How About Some Tips on Baking Bread?

cschin4 · #1 (**permalink**) 03-19-2007, 09:42 AM

My son is on a gluten free diet, so I am trying various mixes to see which bread he likes. I want to get a good texture to it. And, I have not baked bread in the past. How long should I let bread dough rise. Do you proof the yeast? Any other tips would be great.

mom-from-missouri · #2 (**permalink**) 03-19-2007, 10:03 AM

I've always baked bread. Mostly, it rises till it doubles or slightly more than doubles. Your in Pennsylvania? If I were you, if you are close to any amish, I'd go to one and see if you can get some baking lessons. in this area the Amish bake on Wednesdays and Saturdays (unless they sell at the farmers market, then they bake on Wed and Friday). That is how i learned to bake. I went for 2 Fridays and watched, took notes and asked questions. She charged me $5 each time. I went twice for about 4 hours each time. Most bake in a propane or gas stove, so it is consistent baking, line your electric or gas stove would be. The length of time it takes depends on tempature, type of flour you are using, amount of sugar and altitude. Always use fresh yeast. Always use warm water-not hot, not cold. My bread tends to "fall" more on rainy days. Usually if it falls, you can punch it out and try it again.

baking23 · #3 (**permalink**) 03-19-2007, 12:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cschin4

My son is on a gluten free diet, so I am trying various mixes to see which bread he likes. I want to get a good texture to it. And, I have not baked bread in the past. How long should I let bread dough rise. Do you proof the yeast? Any other tips would be great.

A lot of the time and trouble with baking has to do with what kind you are making. If it's gluten-free (rice) flour it'll act differently than regular flour. Once you get the hang of baking it's not too hard, just takes some time.

If it's in a warm place it should only take an hour or two to make bread from scratch. If you are busy in your household a lot see if you could get a bread maker second-hand, since you'll be making a lot of his breads, pasta, doughs, etc...

All you have to do to proof yeast is put the amount needed in a bowl with some lukewarm water and a little sugar (I use honey) to activate it. If it gets foamy and smells bready in a short time, approx 10-15 mins, then it's fine. Then add your other liquid ingredients and follow the recipe as normal.

PrincessPerky · #4 (**permalink**) 03-19-2007, 04:49 PM

so what do you do if it doesn't smell all yeasty? (learning to bake bread is on my todo list)

baking23 · #5 (**permalink**) 03-19-2007, 05:01 PM

I would pitch it, however I've never had bad yeast, keeping the packages in the fridge helps. The little envelope are good for one or two doughs and until you get the hang of it you may not want to get a bunch at one time.

There is yeast that can be pulled out of the air, much like making a sourdough starter or Amish friendship bread, but he may like those or might not be able to eat those.

cschin4 · #6 (**permalink**) 03-20-2007, 10:07 AM

I did a small loaf yesterday with a gluten free mix. I didn't want to make the whole mix because I wanted to see if he liked and didn't want to much bread that might spoil. I halved the ingredients including the yeast. I was worried that putting in less yeast would not make the bread rise enough. Is there a general rule for how much yeast to add? The loaf was pretty rough looking and a bit dense but it tasted pretty good. I made him a peanut butter sandwich for lunch today so i will get his opinion on it later.
As for letting bread rise, do you put in a warm place? Do you turn on the oven and set it by that? Can you leave it to rise too long or is longer better?

baking23 · #7 (**permalink**) 03-20-2007, 01:07 PM

It's good it worked. There doesn't seem to be a standard rule but around 2 tsp seems to be ok. If you have the recipe I'd reduce the yeast a bit. I don't tend to use standardized measuring much, sorry.

Yes you put the bread somewhere warm, in the winter I leave it in the kitchen near the stove. You can put it on the stove in a melt-proof bowl, just be careful about how much heat comes out of the oven exhaust, sometimes it can start to cook the rising dough. Once it's risen you punch it down, my favorite part, and knead it. Great exercise. Then you can let it rise again.

The more the bread rises the lighter it becomes.

PRICEPLUS · #8 (**permalink**) 03-20-2007, 02:40 PM

Can Amaranth flour or millet be used in baking as well?

baking23 · #9 (**permalink**) 03-20-2007, 03:51 PM

I've never used them but any flour should be able to be baked. I'll try and find some recipes if I can.

baking23 · #10 (**permalink**) 03-20-2007, 03:55 PM

I found this site, I know your son can't have wheat, however this site lists oats, spelt, Amaranth, etc...reciepes as well.

Mosher Products - Recipes - Amaranth Flour

PRICEPLUS · #11 (**permalink**) 03-20-2007, 11:45 PM

Thank you very much. I was not sure if these were bakeable items.

baking23 · #12 (**permalink**) 03-21-2007, 06:37 AM

Let us know how they do!

PrincessPerky · #13 (**permalink**) 03-21-2007, 06:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by baking23

I would pitch it, however I've never had bad yeast, keeping the packages in the fridge helps. The little envelope are good for one or two doughs and until you get the hang of it you may not want to get a bunch at one time.

There is yeast that can be pulled out of the air, much like making a sourdough starter or Amish friendship bread, but he may like those or might not be able to eat those.

Thanks!