Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with bread

Want to make Sourdough Bread

Upon Further Review — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 23:33:25 -0800

Help from our sourdough bread experts.I want to get my wife a sourdough bread starter and whatever goodies to help in baking a tasty sourdough. Please pass along any tips, books, or info available to get the dough rolling.. By the way can you make a starter at home or is there a really good place to order a starter. Thanks!

We've got to stop loafing around...

cior — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 13:05:22 -0800

What are the best supplies for baking bread at home from scratch? My husband loves baking, but hasn't produced much more than muffins in recent years. I've organized a 1-1 bread baking lesson for him, but would love to go further to procure a collection of solid bread baking supplies for him to work with and use.

I haven't the faintest clue and left to my own devices I'd likely buy a mish-mash of random things that might not prove useful in practice.

Things to know:

He's a hobbyist, but tends to take his hobbies seriously.
Professional supplies are OK, with the understanding that we have an at-home, non-commercial kitchen to work with.
Aside from cookie pans and cake tins, we do not have much in the way of baking-specific tools in our kitchen.
He loves Italian, French and sourdough.
Specific products/brands are encouraged, I don't want to leave much to chance.

Neo-Luddite baking books?

just_ducky — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:53:12 -0800

Bakingfliter: Does anyone have any recipe book recommendations specifically for baking without a stand mixer? I was recently given Baking Illustrated as a gift, and while it is a beautiful book, I was disheartened to find that many of the recipes, especially the bread ones, are for stand mixers. Some of the recipes do have instructions for "hand-mixing variations", but the Test Kitchen folks mostly recommend against this for their recipes. This also happened to me with the bread recipes in How to Cook Everything. Frustrating!

So does anyone know of any baking or bread recipe books that focus on hand-mixing and kneading, rather than using a stand mixer? I have a hippy bread book of my mom's from the early '70s and it is all hand recipes, but I'm looking for some new things to bake. I also was given The Bread Bible, which has some great recipes and I'm going to work my way through them.

I will confess to owning an electric hand-mixer that I use for icing or whipping cream, but I rarely use it and really prefer using elbow grease if I can. And I don't have enough counter space to get a stand mixer in the foreseeable future.

Thanks!

Is it too late to save my still rising loaf of cinnamon raisin bread?

csimpkins — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 13:45:35 -0800

Bread making help! I missed the 'beep' to add raisins to my cinnamon raisin bread. Is it too late? I've got a loaf of cinnamon bread cooking. But it's supposed to be cinnamon raisin bread. I missed the beep to add them during the mixing cycle.

It's currently about half way through the first rising cycle. Anything I can do to to get them mixed in at this point without ruining the loaf?

Or is there any good way or recipe for taking it out after the first rise and turning it instead into cinnamon raisin swirl bread?

Ask Mefi, Go!

Mmmmm, breeeaaadddd. D'ough!

SquidLips — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 21:17:19 -0800

Fresh baked bread noob. What's the best way to keep fresh bread dough for 24 hours before baking? So I found an awesome recipe for some fresh bread that I would like to make rolls with for the family Thanksgiving dinner. Problem is there will be some time traveling and spending time at family B for lunch, so I can't go straight from machine to rising on the counter to oven as I'm used to.

I'd like to be able to make the dough the night before, and be able to bake it fresh the next afternoon. What's the best way to go about this? If I let it do its rising cycles, can I then refrigerate the dough overnight and on the way to dinner without affecting its quality? Or would it be better to chill the dough immediately after its done mixing and let it do its rising for the few hours it'll take to drive and make the first family visit?

I do have a timer on the bread machine, so I could set everything up to start mixing early in the AM and be ready to take out and let rise about the time we would leave, but it would sit in the car (in MN - not exactly yeast-rising temps) for the roughly 4 hours it'll probably take to drive to family A, eat/visit, and drive to family B.

Any tips on how to keep the dough? Thanks all!

Help a Canadian find a new breadmaker

Proginoskes — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 09:36:21 -0800

What's the best breadmaker available in Canada? My breadmaker of three years recently broke down and needs replacement. The bread it made was usually very dry and overly crusty and I'd like something a bit better. I've done some research and found that many of the better models aren't available in Canada.

Rise up chewing

lunasol — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 20:03:27 -0800

My no-knead bread dough isn't rising. Any suggestions? I'm in the middle of my second attempt at No-Knead Bread. The first time I attempted it, the dough never rose at all and the resulting bread was, not surprisingly, inedible. I think the problem then was that it was the middle of the winter and so the dough was not at room temp for most of its 18-hour rising period.

This time, the first rise worked beautifully. After 18 hours in a saran wrap-covered bowl, the dough was all bubbly and stretchy, with great air pockets. However, it was a tad wet to really fold very well. But I let it sit between two floured towels for an hour and a half for the second rise.

Apparently at the end of two hours, the bread should have risen a lot more and be a lot stiffer. Well, I just peaked at my dough and it hasn't risen at all, and it's still quite soft and sticky. I know there's still a half hour to go, so maybe I'm just being impatient, but is there something else I can do to make my bread "work" at this point? I really want some yummy homemade bread tonight!

Apologies in advance if there's something obvious I'm missing - this recipe is my first-ever attempt at bread-baking...

Will my sourdough sponge wear out before I get to bake with it?

chowflap — Sun, 04 Oct 2009 18:59:12 -0800

Sourdough baking and time management: Did I start my sponge at the wrong time? I have a nice looking sponge, but I won't be able to bake until after work tomorrow (20 hours or so). What should I do with it, at this point? So, I have started some sourdough starter about a week and a half ago. It was nice and bubbly and smelling fine, so today, to make a sponge, I mixed it with a cup of bread flour and a cup of water about 8 hours ago, and it's looking pretty good. At this point, you're supposed to mix a portion of your starter with more flour, a bit of water, and oil, and knead it into a nice bread dough. But I need to go to bed soon. Should I put the sponge in the fridge to slow it down, then make the dough before work tomorrow morning, and let it rise until I get home (9 hours or so)?
Or, should I mix up the dough tonight, and let it rise until after work?
Or am I letting my yeast feast and peak too early, and should treat this sponge as a huge starter (going back a step, basically)?
I've read the other AskMes about sourdough but none answered this exact question for me. Obviously, I am very new at sourdough... Thanks for your help!

Dough in TO?

anthill — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:58:49 -0800

I love sourdough. It doesn't seem like anyone else in Toronto does, though. Could anyone recommend a TO bakery with a bread that's

thick, flaky crust-ed
moist, spongy on the inside
sour, real sour

Basically what Boudin makes in San Francisco. Or what Venice Bakery sells as "Vancouver Sourdough" out west.

I've tried Future Bakery and Stonemill Bakehouse, both of which make look-alike sourdoughs with all the flavor of a baguette.

I could bake my own bread or air-freight Boudin's, but I'd much rather just support a local bakery... help!

Best way to clean bowl in which you've mixed bread dough?

markcmyers — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 09:22:24 -0800

Best way to clean bowl in which you've mixed bread dough?

Where to get fresh-baked (artisan?) bread near Menlo Park, CA?

pbh — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 12:56:09 -0800

Where to buy fresh baked (artisan?) bread in the Menlo Park, CA area? For as long as I can remember, I've really liked fresh baked bread. I'm trying to find somewhere where I can get bread as close to the point of having just been baked as possible. (I'm a little too lazy to bake it myself at the moment, as this previous ask.mefi discusses.) Ideally, this would be a place that bakes bread all day and I could just drop in and buy a loaf (or a boule or whatever).

Complicating my quest is that there seem to be different types of bakeries, and most of the bakeries around here seem focused on selling cupcakes and the like. Is there a special name for a bread bakery, or special resources for finding them?

California also seems to have some sort of "artisan bread" movement, but I can only seem to find big artisan bread wholesalers (which is what Acme Bread seems to mostly be, unless I go up to the city). By the time I get, say, Acme Bread at my local supermarket it seems a bit old (though maybe I'm going at the wrong times). My favourite place to get fresh baked bread on the east coast calls itself an "artisan bakery" and seems to specialise only in bread, so maybe this is the right direction?

Any suggestions for specific locations or where/how to look would be most appreciated!

What to do with the ends?

dreamphone — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:05:59 -0800

What do you do with bread ends? Admitting (with much cringing) that I usually toss out the ends of prepackaged sandwich bread. Because the bread is usually whole wheat or a multigrain type, the ends are often on the hard side. Certainly could be made a sandwich of, but I have to admit I usually just open a new loaf. Sigh.

Any ideas of what to do with the ends? I do occasionally toast them on one side and put peanut butter on it (which stands up well to the hearty thickness of the single slice). Another thought it to make bread crumbs (and what? store them in the freezer I guess?), but would like to know of any nifty ideas out there for being less wasteful.

i'm taking sides, when it comes to cinnamon

raztaj — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 12:03:00 -0800

Where can I find tahini bread in the Boston area? I've checked Watertown, and specifically Sevan - but it seems like most of the Armenian bakeries make tahini bread loaded with cinnamon, which does not taste right to me. I've had Turkish tahini bread when I used to live in Virginia, and it was phenomenal - flaky, warm (when fresh), not very sweet, loaded with tahini, baked to perfection and graced with just the right amount of sesame seeds. I'm dying to find something similar locally!

Does anyone know where I might be able to find some non-cinnamony tahini bread in beantown??

I need raisin bread, stat!

hollyanderbody — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 17:18:02 -0800

I've never used a breadmaker, so I couldn't resist the $6 Oster breadmaker at the thrift store today. I called the toll free number on the sticker, and found out it is complete (the only part is the breadpan) and 12 years old. The manual might not arrive for 4 to 6 weeks, and I'm dying to it out! Can anyone give brief me on how to work it, and give me their favorite raisin bread recipe? Thanks for your time!

Simple bread recipe for kids?

swrittenb — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 11:40:36 -0800

Anyone have a good recipe for a safe, tasty, and digestible "first bread" for an infant? I love making breads, and look forward to the day when my little boy can really start mowing down on a lot of tasty treats. However right now, he's a seven month old still working on getting those teeth to erupt. He's working through the solid food list, and is getting more and more curious about semi-solid foods that he can play with while eating. The soft inside of a fresh loaf of bread seems like a good option (small pieces that aren't a choking hazard, obviously)

Has anyone made bread for little kiddos, and could you share a recipe? Is a good plain white loaf acceptable, and at what age did you start giving things like whole wheat flour? Are there things we should be concerned with, or reasons to wait? We're not in any huge rush, but it would be fun to help him explore new treats.

How do I make Vernazzian foccacia?

lemonade — Thu, 28 May 2009 12:15:51 -0800

How do I make foccacia like we had in Vernazza, Italy? When we were in Vernazza, we bought foccacia every day from a little bakery on the north side of the street which was fantastic. If I had spoken better Italian/been less shy, I would have asked for the recipe....but I think it was more about the process than the actual recipe, because no foccacia I've made has been like it.

I can't get the same soft-but-a-tiny-bit-crisp-but-still-oiled top crust. When I try putting the olive oil on at the beginning, I get a soft crust but the oil sinks in and almost isn't there anymore. When I try brushing it with olive oil at the end, the crust is crunchy, and the olive oil doesn't sink in. So what's the magic crust secret? I'm willing to experiment, if you have an great recipe or a crust idea please share...

Not pumpernickel that is for sure

Anonymous — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 13:07:17 -0800

I enjoy whole wheat and multigrain bread. What I don't enjoy is flatulence. What ingredients should I check for on the bread labels to avoid that result?

Good recipes for beer bread?

ragtimepiano — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 01:04:09 -0800

I have a recipe for beer bread that I found in an old Junior League cookbook that has become a staple at our house, but I'd like to try other recipes and variations on the theme. Does anyone have a fairly simple, delicious beer bread recipe? Either quick bread or yeast bread? Many thanks!

Have a banana!

Helga-woo — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 08:10:35 -0800

I've got one very ripe banana and a craving for banana bread. What can I add to the recipe to make it tasty? My mum's banana bread needs at least 2 bananas, I've been searching online, but I can't find a recipe that only needs 1 banana.

Do you have a tasty recipe that only needs one banana or suggestions for what I could substitute for that other banana?

I've got access to a wide selection of baking ingredients.

I did find a recipe for banana apple bread, but it still needed 2 bananas. Would increasing the amount of apple still work? We've got a lot of apples, but only one banana.

Simpler Amish friendship bread recipe?

Becko — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 17:55:54 -0800

Simpler recipe for Amish friendship bread? I made a bath of Amish friendship bread after my sister gave me a starter kit. I absolutely loved the bread, but I didn't love the whole 10 day process I had to go through. I especially didn't like the day I forgot the mush around the ziploc bag the dough was in and then I had dough all over my counter...

Is there an easier recipe that produces a similar type of bread? I didn't think it had that much of a sourdough taste to it, the cinnamon was the main ingredient I tasted.

Can anyone help me out on an easier way to get the same result?

How can I make sense of this coconut bread recipe?

CKmtl — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 16:29:09 -0800

I found a recipe for delicious-looking coconut buns, but it's missing a bit of info and has distinct ESL qualities. Can anyone help me make sense of it? The author seems to be Chinese. She's done a pretty good job writing it up, but a few parts are unclear (at least to a baking novice, like myself):

- Would you take the spoons of yeast and salt to be teaspoons or tablespoons?

- What would you take "crush it up with (unsalted, I presume) butter" to entail?

- "You can do all of the above with a toaster"... Buh?

Recipe for Tres Puntas bread

mcarthey — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 06:10:40 -0800

I'm looking for a recipe for a bread named 'Tres Puntas' that I had in Peru. I've searched the web but it's probably just a generic local name. The bread was shaped into biscuit sized pieces and folded and baked with three points. It was a yeast bread with a heavy crumb, similar to a foccacia but with a great brown, crispy exterior.
Does anyone have a recipe for this bread?

How long can the dough for the no-knead bread recipe sit?

tealeaf522 — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 15:04:41 -0800

How long can the dough for the no-knead bread recipe sit? I made a batch of the dough last night thinking that I would bake it tonight as part of my dinner. But I won't be able to make it home until very late and know for a fact that I will be working late tomorrow night as well so I actually won't be able to bake it until Saturday evening possibly. Will the dough be ok or should I just throw it out and start a new batch later?

Where to get bread making tools and ingredients in Vancouver, BC (or Canada in general)?

ollyoop — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 14:06:34 -0800

Where to get bread making tools and ingredients in Vancouver, BC (or Canada in general)? I'm looking for good quality tools for home artisan bread making - proofing baskets, scrapers and a few other odds and ends. I live in a small town and will be in Vancouver in the next month so I'd like to visit some bread baking shops there (if I have time). Ordering online is also an option. Any advice welcome!

Alca-ma-holic Bread!

niteHawk — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 17:39:56 -0800

Did I just make alcoholic bread? Can I eat it? So I've been playing with making no-kneed breads.
The basic recipe is some flour, some yeast, let it rise for 20h or so, then bake it for 45min or so.
Turns out pretty nice as it is.. so I decided to make up some cranberry bread - same recipe, but toss in some dried cranberries while Im mixing it.

I let it rise for 20h, and I walk over to bake it, get a good whiff of the dough, and realize that fruit + yeast = fruit wine... oops - never put that together when I was making it...

Can I still bake it? Or am I better off tossing it? I know how to cook off alcohol in cooking, but in baking I just want to make sure that Im not either about to try something that's going to taste really REALLY bad (fermented cranberries) or blow up my kitchen (gas oven) :-)

Any bakers out there?