Mixing Grains

Here's a thought - if you have a grain mill and mill your own flour, the next time you mill try using a variety of grains instead of milling a single type. I used to struggle to keep up with whole wheat flour, spelt flour, rye flour, and so on.
Lately I've been mixing the grains as I put them in the mill for a one of a kind flour. One of our favorites is a Prairie Gold/Spelt combination. Watch out for the low/no gluten grains such as oat groats and pastry berries if you are making breads with yeast. It is fine to use those on quick or non- yeasted breads. Happy baking!!! P.S. Who knows you might develop the next "designer" flour :)

Frozen Bread Dough Part II

In an earlier post on frozen bread dough I inadvertently left out the thawing procedure. It's really easy- we simply take the lump of dough out of the freezer and leave it on the counter until it completely thaws out and begins to rise. See- simple!

You can use it partially frozen, but we have had better luck when it is completely thawed. And, as a reminder we have not had good results baking it in a loaf pan. I have no idea why, but it works really good for rolls etc.

Hope it works for you.

Frozen Bread Dough

A reader asked me recently how many loaves my bread recipe makes. We weigh our dough so the loaves look better and cook evenly. We put 2 pounds of dough per bread pan and for my recipe that yields 4 loaves with sometimes a little dough left over.

Sometimes we make a little mini loaf from the extra dough. I like for my husband to take these to his work as little thank yous :). Also, if we don't need that many loaves or don't want to run the risk of the bread going bad we frequently freeze our dough. This dough makes terrific rolls, pizza dough, doughnuts, buns, etc. We have not had luck using the frozen dough for a loaf of bread. I don't know why, but it doesn't seem to rise and bake as well in a loaf pan. The rolls, buns, etc. rise and bake up beautifully.

Of course, you can always freeze the baked loaf.

Great Little Gadget

Do you have an instant read thermometer? I think ours was under $10.00 at Walmart and it has been a real life saver. No more partially cooked bread. When in doubt remove the bread from the oven, stick in the thermometer and wait for it to reach 200 degrees. If it doesn't in just a few seconds- your bread needs a little more time in the oven. Couldn't be easier. And this is just one application -it works for many other dishes.

Baking With Whole Wheat Flour -Part I

Part I - All Whole Wheat Flour is Not Created Equal

Here is an interesting article from recipetips.com describing the differences between different types of whole wheat flour. If you are trying to switch to whole wheat flour or just add more whole wheat to your recipes it is important that you understand the differences between hard wheat and soft wheat.

Whole-Wheat Flour

Whole-wheat flour is produced from grinding the full wheat berry (kernel). All parts of the wheat berry are used in the flour including the bran, germ, and the endosperm, which when milled, creates the speckled brown color that is characteristic of the flour. Three granulations (particle size) of whole-wheat are produced: fine, medium, and coarse. The particle size influences the rate liquid is absorbed into the flour. Finer grained flour absorbs liquid at a faster rate than medium or coarse grains, thus affecting the preparation of the dough.

Fine grain whole-wheat flour is used for all types of baked goods, such as breads, rolls, and pastries. Medium grained can be used for the same types of foods, but will provide a coarser crumb. Coarse whole-wheat flour has a much larger bran particle and consequently is most often used to provide breads with natural, nutty flavors and rough textures.

Whole-wheat flour used for bread making is usually milled from red wheat. White whole-wheat flour is milled from hard white winter wheat and has a milder flavor, lighter color, and a texture that is not as course. Whole-wheat flour used alone in bread making results in a nutritious, but smaller and denser loaf due to the bran, which hinders the dough from rising fully. In order to create a bread loaf that is a bit lighter and of greater volume, it is often best to combine whole-wheat flour with all-purpose flour or bread flour. Whole-wheat flour may also be referred to as entire wheat flour or graham flour (although there are some differences).

Whole-Wheat Pastry Flour

Like refined white pastry flour, whole-wheat pastry flour is produced from soft-wheat and it has a fine-texture and a high starch content, however not all of the bran and germ portions of the wheat kernel have been removed during the milling process. Because of the presence of some of the bran and germ, pastry items made with whole-wheat pastry flour are more nutritious than pastries made with white pastry flour, but they are not quite as light and airy.

Stay Tuned- Part II- Recipes and Tips for Adapting Your Recipes