As mentioned before, Saturdays are my "laze around the house" days, where I don't do much other than curl up on the couch with a book (on GOT book 3 now!!), and maybe do some laundry and dishes.
Saturdays are also bread day. For whatever reason, my bread mojo has been hiding, and the bread gremlins have been staying instead. My bread has not been rising, over-rising, and just generally not turning out. I've had a few good loaves, but many that have been hardly edible. I think some of it has been user error (getting distracted and letting loaves rise too long), but I've struggled to find my "perfect" recipe. One that's good for toast and dipping in soup, that's wheaty but not too dense.
My old standby "Grandmother Bread" (sorry Gramma, I didn't actually get this one from you), just wasn't working for me.
I revisited this Light Wheat Bread from Smitten Kitchen, and now I have a new favorite!
It's slightly sweet, deliciously wheaty, and oh so good toasted up with butter and jelly.
2 1/2 cups white flour
1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar (you can use honey, but I didn't have any)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons powdered milk
1 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast (I used regular yeast and forgot to proof it, but it worked fine!)
2 tablespoons shortening or unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups water, at room temperature or slightly warm. (the original recipe called for 1 1/4 cups, but I needed more. Start with less and add as your dough requires.)
If you look at the link, the recipe there has more detailed instructions. But here's what I do. Dump all the ingredients except the water into a large bowl and stir it around. Pour the water on top and mix with a wooden spoon until everything is mostly combined. You have to use a wooden spoon to mix or it won't turn out (just kidding!)
I make a cutting motion with the spoon to help mix it as it gets stiffer. Once everything is mostly incorporated, knead with your hands. Stop kneading and take off your rings before dough gets mashed into them, then resume.
Knead for 1-2 min, just until a ball forms, then let rest for about 10 minutes. The fancy name for this is autolyse, and I like to do it because it lets the flour hydrate, and a few other technical things. The end result is that the dough is easier to knead and usually not as sticky.
After 10 minutes, dump the dough onto the counter and knead for 5-10 minutes, or until it passes the windowpane test. This is where you can stretch a small piece and it makes a thin pane of dough that you can see through. See here
My windowpanes are never that perfect, and don't feel like yours have to be either. As long as the dough feels smooth and springy, it should be fine!
Place the dough back into the bowl (wash it first, trust me) with a bit of oil. Turn to coat the dough with oil on all sides and let rise for about an hour, or until doubled.
Dump the risen dough out on the counter and gently press it into a rectangle shape. Roll into a log shape, then place in a greased loaf pan.
Let rise until doubled. While the dough rises, preheat the oven to 350*
Once risen, place in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes, or until the center reaches 190* and the top is well browned.
Some say you can tap the loaf and it will sound hollow, which means it's done, but the mushy raw loaf I had last week begs to differ. It should be quite golden. You can poke it with a skewer to check for raw dough if you don't mind a hole in the finished loaf (who cares? You're going to slice it anyway)
Let cool in the pan a few minutes, then turn out onto a rack. The "experts" say to cool completely before slicing, but who does that anyway. Cut a few (or 3 or 4) slices while they are still warm and devour them over the sink.
No judgement from me if you eat half the loaf before it cools....
The only requirement is to share the other half with friends or family!
Saturdays are also bread day. For whatever reason, my bread mojo has been hiding, and the bread gremlins have been staying instead. My bread has not been rising, over-rising, and just generally not turning out. I've had a few good loaves, but many that have been hardly edible. I think some of it has been user error (getting distracted and letting loaves rise too long), but I've struggled to find my "perfect" recipe. One that's good for toast and dipping in soup, that's wheaty but not too dense.
My old standby "Grandmother Bread" (sorry Gramma, I didn't actually get this one from you), just wasn't working for me.
I revisited this Light Wheat Bread from Smitten Kitchen, and now I have a new favorite!
It's slightly sweet, deliciously wheaty, and oh so good toasted up with butter and jelly.
2 1/2 cups white flour
1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar (you can use honey, but I didn't have any)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons powdered milk
1 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast (I used regular yeast and forgot to proof it, but it worked fine!)
2 tablespoons shortening or unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups water, at room temperature or slightly warm. (the original recipe called for 1 1/4 cups, but I needed more. Start with less and add as your dough requires.)
If you look at the link, the recipe there has more detailed instructions. But here's what I do. Dump all the ingredients except the water into a large bowl and stir it around. Pour the water on top and mix with a wooden spoon until everything is mostly combined. You have to use a wooden spoon to mix or it won't turn out (just kidding!)
I make a cutting motion with the spoon to help mix it as it gets stiffer. Once everything is mostly incorporated, knead with your hands. Stop kneading and take off your rings before dough gets mashed into them, then resume.
Knead for 1-2 min, just until a ball forms, then let rest for about 10 minutes. The fancy name for this is autolyse, and I like to do it because it lets the flour hydrate, and a few other technical things. The end result is that the dough is easier to knead and usually not as sticky.
After 10 minutes, dump the dough onto the counter and knead for 5-10 minutes, or until it passes the windowpane test. This is where you can stretch a small piece and it makes a thin pane of dough that you can see through. See here
My windowpanes are never that perfect, and don't feel like yours have to be either. As long as the dough feels smooth and springy, it should be fine!
Place the dough back into the bowl (wash it first, trust me) with a bit of oil. Turn to coat the dough with oil on all sides and let rise for about an hour, or until doubled.
Dump the risen dough out on the counter and gently press it into a rectangle shape. Roll into a log shape, then place in a greased loaf pan.
Let rise until doubled. While the dough rises, preheat the oven to 350*
Once risen, place in the oven and bake for about 40 minutes, or until the center reaches 190* and the top is well browned.
Some say you can tap the loaf and it will sound hollow, which means it's done, but the mushy raw loaf I had last week begs to differ. It should be quite golden. You can poke it with a skewer to check for raw dough if you don't mind a hole in the finished loaf (who cares? You're going to slice it anyway)
Let cool in the pan a few minutes, then turn out onto a rack. The "experts" say to cool completely before slicing, but who does that anyway. Cut a few (or 3 or 4) slices while they are still warm and devour them over the sink.
No judgement from me if you eat half the loaf before it cools....
The only requirement is to share the other half with friends or family!