Posted: 10/16/2010 1:03:52 PM EDT
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Tried my second loaf today with the starter recipe from the first loaf site. I thought it was going to be good this time but from the looks of it in the oven I dont know.
everything worked good, mixed,kneaded it for 10 min, it rose , I punched it down,rose ,punched and shaped it and let it rise in the pan and put it in the oven but when I just checked it it was rock hard on top it has another 15 min to go and I will have the final results. How many wasted loafs did all of you have before you got some positive results |
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You could have over worked the dough, especially if you're doing wheat or whole grain breads. You need to work it enough to develop the gluten, but there's a fine line you don't want to cross. Plain old white bread is a little more forgiving. Yes this.. I kneed the dough just enough that it gets shiny then I rub oil on the outside, cover it in a bowl and let it rise. I actually have some potato bread in the oven right now. 
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Maybe 10 - 15 loaves to figure it out half ass.
Bread machine helped with the experiments Lots of debate when it comes to bread machines...some hate em some love em. Go buy one and try it out. No big deal, fool around with it, bake some bread, see what you think. If you don't like it bring it back for a refund if it bakes poor bread. Bread machines are great for those that have other things to do or are low on energy. They also provide back up baking for those with gas oven that may have a gas disruptions. I run 2 machines at a time sometime baking 4 loaves a day with no sweat. They are also great for kneading (some) doughs for traditional baking. No doubt they are limited as compared to oven baking. But for sandwich bread they are excellent. You just have to refine the recipe to get it to rise the right amount. If your bread rises too much, almost sticking to the top of the lid and ends up collapsed when cool at the top, then dough is too wet. If you get a stumpy short loaf too dry. also this depends on types of flour and yeast used, but once you get the recipe down it is pretty good. Although yearly flour changes also change things slightly with moister or dryer flour. Just keep notes when building up your bread recipes But learn how to bake bread by hand as we may not always have electric. I seldom kneed the dough by hand, too busy with other things. Been using bread machines since early 1997...continually to date baking 120 to 200 loaves year and 40 to 50 pizza a year. I've heard the zojirushi machines are best. Mine are Welbilt brand from the 1990's ...discontinued. They have heavy cast bread pots that are thick for even baking. The new machines I see nowadays all have thin stamped out sheet metal pots - I have have never used them. I also make Swedish sourdough, Bavarian sourdough rye with sunflower seeds or cinnamon walnut raisin bread and pizza dough in the machine and finish in the oven in clay bakers. But sourdough has to be fermented over time and is not good to make in a bread machine unless you can custom program it. My regular bread recipe is 1-1/2c APF 3c WWF 1-1/2 teas yeast 2 eggs and add water to the eggs to bring it to 12 oz 1 tbl sugar 1/2 ts salt 2 tbl nutritional yeast (non rising yeast,for vitamins only) Used to make 100% WW bread. But WW flour has skyrocketed and don't mind a little cheaper unbleached flour in the bread to make it lighter. If I travel with my bread I add some vinegar and more salt to keep the mold down. In any case, don't make the mistake I did when new to bread machines. You have to soak the pots in water to get the bread hook loose. Lazy me would just let them soak all night and water got through the seal and messed up the bearing in the spindle of the pot. So I just soak for an hour or so now. Also check you seal in the pot. When it starts to pull away from the spindle and the bottom of you loaf is getting black streaks grease on it and the spindle bearings squeals when mixing...your pot is going out. I bought a dozen pots for back ups for my 6 machines. http://i685.photobucket.com/albums/vv219/keepitlow456/Breadmachine1.jpg http://i685.photobucket.com/albums/vv219/keepitlow456/Breadmachine2.jpg http://i685.photobucket.com/albums/vv219/keepitlow456/SD1.jpg http://i685.photobucket.com/albums/vv219/keepitlow456/SD2.jpg |
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How many wasted loafs did all of you have before you got some positive results I worked 13 years in an industrial bakery.  I never had anything to do with baking, just fixed the equipment. But I learned quite a bit even though I had no interest in it at the time. I always look back on that time and wish I would have learned a bit more. All of the production foremen were AIB grads and really were masters at baking anything. They could pump out 10,000 loafs of consistent bread in an eight hour shift. Didn't matter what the city water temp was, what temp the cooling brine on the mixer jackets was, humidity or protein content of the flour was, they could just feel the dough and correct for it. 
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I think it just tends to take some tries to get it right. We do homemade breads and pizza dough. I am in charge of the pizza and wife in charge of bread. We both had to do some experimenting to get it perfected. It took me about 4 or 5 crappy pizzas and then another few just ok pizzas but now that I have it worked out... I can whip out some tasty home made pies! I do all home fixed ingredients except use store bought cheese.
Wife was about same deal with her breads. First few were almost unedible. Next few were just ok and now when bread comes out of oven... family comes running. She makes a beer batter bread loaf that is to die for 
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I tried another loaf and it came out a little better, well a lot better its just a basic recipe for newbs flour,salt,water,and yeast. My first loaf the dough was really sticky and I tried to add a little flower which may or may not have affected the final result. My second one I made sure it was good to go during the first mix and according to my kids its the best bread they ever tasted,gotta love em when there young and its there first taste of bread made fresh. I thought it was good but the crust was really really hard but the inside was good. I just need to experiment a bit and get the basics down before altering the ingredients any.
Im a long way from those pictures in here but Im making forward progress. Even if they suck Im having fun with my 9 year old daughter who loves to bake with me. Thanks for the tips everyone |
| i'm ordering a zo bread machine, and a manual and an electric wheat mill today. i've never seen a loaf of bread made, much less made one, but i figure i can do this o.k. i'm all spizzed up on this, and have every intention of getting a good handle on this. after mastering making bread in the house, i'm gonna practice with a dutch oven and coals, in the yard.millions of settlers can't be wrong...in all honesty,,, i'll might have to come here and whine, cry, and snivel to some of you guys for help,, but,, i know you will gladly give me pointers, if needed. |
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I still screw up. Different days can impact the process as well. How hot or cold it is (AC or heat running as well) and humidity levels. Some days I find myself putting in 50% more water than the last time. Keep at it. It's a very rewarding process when it goes right. I can't hardly eat store bought bread anymore. |
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Don't give up. Just keep track of what you did so you can make adjustments as needed. It took me a couple of tries to get a decent homemade pizza dough. Pizza dough is something that I still don't do well. I can make killer bread, and relatives are always begging me to bring my homemade bread (compliments of Feral and Mrs. Feral's recipe). But I just can't get the hang of forming the crust without ripping the dough. Not sure if I'm not using the right flour (bread flour) or if it's just not kneaded enough, or I'm trying to stretch it beyond it's limits, or some other problem. Anyways, last night I made pizza for the first time in a few months (getting the oven that warm really heats the house up so I don't do it much in the summer) and I thought it was going to be a miserable failure. I thought I had gotten the water too hot and didn't realize it before mixing the yeast in to proof. I was in a hurry so rather than wait for it to proof, I just dumped it in the flour and through a little extra yeast in. It rose pretty good the first time, and I was busy and it was too soon for dinner so I decided to punch it down and let it rise again before forming balls for the final rise. It rose ok the 2nd time, then I formed balls and it barely rose at all the 3rd time... 
Tried to form the crust and it was ripping all over the place, big PITA. I just knew it was going to be a failure. I ended up leaving the crust smaller and thicker... The result was the best darn pizza I've made in a long time... Now, I just don't know what to attribute that to; I had too many variable. Instead of 500 degrees I had the oven on 550 convection; rather than chilling the sauce, bacon, and sausage I left those items warm so that the center wouldn't take as long to cook (I knew the outside was going to brown quickly at 550 convection); the crust was thicker/smaller; extra yeast (or less yeast depending on how many got killed off by the hot water)... Maybe I'll give it another whirl in a week or two.... my wife and I LOVE pizza, and now that it's cooling off we're probably going to be making it quite often. |
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but the crust was really really hard but the inside was good. Hard crusts are a desirable quality of a good sourdough bread. I know people who go to great lengths just to make them crusty. You might have some luck by covering the top of your loaf for part of your baking time. I often make sourdough rounds in a pre-heated cast iron dutch oven placed inside our stove's oven. The instructions are to bake it with the lid on at 500 degrees for 7 minutes, then turn the temp down to 450 for 13 minutes, then remove the lid and finish at 450 for 10-15 minutes. The length of time covered or uncovered affects the crust. |
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I liked this no knead recipe http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/Artisan-Bread-In-Five-Minutes-A-Day.aspx It's a good quick bread. |
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I liked this no knead recipe http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/Artisan-Bread-In-Five-Minutes-A-Day.aspx It's a good quick bread. I started some last Saturday evening and baked it on Sunday morning for breakfast. I substituted 1 cup of rye flour for 1 cup of white flour, and added a little honey and gluten. The loaf was gone by Sunday night. |
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Best thing for bread (imo) is Alton Brown's basic bread recipe. Amazingly simple, and virtually foolproof. Once you have that figured out, you can make all sorts of additions/exchanges, etc, and you're a zen-bread master.
The recipe and or episode videos should be online. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |