tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26113031.post165842897567969792..comments2023-09-18T04:40:34.570-07:00Comments on Blue Skies Urban Farm: Where the Plastic Meets the WalletRobinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17297237900094898777noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26113031.post-45176120304398476622008-08-28T17:51:00.000-07:002008-08-28T17:51:00.000-07:00I'm a busy home school mom, too. I make 'cheater ...I'm a busy home school mom, too. I make 'cheater bread'. I bought a great, used bread machine at Goodwill (an Oster, no less!) and I use the 'dough cycle' option. I put in the ingredients and let the bread machine do the mixing, rising, mixing, etc. I use Costco yeast, too, which lasts quite a while in the fridge. After the 'dough cycle' is done I let the bread rise on a pizza stone and bake it myself so I don't get a 'bread machine brick'. Round loaves work well and slice well. I've found some great recipes in the BREAD MACHINE MAGIC book. I have a wonderful baker friend who proofs the yeast, etc. Frankly, I don't have the time to fuss like that. The dough cycle option works well for me.thebookbagladyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17233380232477737789noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26113031.post-49252128496564198392008-08-28T08:40:00.000-07:002008-08-28T08:40:00.000-07:00Robin,I make refrigerator bread dough. It is incre...Robin,<BR/><BR/>I make refrigerator bread dough. It is incredibly versatile, and because it does the first rise in the fridge, it feels like a lot less work than most other breads. I have messed around with this recipe a lot, adding whatever I feel like to it, it hasn't let me down yet. It is nice and fluffy and soft! It makes a great flatbread as well.<BR/><BR/>Recipe is here:<BR/>http://thespeedingkitchen.blogspot.com/<BR/>2008/05/magic-bread-solution-refrigerator<BR/>-bread.htmlKaren McLaughlinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07510602668460825298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26113031.post-42863234662000074022008-08-26T15:03:00.000-07:002008-08-26T15:03:00.000-07:00No specific recipe for you, but a couple of questi...No specific recipe for you, but a couple of questions. What type of flours are you using? Are you using a sour? Some of the non-wheat flours need the acid from the sour or they turn out like doorstops. Like a rye. The acid of a sour protects the starches that give them structure.<BR/><BR/>Also, if you are adding seeds and whatnot, are you soaking them first to prevent them from robbing your bread of moisture?Brendahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03122991318505099601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26113031.post-27809845480437200842008-08-26T10:18:00.000-07:002008-08-26T10:18:00.000-07:00I bake a lot of bread, and my the best advice I ca...I bake a lot of bread, and my the best advice I can offer is this: no matter what, do NOT add too much flour. Most recipes seem to call for too much flour. <BR/><BR/>The softer (even stickier) the dough, the softer the finished bread will be. Seriously, take *any* bread recipe, and just allow the dough to be nice and soft, and the resulting bread will be lighter. <BR/><BR/>Beyond that, if you want to make truly fantastic whole grain bread, you should try Peter Reinhart's book (amazingly enough, entitled "Peter Reinhart's Whole Grain Breads"). You might try the library. The recipes are quite involved, often requiring an overnight starter, but so totally worth it.Tall Katehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14479411015152122256noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26113031.post-75065065170141172932008-08-25T10:48:00.000-07:002008-08-25T10:48:00.000-07:00Have you tried Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book? It's ...Have you tried Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book? It's the only bread recipe I use (besides specialty breads that only get used a few times a year) and we all love the 100% whole wheat bread. The technique includes two things that I think are crucial for lighter whole wheat bread: a long time kneading (you can use a mixer if you have one that can handle the dough) and two rising times before the final rise in the pans. But get the book and follow the step-by-step instructions--it's like taking a class!Elizabethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05114137750570177263noreply@blogger.com