Baking Bread Tips & Tricks

Notes on Yeast

·         Bread Machine yeast has a finer texture.

·         Regular Dry yeast has a coarser texture. It is best started in warm water with a pinch of sugar, especially if it is older. Water should be warm to the touch but not burn your finger.

·         Rapid Rise yeast

·         Stores well in freezer

·         “1 package” = 2 ¼ teaspoons (some sources say 2 ½)

Types of Flour

·         All-Purpose:  Use for everyday baking of cookies, cakes, and some breads.

·         Bread Flour:  Has a higher protein content and gives a better rise for yeast breads.

·         Whole Wheat Flour:  Most recipes are best with a combination of whole wheat and white flour but all whole wheat can be used. Grinding your own wheat provides the freshest and most nutritious flour. Whole wheat bread can be dense and need a little help to rise well and have a better texture. Adding lecithin, vital wheat gluten, and/or other dough boosters/enhancers helps.

·         There are many varieties of flour to try such as rye and specialty “artisan” flours.

Kneading Bread Dough

Bread dough must be kneaded to develop the gluten, which allows it to rise. With heavy-duty mixers (e.g., Kitchen Aid, Bosch) and bread machines, not very many of us knead by hand anymore. For those of us who like to handle the dough and form our own loaves, here are a few things to keep in mind:

·         You can use a bread machine set on “dough cycle” to make just about any kind of bread dough.

·         After removing the dough from the bread machine, you will need to knead it to remove the air bubbles and get it ready to form into loaves.

·         Work on a lightly floured surface (wooden board, counter top, canvas cloth or other specialty mat/cloth)

Forming and Baking

A few tips for forming your own loaves and baking in the oven instead of the bread machine:

·         To form a loaf roll the dough out into a rectangle and then roll it up (as if you were making cinnamon rolls but there’s nothing in the middle). Pinch the dough to close the seam and pull some of the dough down and under at each end to make it nice and smooth.

·         Let the formed loaves rise in a warm place until they have about doubled in size.

·         Cover loaves with a clean, damp cloth while they rise to keep them from drying out. 

·         Always preheat the oven. If you are baking the bread on a stone, leave the stone in the oven while it pre-heats.

·         French and other artisan-type loaves can be baked on a stone or in special pans with perforations.

·         Steam is the key to chewy, crunchy crusts. Spritz the oven with water when you put the loaves in, place a pan with a little water in it on the bottom rack for the first several minutes of baking, or bake in a covered cast-iron or ceramic crock.

·         Bread is done if it makes a “hollow” sound when you tap on it. If in doubt, go for a few more minutes. It takes quite a while to really over-bake or burn bread.

Bread samples tonight include Sister Rydalch’s whole wheat, harvest, and rye, as well as her famous white, and Andrea’s French from a starter and oatmeal English muffin. If you would like recipes or information on starters, let us know.