Andy M.
Certified Pretend Chef
Did you measure the internal temperature to determine doneness?
Way back when, before I had problems with my hands, I always kneaded my bread dough. Well, I only made a few varieties. My grandmother taught me to make bread when I was 9 years old. I remember her teaching me how to know when the dough had been kneaded enough (when spanked, it sounded as if hitting a baby's butt is how she explained it) and how to tell the right texture/elasticity. I miss kneading bread, but my hands can't take it anymore.
If I want my signature to be illegible for a week I can knead bread. But, I can't handle the pain, so it's best to let a machine do it for me.
I suffer from De Quervain syndrome (De Quervain syndrome - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia), which has flared up again thanks to Rocky's attack on my arm. I have had to use a bread machine for years for the mixing (didn't like the baked bread). Now, however, I have decided that my stand mixer does a nice job. I have to say, my grandma made bread until she died at 78, kneaded it, and never complained. Makes me wonder how painful it was for her to make those "to die for" cinnamon rolls and cinnamon bread she always had waiting for my family when we arrived...I'm in the same boat. I broke my wrist a few years ago and since then, kneading by hand is painful. Not to mention I'm too lazy to do it manually.
CharlieD--by no means am I an expert breadmaker, but there has to be some form of liquid in the bread--you can't just take flour, salt, and yeast and make bread. The baguette recipe had 60% liquid, I used water. With my bread machine, I will add an egg, some molasses, some oil/butter, sometimes use milk, other times water, other times water and powdered milk. I will make this recipe again and may before starting to play with it (oops--I did play with it, I subbed 8 oz whole wheat flour for all purpose). I am puzzled as to why there wasn't any sugar in the baguette recipe. I thought yeast needed sugar...AndyM, can you explain that? I want the book...I am waiting until my next trip to MN so I can have it delivered there. I liked weighing the ingredients...and could have weighed the yeast and salt, I have a scale that I use to weigh powdered dyes, so I can weigh 1 gram...not that I've ever done that.Now that I am proud owner of the book, I see he doesn't say to use water, he says "if you use water" I am new t bread baking. Kind of trying to expand my cooking abilyties. What is determening factor of using or not using water when baking a bread?
I'm sorry, I meant water in the oven, the autor says something about "if you putting water into the oven, use a CI pot".
Charlie.aha, I see, thanks.
Charlie.
when I want a crust on my bread I use a spray bottle and every 10 min for the first 1/2 hour I spritz the oven and the top of the bread. A light spritz is all and it works well for me.
kades
I love kneading my bread and am glad I can now do it again. I use to really beat the hack out of the dough when I was a girl it gave me so much pleasure to beat up on someone who got my goatProfessinal bakeries that bake a couple of hundred loaves a day have ovens with a built in spritzer. Every so often it gives off a spritz while the bread is baking. And then there are the bakeries that use wood fire to bake their bread. For me, that is the best bread.
I use my KA sometimes to start the kneading. But there is something about kneading it by hand if possible.The feel of the dough is very calming.