Crumb shot of the first loaf

Sadly, it was not. I don't know if it was a heavy hooch flavor or the fact that it had milk in it, but it smelled like feet, and we decided to throw it out. This is the crumb shot; I neglected to take a picture of the outside before we tossed it.

Crumb shot from this one. Considering that it was a rush job, I'm quite happy with it.

I really want to concoct my own design that takes advantage of the ear the way those symmetrical flower loaves with the raised petals. I thought it would be fun to see if I could make it rise up in a predictable way

Thanks! It was kind of an experiment. I wanted it to rear up out of the surface. It worked a little but it was uneven (and my freehand art skills are pretty unpracticed)

Sounds like a good idea. I was also surprised by the results. I'm planning to repeat the test in a week or two and see if it's repeatable.

Yeah, the slap and fold loaf was a little gummy; it seemed like it was underbaked, though I baked them both for the same amount of time and the other one came out fine. I think it was partly due to the aluminum, which I hadn't used before. I did let it cool for at least 3 or 4 hours before cutting