Bread

Cooking is like writing in pencil; baking is like writing in pen.
  -- Robert Felty

I consider baking to be risky business. Unlike cooking, where mistakes can frequently be undone, or at least masked, this is usually not possible in baking. Once the ingredients are mixed together, one must simply hope for the best. This may seem daunting to many, but it can also be adventurous. Basically, every new loaf is a new experiment. I started baking bread in 2000, and I have had many failures along the way, but over time, I have developed a feel for it, and my failures now are less severe, and less often.

There are several different types of categories of bread, based on the rising method employed. They are outlined here in order of quickest to longest (and in my opinion this is also highly correlated with difficulty)

I am much more interested in yeasted bread, so this page will focus on that.

Useful References

This page cannot by any means give a full explanation of baking. I would recommend the following book for a very thorough explanation of how baking bread works, i.e., what ingredients do what, and general methodological tips, as well as some great recipes:
The Village Baker - Joe Ortiz

General Tips

If you are new to baking bread, I would recommend starting off with direct method recipes, then moving on to sponge method, and finally to sourdough.

Recipes

Pumpkin Drop biscuits

This recipe comes mostly from the Moosewood Classics cookbook, which I would highly recommend. I have made several changes. It originally called for apple juice. I substituted apple cider vinegar and water, since I always have that on hand, but do not usually have apple juice on hand. I also doubled the recipe, since the original called for half of a can of pumpkin puree. What should I do with the other half? The biscuits stay good for up to a week, and go great with a variety of dishes, from breakfast to dinner.
  • 1/2 cup soy margarine
  • 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
  • 1 cup cornmeal
  • 4 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 4 Tbsp. brown sugar, packed
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree (one can, like you would use to make pumpkin pie)
  • 3 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
  • 1 1/2 cup water
 Pre-heat oven to 425ºF. Oil a baking sheet (or use parchment paper, which is my preference). Cut the soy margarine into small pieces and place in a medium bowl. Stir in flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add brown sugar and mix until lump-free. Combine the pumpkin puree with the apple cider vinegar and water, then add to the dry mixture. Stir briefly, but do not overmix. Use a large spoon to drop the biscuits onto the cookie sheet, 1 to 2 inches apart. Bake for about 20 minutes, until lightly browned. Serve immediately. Makes 12-15 biscuits.

Sourdough Rye Bread

This recipe is my basic sourdough rye. I use an all rye starter, which gives it a nice tangy flavor. There are of course many different options. While it may seem complicated at first glance, it is not too hard, especially if you already have some experience baking yeasted bread. It also may seem very time-intensive, but most of the time is spent waiting, during which time you can go about your daily routine.
  • 2 cups rye starter (see recipe for starter if necessary)
  • 6-8 cups water total
  • 6-7 cups rye flour total
  • 2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 3-5 cups all-purpose (white) flour
  • 1 tbsp. salt
Optional:
  • 1/2 cup soy flour (for a bit more protein)
  • 1/4 cup flaxseed meal (for Omega-3 fatty acids, and a nutty flavor)
  • 1/4 cup vital wheat gluten (for a bit more gluten to get a lighter bread)
  • 1 tsp. xantham gum (this microorganism helps to get a lighter bread)
  • 1 tbsp. caraway seed (for flavor)
  • 1 tsp. fennel seed (for flavor)
Day 0: Refreshing the starter 1
In the morning before you want to actually make bread, mix the starter with 2 cups of water and 2 cups of rye flour in a large bowl. If the weather is cold, you might want to use warm/hot water, or if the weather is hot, you should use cold water. Cover the bowl and let rise in a warm, draft-free place.
Day 0: Refreshing the starter 2
Before you go to bed, add an additional 1-2 cups water and 2-3 cups rye flour to the starter, mixing it a bit stiffer than in the morning. Let rise overnight.
Day 1: Mixing the dough
When you wake up, stir down the starter, and reserve about 2 cups for your next batch of bread. I recommend storing it in some sort of plastic container in the refrigetator. It should stay good for up to about 2 months. Next add 3 cups of water to the remaining starter and mix thoroughly. Add all the remainining ingredients, starting with any optional ingredients, then the whole wheat and rye flour, and finally the all-purpose flour, and lastly the salt. Mix the dough by hand as long as you can. When you can no longer mix it by hand, turn it out onto a floured surface and knead the dough for 10-15 minutes. Continue kneading in flour until the dough will keep its shape fairly well. (I test this by holding up the dough with one hand.) Form the dough into a ball and coat well with flour. Then put it into a lightly oiled bowl and cover it for 2-6 hours, until doubled. The amount of time will depend on many factors, including the temperature, humidity, and activity of the starter.
Day 1: Punching down and forming loaves
Turn the dough out onto the floured surface, and flatten the dough completely, then take each corner of the dough and fold it into the center, making a ball again. If you want to make a round, simply place the round in a cloth-lined, floured basket for a second rising. If you are going to use loaf pans, divide the dough into 2 or 3 loaves. Grease the loaf pans with solid vegetable shortening. Then form loaves by flattening a piece of dough into a rectangle, and rolling up the dough into itself, then tucking in the ends. Let the dough rise an additional 1-3 hours, or until doubled.
Day 1: Baking
Pre-heat oven to 450ºF. Place loaves into oven and turn heat down to 400ºF. Bake for approximately 1 hour. When done, take loaves out of loaf pans and turn out onto cooling racks. Let cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing.