Making bread at home the easy way

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Making Bread at Home

Making bread at home can be one of the most rewarding, and yet at times, frustrating projects you can undertake. My early attempts made me all but give up on the idea of ever making my own bread. It seemed to turn out chewy, or soggy, or dry, or yeasty, or any combination of these undesirable characteristics! Fortunately I persevered, and the delight of finally making a perfect loaf of bread opened up a new world of bread making and trying more advanced recipes without fear of failure.

Getting Started

Today, one can make bread quite successfully and easily using a bread maker. Although I often use my breadmaker to make the dough for me, I almost never bake the bread in the machine. I don't like the shape and I hate digging out the kneading paddles from the finished loaf, especially if I have forgotten about them and hack into one with my best bread knife.
Bread making machines certainly simplify the entire bread making process, but there is an added satisfaction to making your own bread by hand, in addition to a whole range of recipes that can never be made by machine.
When making up the dough by hand you learn what it should look and feel like in order to make the perfect finished product. This is important because sometimes, even with a bread machine, things can go wrong: a different brand of flour, or variations in other ingredients can make a dough drier or stickier than it should be. You learn how to judge the texture of the dough and adjust according to conditions.
I hope I haven't scared you off trying to make bread - it really is quite simple and my basic white bread recipe has never let me down. (recipe)
I have had great reviews on this recipe from around the world - it just always seems to work! (My theory is that it is the addition of egg that guarantees good results)
There is also a bread machine version.

Ingredients

Flour: All purpose or plain white flour works well, however I find that a higher gluten blend such as the Robin Hood "Best for Bread' flours do give better results, but should not be used for sweet breads or pizza crust. Whole wheat, rye and multi-grain flours can also be used, but the bread usually doesn't rise as much if you are making a 100% whole wheat loaf - generally it requires more kneading and the dough will seem a bit stickier due to the natural oils in the flour. I like to use a blend of 60% whole wheat to 40% white flour for a good every day bread.
Yeast: I have yet to find a source for fresh caked yeast in Canada, such as my mother used to use in England. The dehydrated yeasts work very well and Fleischmann's is probably the best known brand available here. The 'best for bread machines' type seems to work very well, but there is little difference between the various types.
Liquids: Be sure to follow directions carefully as to the temperature of any water or milk used in breadmaking. If it is too cold, the dough will take longer to rise and also to knead. Too hot, and you will kill the yeast and end up with flat bread. When vegetable oil is specified in a recipe, you can use canola oil, safflower oil or olive oil (I always use olive oil).

Methods

The dry ingredients should be placed on your work surface in a heap, then make a crater in the middle into which you place the wet ingredients. Using a fork or spoon, carefully start to incorporate the dry ingredients into the liquid, combining to form a sloppy mixture. At this point a metal pastry scraper works very well to help get the dough combined together ready for kneading. When kneading by hand, try to use as little additional flour as possible. The dough should be elastic and slightly sticky without actually sticking to your work surface. You can never over-knead, if you get tired take a short break and come back, (leaving the dough covered with a damp tea-towel). When fully kneaded the dough will be smooth, very soft and elastic without being too dry or sticky.
When adapting a recipe to use in your bread machine, be sure to put the liquid ingredients into the pan first. In addition you might have to scale down the quantities according to the capacity of your machine.

Finishing:
For a golden, crusty finish to your bread, you can brush it with egg wash before baking. Generally this is made by mixing the yolk of an egg with about 2 tablespoons (30 ml) milk. You can also just brush the loaves with a little melted butter when you remove them from the oven, instead. Using egg wash allows you to add a variety of toppings, such as sesame seeds, flax seeds, etc, to your bread before baking. Simply sprinkle the topping onto the egg-washed loaf. You can also use cornmeal, spread on the baking pan under the dough before the final rising and baking to give a nice 'artisan' look to the finished loaf.

Baking:
As mentioned above, I rarely use my breadmaker to bake my bread, I prefer to use the dough cycle and then transfer the dough to baking pans for final baking in the oven. When baking on a baking tray, parchment paper is invaluable to prevent the loaves sticking to the tray. To test a loaf for doneness, remove from the pan and rap the bottom of the loaf with your knuckle; it should sound hollow. Always cool the loaves on a wire rack, covered with a clean tea-towel.

Recipes

Here are some bread recipes to get you started:
Home Made Brown Bread
Home Made White Bread
Molasses Health Bread
Dark Pumpernickel Bread
Maple Walnut Bread
Roti Indian Flatbread
Croatian Walnut Roll
Foccacia Bread with Red Peppers, Olives and Rosemary

In addition, be sure to try my easy home-made bagels recipe which has step by step instructions with photographs.

So give it a go!
You will be the family hero when you take that first loaf of bread out of the oven. Enjoy!

A full range of my bread recipes can be found here.

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