Improvising bread flour from semolina and all-purpose

[ntbsnthlrchn]

Can I mix semolina and all-purpose flour and get something that behaves like bread flour? What fraction should I mix them in? I have a scale. I am in Canada, apparently protein content varies depending on where it came from.

 

[Michael in FtW]

Unless your bag of AP flour tells you the protein content (%) - there is no simple answer. AP flour is a blend of hard and soft wheat flours ... it can vary greatly by region and by brand.

Canadian unbleached AP flour is generally within the range of bread flour - and wouldn't need any semolina to strengthen it (increase the protein %). Bleached AP is a little lower (usually 1%) in protein - but still may be strong enough for bread making without the addition of semolina.

If you want to experiment with AP and Semolina bread - you can try replacing between about 1/4 to 1/2 of the flour with semolina by VOLUME.

Sorry I can't give you a better answer but there are a LOT of unknown variables here.

 

[subfuscpersona]

Can I mix semolina and all-purpose flour and get something that behaves like bread flour? ... I am in Canada, apparently protein content varies depending on where it came from.

Canadian flour is prized worldwide for making excellent bread, so it is difficult to know why you feel you need to add semolina flour to your available flour(s) to make bread. If you are experiencing problems with your bread rising, I wonder if it is due to the flour you're using or other factors.

It is true that all purpose flour, as sold in the US, is a blend of soft wheat (best used for cakes, pastry, biscuits, etc.) and hard wheat (best used for bread). However, I find that many brands of US all-purpose flour are great for making bread. I seldom use bread flour unless my bread also includes a large amount of low-gluten grain flours (such as rye, barley, oatmeal, etc) or legume flours (soy flour, etc).

Semolina flour actually comes from a different species of wheat - durum wheat (triticum durum) - which is primarily used for pasta. The species of wheat used for bread is bread/common wheat (triticum aestivum).

In general, you should treat Semolina flour as an additive to your bread and should not look to it to make a stronger flour that will somehow make your bread rise better. Also, you will need to know how finely milled the semolina flour is - the semolina flour I can buy in the US is slightly gritty to the touch, and this kind of flour will not absorb water as readily as ordinary bread flour and certainly will not help make a strong flour (see this DC thread on semolina flour)

US companies that sell flour generally indicate on the package whether their product is suitable for bread. In the US, there are companies that sell flour specifically labeled as bread flour. Bread flour is always a good bet for most breads.

In my experience, some US All-purpose flours also make excellent bread. For example, either Heckers Unbleached All-purpose flour and Gold Medal Unbleached All-purpose flour make an excellent bread (both are labeled suitable for bread machines) on the side or the back.

I am sorry that I can't help you with Canadian brands of flour, but I hope some of this will help.

If you'd like to know more about "soft" vs "hard" wheat and "spring" vs "winter" wheat and how they're used in flours and what it means for your baking, whether bread, pastry or cookies, just ask.

 

[Michael in FtW]

Actually, sub - Canadian AP flour is also a blend of soft (low protein, low gluten) flour and hard (high protein, high gluten) flour. It's not a matter of if it is blended - it's a matter of how it is blended - and that, like in the US, is a matter of brand and region. It is, however, blended with more high gluten flour than some US brands (east of the Mississippi) and Southern brand blends. It is more akin to King Arthur brand AP, or North-eastern Brand blends.

This kind of goes back to what I said before - Canadian AP flour is generally strong enough to make bread without the addition of semolina flour.

Oh - the soy and fava bean flours added to wheat flours ... while they add a distinctive "beany" flavor they are also "flour improvers" - they help oxadize the wheat flour in the absence of "bleaching" ... not legal in some EU countries. This breaks off the sulphur rings on the ends of the gluten proteins and allows them to form longer and stronger chains. But, I think this far exceeds what ntbsnthlrchn was asking about.