For Christmas my dad bought me "Beard on Bread," a classic of bread baking. Yesterday I tried my first recipe from the book, a very unusual recipe called William Melville Child's Health Bread.
My first question for anyone in the know is about the yeast. The recipe called for "two packages" of yeast. I buy my yeast in a jar, not in the envelopes anymore, so I read on the jar that one envelope = 2-1/4 teaspoons of yeast. That meant I put 4-1/2 teaspoons of yeast into warm milk for this recipe and that seemed like a shockingly big amount. Indeed, the yeast foamed up like a science experiment, as seen above. I wondered if perhaps it needed so much yeast because the recipe calls for heavy ingredients, such as two cups of soaked oats and 3/4 cup molasses. Or maybe I misinterpreted the conversion.
Another unusual aspect of the recipe, if I read it right, was that it called for no first knead. Simply mix well, then let rise till doubled. My first rise seemed to go well. Then I kneaded the dough for ten minutes as directed, and split the dough into bread pans for the second rise. That's when I hit trouble and the rise didn't seem to take very well.
The ultimate product tastes good (very interesting, chewy, rich), but the loaves are so heavy and dense that they could be used to bludgeon into unconsciousness any burglars who try to bust into my kitchen. What went wrong? Any ideas bakers?
My first question for anyone in the know is about the yeast. The recipe called for "two packages" of yeast. I buy my yeast in a jar, not in the envelopes anymore, so I read on the jar that one envelope = 2-1/4 teaspoons of yeast. That meant I put 4-1/2 teaspoons of yeast into warm milk for this recipe and that seemed like a shockingly big amount. Indeed, the yeast foamed up like a science experiment, as seen above. I wondered if perhaps it needed so much yeast because the recipe calls for heavy ingredients, such as two cups of soaked oats and 3/4 cup molasses. Or maybe I misinterpreted the conversion.
Another unusual aspect of the recipe, if I read it right, was that it called for no first knead. Simply mix well, then let rise till doubled. My first rise seemed to go well. Then I kneaded the dough for ten minutes as directed, and split the dough into bread pans for the second rise. That's when I hit trouble and the rise didn't seem to take very well.
The ultimate product tastes good (very interesting, chewy, rich), but the loaves are so heavy and dense that they could be used to bludgeon into unconsciousness any burglars who try to bust into my kitchen. What went wrong? Any ideas bakers?
I have no idea, but you have a delightful way of writing...you gave me a chuckle. :)
ReplyDeleteI think you're probably right to guess that it's b/c of the heavy ingredients. A lot of whole wheat recipes I've seen call for 2 pkgs. (which you are right is 4 1/2 tsp - I usually just do a tbsp at that point, can't see that it would matter that much)
ReplyDeleteAs for the rise time -- it is so cold in my kitchen these days that everything takes longer. I figured out a good shortcut the other day though. I had some loaves rising on a cutting board (b/c the recipe calls for preheating the baking sheet) and I set it on top of my crockpot which was simmering chicken stock. That warmed up the board and cut the 2nd rise time a lot. i've also put bread to rise on a dryer that was on or on the counter above the dishwasher when it runs. :)
Hello Katherine,
ReplyDeleteSharon, a friend from church, passed your post on to me. I've been baking lots of bread the past year or so (to support our missionaries) and she hoped I might have an idea about your latest effort. Yes, I think you're right about the amount of yeast--needed for the heavier ingredients, that is. One thing I have learned is recipes in books can have typos--and often the rising/shaping instructions for one loaf are apparently cut & pasted into each subsequent recipe--might explain the no knead before the first rise. Another variable you don't mention is the kind of yeast you used vs. the kind required for the recipe--if they were different, that could account for your less than ideal results. You may have lost some of your yeast power in the overflow resulting from the soaking of the yeast--maybe controlling that will help next time. Frankly, some of the ingredients we want to include in our bread to make it "healthier" often achieve making it more like the vitamin pill you might give your child instead! So, if this bread was also made with whole wheat alone (i.e., no white), as well as infused with soaked oats (quite a bit of those), a tasty loaf resembling a brick may be the best you'll get. I've found that getting my bread recipes online where the recipe has been reviewed saves more mishaps due to typos. A favorite site of mine is The Fresh Loaf. All sorts of people submit recipes, usually w/photos. You could spend your whole life there alone--baking your little heart away. :) GOOD FOR YOU for making your family's bread. I believe the smells of bread baking & onions/bacon frying are about the best and most comforting any human--especially the male ones--will ever experience! God bless you and yours...Patty in Sacramento, CA