Comments on: Bread Baking S.O.S.

By: Bread Baking semi-S.O.S. « Life in abundance…

Bread Baking semi-S.O.S. « Life in abundance… — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 12:44:17 +0000

[...] of the oven! Keith’s PB&J sandwiches have been on this bread lately. Remember how he had once suggested I give up on bread baking? He now proudly tells his coworkers now that we make our own bread at home [...]

By: Tortilla madness « Life in abundance…

Tortilla madness « Life in abundance… — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 14:09:40 +0000

[...] been afraid of doing things 100% whole wheat based on my past horrific bread experiences, so I used 1 1/3 c white flour and 2/3 c whole wheat flour. Next week I think I’ll attempt [...]

By: svittchart

svittchart — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 01:19:23 +0000

KitchenAid is a home appliance brand owned by Whirlpool Corporation. The company was started in 1919 by The Hobart Corporation to give restaurants

By: Katie

Katie — Fri, 09 May 2008 13:49:25 +0000

And, I always use my mixer to mix and knead the bread dough! I used to have a KA, now I have a Viking. The dough hook is the best invention ever.

(And sorry about the typo above–I clicked before I proofed.)

By: Katie

Katie — Fri, 09 May 2008 13:47:26 +0000

OK, you have some good advice here. I would like to add that it’s very important that you develop the gluten enough. Or knead it enough, in other words. To test for this, do the windowpane test. Take a golf-ball sized piece of dough after you have kneaded it the recommended amount of time. Stretch it very gently, trying to get the dough thin enough to see light through. If it rips, i9t isn’t kneaded enough. If you get a nice thin “window” of dough that doesn’t rip, then it truly is “smooth and elastic” and has been kneaded enough. The point here is that if the gluten isn’t properly developed, the dough can’t support all of the gas bubbles that the yeast produces during the rise, and it collapses during baking.

Also, try just turning the light on in the oven and letting it rise in there. That’s plenty warm enough. And, visit The Fresh Loaf website for lots of great recipes and advice! =0)

By: lisa

lisa — Fri, 09 May 2008 01:19:09 +0000

I’m not a huge bread maker, but two things… I do like fresher yeast than what you can usually get at the supermarket. Try the local health food store, they usually sell it in bulk and WAY cheaper than the supermkt. The other thing, from my friend who is an amazing baker, is that she is a fan of the long/slow rise. Bread making spans a long time, though your attention to it should not. My pal’s a fan of ‘Home Baking’ by Alford and Duguid, look for it at a library… they do the slow rise with their bread.

By: Julie

Julie — Thu, 08 May 2008 16:11:20 +0000

I would say make it by hand, not mixer. But that is just me. Oh, drop by my blog if you have a minute. I finally have a pic of my cute doggie (dated 5-7). Blessings!

By: Sarah

Sarah — Wed, 07 May 2008 22:54:00 +0000

My mother’s home made wheat bread was chewy, everyone of mine has been too. Are you over working it? Sometimes that makes it hard. I agree that mixing white and wheat makes a great bread. Wheat germ is a great additive too, makes it more flavorful without being chewy. I use the Joy of Cooking old version for my recipe, but it’s been a long while!!

By: Debby

Debby — Wed, 07 May 2008 15:38:06 +0000

I wish I could offer help on this, but I am definitely not skilled in the kitchen. I hope someone is able to post some help for you!

I’m sorry to hear about your disappointment with the marathon, but sometimes it is good to back off a little. As of this point in time, I’m not going to try to do the century this fall either. My heart isn’t in it, and it’s a lot of training for something you’re not excited about. Oh well.

By: chyngting

chyngting — Wed, 07 May 2008 15:13:33 +0000

Keep your chin up – whole wheat bread is always tasty, but sometimes tough to make without baking bricks heavier than you can lift! One of the tricks my family has always used is to mix both white and whole wheat flour.

This is a many-times-modified version of my great-grandmother’s recipe (which called for lard, among other things!). It’s lactose-free, but I have a milk version of it somewhere too if you would like.

1 cup soymilk
1/2 cup water
1+ T yeast
2 T olive oil
1 T sugar
1 t salt

Combine the wet ingredients (above), then work in:
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour
2 c unbleached white flour

Mix until combined, then cover with a damp dish cloth and let rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes. If you need to add a little flour at this point to get the dough free from the pan, go ahead. Form into loaves, and – if you have the time – let rise again, covered with the cloth, in the loaf pans. (I usually let my dough rise once, and sit it on top of the preheating oven. It’s imprecise, but it works.)

Bake at 325 for about 35 minutes. Turn the loaves out onto a wire rack to cool. Make sure you don’t cut into the loaves until they’re totally cool…though it’s hard to resist the temptation!!