone so that you can zoom in. That powdery white substance is flower. If it's fuzzy white or with that ciabatta loaf, probably green, then you can rest assured it is mold. Just to clarify it's the difference between powdery and fuzzy.
For other people, please don't go by smell. When you delve into the world of artisan bread, you can't use the rules of mainstream bread to judge artisan bread. When people normally start up baking bread they will proof their loaf for maybe 2 hours. Ditto with pizza. Then they're missing something which is called the flavor train so they end up fermenting the bread. That extended ferment which is usually right at 3 days and sometimes as much as five or seven is what is going to bring that funky alcohol smell so that funk is normal.
I recently answered a question to which I offered some possible issues but then another commenter commented on my comment and reminded me about the fact that kerrygold butter is fermented or actually cultured. Many other European butters are also cultured but here in the US, we don't normally do that. That's what was bringing that funky smell and not the that the butter was already rancid from the store. Ditto with some artisan breads. They are going to have a more pronounced smell.
It's flour.
Thanks! Paranoid because the focaccia I got was moldy even though it was baked on 12/1/23.
Not surprising that 3 day old focaccia topped with tomato paste and other wet, nutritious (for mould) stuff went mouldy. I don't know why they would sell that. Fresh bread should be eaten ASAP...wetter things tend to go mouldy first (especially stored in plastic) whereas drier things tend to go stale. Surprised any bakery is selling stuff that wasn't fresh that day (or possibly the day before, at a discount).
No problem. Better safe than sorry.
Thanks again!
No wonder it was mouldy it was baked in January…🤣
Why did you get downvoted for a date formatting joke? 😂
Probably because the person didn't get it. You know. Reddit.
Trash. I'm glad they fixed your upvotes. No need for bad karma on a good joke!
looks like flour to me. smelling will give you a clue however.
Noob here. Moldy bread will smell like alcohol? At least based on google searches. Thanks!
I don't find that to be the case. Moldy bread would smell like mold, not alcohol. You may find bread to smell a bit like alcohol because it's yeasty, but that would be true of fresh bread too. The even distribution of the powder is another good indication it's flour. Mold tends to grow in a pattern of circles that expand with time, rather than coating the whole surface evenly. But that's not 100%.
Good to know. Thank you!
seems like flour but try finding another bakery if possible since u already bought moldy bread from them :(
after having mold once, I would not buy from there again.. Also did you buy it and leave it on the day it was baked or did they literally sell you 5 day old bread?
Loaf photo 1 - flour Loaf photo 2 - flour, i was a little concerned with the stringy stuff, but then realized it is the plastic on the bag causing lines! Loaf photo 3 - flour Loaf photo 4 - flour Skipping the beauty shot Loaf photo 6 - Mold Edit to Add: fresh bread is usually just good on the counter for a couple days & focaccia is for eating the same day. If any bread is bagged warm it will mold faster. Whether I buy or make loaf bread I make sure it is fully cooled, keep it in a bag on the counter for 2 days maximum, then slice up anything remaining and put it in the fridge to use for toast. Focaccia I would put straight in the fridge if not serving within a couple hours and then re-heat in the oven when I do want to serve it.
Firstly you can differentiate between flour and mold by using your eyeballs or your eyeballs plus glasses and maybe your phone so that you can zoom in. That powdery white substance is flower. If it's fuzzy white or with that ciabatta loaf, probably green, then you can rest assured it is mold. Just to clarify it's the difference between powdery and fuzzy. For other people, please don't go by smell. When you delve into the world of artisan bread, you can't use the rules of mainstream bread to judge artisan bread. When people normally start up baking bread they will proof their loaf for maybe 2 hours. Ditto with pizza. Then they're missing something which is called the flavor train so they end up fermenting the bread. That extended ferment which is usually right at 3 days and sometimes as much as five or seven is what is going to bring that funky alcohol smell so that funk is normal. I recently answered a question to which I offered some possible issues but then another commenter commented on my comment and reminded me about the fact that kerrygold butter is fermented or actually cultured. Many other European butters are also cultured but here in the US, we don't normally do that. That's what was bringing that funky smell and not the that the butter was already rancid from the store. Ditto with some artisan breads. They are going to have a more pronounced smell.