advice please

[Hilary B]

There is only one sure way to develop cooking skills, and that is to keep trying new things...... You will have a few failures, and quite a lot of 'could have gone better's, but the more you experiment the greater your skills will become. I learned the basics very young (from Mum), and by my teens I was finding out how limited Mum's range could be (mainy due to fussy-Dad). Ever since I have been learning from other people.

[lez]

I baked my bread and it turned out very good and tasty. I was not sure but on advice made a great sucess of it. I will now try other bits as mr confidence is on a high. The instruction booklet is so basic they must think everyone is on the ball and knows most of what goes on. A special thanks to Two Sheds for the wholemeal tip for granary and it may seem a stupid question but I honestly don't have aclue but am learning fast and enjoying it. Thanks to all and keep it going. Pizza next and lets see how I do.

[Flummery]

Well done. Lovely making bread isn't it? And it's very rarely so bad that you can't eat your mistakes!

[Rossa]

Sorry if this sounds a bit technical but I was a baker so may help. Bread flour is made from hard wheat usually from places like Canada which is colder than UK. It has a high gluten content, the bit that makes it stretchy, which is what makes it good for breadmaking.

Ordinary plain flour is made from soft wheat usually grown in England. Used for cakes, pastry etc. However, it makes really good soft rolls. I use it for hot cross buns, fruit breads, savoury rolls either round like a bap or long finger rolls, chelsea buns, brioche or any other enriched dough for sweet breads.

For savoury rolls, you can mix with strong bread flour to either soften or use just plain flour on its own. Suggest you play around til you get the texture you want.

It also makes good ciabatta, focaccia and pizza dough. I find strong bread flour can make pizza bases a bit hard if like me you prefer thin and crispy. Using plain flour sorts that out.

If you really want to go Italiano....use OO Flour, which you can buy in supermarkets usually in their special ingredients section. This is Italian soft flour usually used for making pasta but does proper Italian bread too!

I use olive oil instead of marg, butter or lard as mixes in easier and helps the bread last longer and tastes good! Would only use milk (or a tablespoon of milk powder) in "sweet" breads and then with melted butter.

Granary can be cooked on wholemeal cycle in a machine but it may dry it out a it. All granary flour is is brown flour with malted grains added. So quite a bit lighter. If I remember correctly (bakery college in late 70s), wholemeal is usually made from 95% of the wheat, wheatmeal was 85-95% (though you don't find that so much anymore) and ordinary brown bread flour was 70-75%+ You can add white flour to wholemeal to get a lighter/softer texture. So I'd make it on a brown bread cycle or ordinary white if no basic brown cycle on your machine.

Steam is usually used to give a lighter crust rather than softer. Good if making baguettes. Also good for putting a shine if using an egg wash or sugar wash on sweet breads.

If you fancy trying somethng different, check the thread about Spelt Bread, I've put up a recipe for a no prove bread that you just mix, put into a tin and bake straight away. Could have a loaf ready in an hour and half!

Hope that helps. Don't get me started on flavoured breads otherwise you'd be up all night making different sorts!

[Flummery]

Oooh flavoured! My favourite is chopped black olives and rosemary!

[Nes]

I used to make a fantastic courgette bread with parmesan cheese. Really moist and kept fresh for several days (normal plain bread seems to go off by the next day). Mmmm. Got me in mind to do it again this summer if the courgettes grow a bit better this year!

[Two_Sheds]

I'm trying to find the elusive recipe for Asdas Tiger Bread - its the best bread i've ever tasted, & although with my attempts I can get it to look like it, the tastes just not the same.

Tiger bread is made with sesame oil and with a pattern baked into the top made by painting rice paste onto the surface prior to baking. The paste dries and cracks during the baking process, creating a two-colour effect similar to a tiger's markings, hence the name.
The rice paste crust also gives the bread a distinctive flavour. It has a crusty exterior, but is soft inside. Typically, Tiger bread is made as a white bread bloomer loaf or bread roll, but the technique can be applied to any shape of loaf. (from Wikipedia)

[Two_Sheds]

I baked my bread and it turned out very good and tasty. ... I honestly don't have aclue but am learning fast and enjoying it.

That's how you learn .. by trying. Mr Sheds is terrible: he won't try anything new unless he can guarantee perfection first time
I got him to make pancakes last weekend, and the language !!! He will not take advice
He did it though, eventually, and they were great.

Lez, have you tried adding a handful of seeds yet? (if you like seedy bread). Soy flour (one third soy to two-thirds plain) gives a nice crunchy bread, high in protein.

[lez]

Well what can i say. I knew I would learn but the amount of information coming in is mind blowing. I was only thinking of asking a baker at a local supermarket about soft rolls and bingo Rossa came in. Brilliant and I will give it a go. The history behind the flour was very interesting as you would never geuss there was so much to your everyday loaf of bread. I was especially suprised at your use of ordinary and not bread flour. Thanks a lot. Two Sheds, I do not mind experimenting but like your OH I do get dissapointed if it doesn't work to plan or I mess it up. I have astubborn streak in that I will not be beaten and I do listen to my OH and practice. I now wonder why my bread using olive oil instead of marg/butter has the bread not rising as far. Have not tried it yet but olive oil tastes yeuk on its own so am a bit apprehensive. I used 2 tablespoons of oil instead of an ounce of fat/marge/butter. Perhaps the yeast stops working in pre made mixes quicker. I will try it in a home made mix next. They say the ingrediants must be mixed spot on so using pre done mixes(hovis) lets me experiment. I am enjoying it and when it wporks out all the better. I have had my share of failures and dissapointments but still going. cheers to all.

[Two_Sheds]

I use sunflower oil (2 tbsp) in my mixes instead of butter - it works every time. Olive oil would be no different.

I find that shop-bought mixes rise a lot more ... I think they put fairy dust in them.

[lez]

perhaps I went wrong using olive oil. the bread was a little dissapointing. also the bread does not seem to last aswell as bought bread. I will try sunflower oil soon and see how that turns out. Got another loaf on the go now. I really enjoy this and will try some more experiments. thankyou all

[Eco-Chic]

Bought bread has preservative in it.

You can make a large batch of dough and freeze it for baking as and when required.

[Two_Sheds]

also the bread does not seem to last aswell as bought bread.

Like Eco-Chic says, shop bread is full of preserves
I slice & freeze half of my loaf as soon as it's cooled down - it toasts perfectly from frozen

[Flummery]

Olive oil won't have cause it to be disappointing! Loads of people use it in their bread and it's fine. Tastier too. Mine keeps very well - if I can stop us eating it!

Shop bread rises because it has steam pumped in - the Chorleywood Process.

[lez]

made a loaf last night and used marge. by far one of the best white loaves I've made so far. I realise that I can change the texture by adding/taking away the amount of oil or lard/marge I put in. I will try different bits now and get a bit more adventurous. Took some bread in for the lads at work and they were impressed. So can I affect the colour by by using cinnamon? make a herby loaf by adding mixed herbs/ bay/mint etc? Good fun and now my machine seems to be behaving itself I'm on my way. I will also try the tips on rolls. So pleased with my efforts so far and once I know what we like best there's no stopping me. thanks to all and I am still open to tips from more experienced bakers be it profesional or amateur. If only I had found this interesting life earlier in my life. There now so hang for the ride. driving my OH nuts already.