Hi! I'm Steve and you're probably wondering what Video Bread Trilogy is all about. Well, it's a bread baking class that you take at home in your spare time and at your own pace. Similar to a class you might take a a local community college or vocational technical center. You will learn how to make bread and become an artisan baker. Beginner through Artisan.
Video Bread (112 min DVD)
Learn how to make bread at
home by
hand: Bread baking has become a lost art. A generation or two ago your
mother or grandmother
made bread for the family. Today we just don't know how anymore. We
forgot!
I would like to teach you how to make bread at home in
your spare time at your own pace. The DVD will show you how. The DVD
is a cooking class on video. It is step-by-step visual instruction.
Like
having a private tutor in your kitchen.
In the first and longest segment, you will learn how to
make a "basic" loaf of bread. A formula approach takes the magic and
guess work
out of the process. You will receive science and background information
on yeast and flour
and a good understanding of their function in bread baking.Once you know
how to make a basic loaf of bread, we go on
to make a variety of yeast products.
In the second segment, we use different pans to shape the
dough into buns, rolls, free form loaves and French and Italian bread.
We treat the crust
in a variety of ways.In the remaining segments we make: stone-ground
whole
wheat bread, caraway rye bread, cinnamon raisin rolls, pizza and a
banana cream and apple
pie. Pies have nothing to do with yeast, but a pie crust contains only
four ingredients,
is simple to make and some people have just never been shown how.
The final segment is a summary/narrative on cost, source
and nutrition. The viewer learns how to locate and purchase from food
brokers, wholesalers
and distributors. Nutrition is discussed in detail.
Video Bread Machines (119 min DVD)
Rediscover
your bread machines. Let it do the work for you: Remember the thrill
of making bread for the first time in your new bread machine? What
happened? Did the generic shape and texture of loaves just get boring
over time? Is your bread machine in the closet with your other kitchen
gizmos or on the
fast track to your next garage sale? It's time to rediscover bread
machines.
The DVD will show you how to make bread using a bread machine every bit
as good as loaves made by hand.
Bread machines are used as tools, to do the work of bread baking.
Machines are used for
mixing and kneading only. All baking is done in the oven. No more
kneading by hand. No
more cleanup or mess. The DVD is a cooking class that you take at home
in your spare time and at your own pace. No previous
baking experience is required. The video is visual step-by-step
instruction. You will
learn the "secret of yeast" - the key to all bread baking. How different
types
and combinations of flour affect the texture, taste, and size or density
of breads. How to
locate and purchase the finest ingredients while saving money.
The DVD makes white bread, stone ground whole wheat bread, caraway/dill
rye bread, sticky buns, pizza, a
variety of multi grain loaves, French bread, Italian bread, sourdough
bread, soft
pretzels, buns, rolls, free form loaves. Also, treating the crust, using
different
types of yeast, fortifying loaves, making and keeping sourdough starter,
adding
seeds, braiding bread, using gluten, coloring loaves and more.
Early Bird Baking (118 min DVD)
Learn breakfast baking at home: What's better than hot, fresh, homemade sweet rolls for breakfast? Or honey
buns right out of the oven? Did you know they are fast and easy to make
at home? Early Bird Baking will show you how to make a variety of delicious breakfast baked goods. No previous baking experience is required. That's right. Even if you have never baked anything before. The DVD is a
cooking class that you take at home, in your spare time, at your own pace. It is visual step-by-step instruction. You will learn the science - What goes on and why in the baking process. Yeast baking by hand and using a bread machine. When and why to use baking powder vs. baking soda. How to save money when purchasing ingredients. The DVD makes cinnamon rolls, raisin bread, sticky buns, honey buns, blueberry muffins, bran muffins,
banana nut muffins, chocolate/chocolate muffins and coffee cake. Learn to make muffins ones a week and have them on hand
for a quick breakfast. When you bake your own, you can choose to use ingredients that commercial bakeries might consider too expensive. Treat yourself and your family to better breakfast baked goods than you can buy. Start breakfast baking today and may your bread rise to the occasion!
Video Pizza 2000 (45 min DVD)
(The pizza DVD is included as a free bonus)
Learn to make pizza at home - fast
and easy. Just the way you like it. Thick crust or thin, mild sauce, zesty
sauce, extra cheese, any and all the toppings you want. Hot, fresh, out of your
oven, in your home, in 20 minutes and for less than $2. You can't beat that!
People of all ages love pizza
and will enjoy learning how to make a pizza at home.
The DVD is simple and at the
same time loaded with information and tips to make even the novice a pizza pro. The
straight forward approach is fool-proof. Even children will learn how to make great
pizza and kids love pizza.
The DVD runs 45 minutes in
length and includes instructions on making bread machine pizza, freezing dough and making
garlic bread. The DVD is a single topic, short, focused video.
Makes a great library program or public performance program for groups and
organizations. Recommended for public library and media centers in primary and
secondary schools. Excellent classroom program.
Reviewed by - Library
Journal
For Library Journal, Sheila S. Inter, GILS, Simmons
Coll., Boston, writes:
"Do you like pizza? Do you long to
make it at home but fear the result will be a big mess - not even as good as the dull
stuff you get from your supermarket freezer? This DVD is for you! Steve
furnishes a simple but excellent lecture-demonstration on pizza-making, complete with
the little hints that prevent failure. He takes his time demonstrating preparation
of the dough and also discusses different combinations of toppings and cheeses, freezing
techniques, and the alternative of using part of the dough for garlic bread. He
suggests ways to save time, by using canned tomato sauce and spice mixes, and money by
buying ingredients in bulk, and explains the value of different pans (although he says no
special pan is necessary) and advises ways to obtain them at minimal cost."
Reviewed by - Booklist
For Booklist, Jeff Dick writes :
"Showing viewers how to get a 'from-scratch' pizza (with two-bucks' worth of
ingredients) in the oven within 20 minutes is the goal of this
culinary-instruction program. Beginning with homemade crust preparation, a
genial and effective chef shows how to 'make it how you like it - better than
the pros' in clearly demonstrated steps. Close-ups are carefully used for
emphasis and visual variety, while graphics list the necessary ingredients and
cooking utensils. The need to knead is stressed, and a lesson on
making garlic bread from unused dough is also provided. Made to order for
pizza-loving cooks who have the time and inclination to make their own pies."
How to Make Artisan Breads
Artisan breads
are all the rage
today. They have foreign sounding names, healthy ingredients and a
characteristic thick chewy crust. Everyone wants to make artisan breads.
Just remember that the baker is the artisan, not the bread. With practice you
can be that artisan.
If you work through
my DVD series you will become an artisan bread baker. You will be able to take any
loaf. Look at it. Look at the list of ingredients and go home and make that loaf
in your oven. You will be able to use any combination of grains, add nuts, seed,
cloves of garlic, olives or whatever you want in your loaf. You can use flax
seed oil, molasses, eggs, milk; anything you want. You can start with a sour
sponge. You can color the loaf
by adding non flavored caramel coloring.
A thick chewy crust can be
made in your home oven. First, spray the loaf with cold water for 30 seconds
when you put it in the oven. Bake at high heat - 450 for half the time.
Then bake at 300 for the remaining time. Leave the loaf in the oven
at 225 for 45 minutes to dry out. Finally, take the loaf out of the oven and let
it sit for a few hours to come to room temperature. Or eat it right then.
Just remember, the baker is the
artisan not the bread. There are no shortcuts to becoming and artisan bread
baker. Last but not least. Bread baking is a craft. You will never know it all.
There is always more to learn.
BREAD BAKING TIPS -
It's "ALWAYS THE YEAST".
Having problems with your bread rising? It is "ALWAYS
THE YEAST". When you purchase a two pound package of active dry yeast or
a one pound package of instant yeast, also known as bread machine yeast, proof it. Put two cups of water at 110 degrees in a bowl. Actually measure the
temperature of the water with a candy thermometer. Sprinkle in one tablespoon of
yeast. Do not stir the yeast. After five minutes the yeast should
start to bloom, blossom, grow, foam, froth and bubble. At seven minutes the yeast
should look like the picture. If the yeast does not bloom, consider taking it back to the
store. It may very well be bad or sub-par yeast.
Bad
or sub-par yeast is more common than you might
think. It is not your imagination if all of a sudden your bread stops rising like it
used to, or comes out undercooked in spots, seems doughy, takes longer than usual to rise
or seems to have "clumps" - most of it rises, but some spots are dough balls.
Your first reaction might be to think you did something wrong. That's natural,
but if you have been making bread for years and all of a sudden things just stop
working, let me tell you right now in no uncertain terms that the problem is the
yeast - period! It is not you. It is the yeast. Either the yeast is sub-par or
you did not soak it at the right temperature or you did not use enough. I
assume, since you are an experienced baker, that you soaked your yeast and used
enough and again it is the yeast itself - period! I promote bread baking and don't like to see the novice or anyone else discouraged
because of bad/poor quality yeast.
Recently, I had to purchase yeast at
three different stores to find good really active yeast. After purchasing two one pound packages
of name brand instant yeast, my bread did not rise well, was doughy and seemed under
cooked. The yeast did not proof. The same store had only one package of active
dry yeast on the shelf and it was punctured. I took the yeast back and purchased a
one pound package of a lesser known brand name instant yeast. It worked, but did not
proof and gave me a slower rise than I was used to.
I went to a national membership store and
purchased two one pound packages of the other name brand instant yeast. My bread did
not rise well, was doughy and seemed under cooked. The yeast did not proof. I
took it back. Again, it was not my imagination. The yeast was not the good
really active yeast that I was looking for and was used to working with.
I went to another national membership
store and purchased a two pound package of national brand active dry yeast. It
proofed really well. It was good yeast and really active. Again I have great fully risen loaves with a fast rising time.
Thank God I'm not a beginner. How easy it would be to get discouraged if you
happened upon bad/slow rising yeast.
This experience is not that unusual.
The last time I purchased yeast, I ended up with a bad two pound package of
name brand active dry yeast - it did not proof at all. As a matter of principle I
returned the yeast and got my money back. In all these examples the expiration dates, when given,
were good. The bags were not punctured. The yeast was not active enough for my
liking. The
frequency of finding bad/slow rising yeast being sold to the unsuspecting consumer is
higher than you might expect. The results can be so damaging to someone getting
started.
Again, it is "ALWAYS THE
YEAST". Salt has no function in your bread other than flavoring the bread - if
you have a problem you can rule out the salt. Sweetener is optional, you don't need
any at all - if you have a problem you can rule out the sweetener. Oil is optional
also - rule out the oil. Flour types do make a big difference, but that's another
story. If you don't know if your problem is yeast or flour, make a sample loaf of
white bread using any type of white flour - you will rule out flour as your problem.
Again, it is "ALWAYS THE YEAST".
I know
bread baking to be a craft. It takes time and experience to become an artisan
bread baker. Here is something I have found that shows you will never
know it all. There is always more to learn. When you first buy a bag of yeast and proof
the bag that is not necessarily the end
of the story. It has been my experience that some bags of yeast that do not
proof well are sub-par and that other bags will proof better over time. Some
yeast companies claim that the foaming that we look for while proofing is from
additives and does not affect the rising properties of the yeast. Who knows what to
believe? That is where experience in the craft comes into play. To be safe, I
hunt down fast acting yeast that proofs really well and I get consistent
results. I suggest that you do the same. When I find a really active batch, I
have been known to purchase several bags. They are sealed well, don't need to be
refrigerated and will keep arguably almost indefinitely.
BREAD BAKING TIPS - USING
ENOUGH YEAST?
Are you using enough yeast? Try using 50% more yeast.
Years ago a packet of yeast measured a full tablespoon. Today a packet of yeast
measures less than two teaspoons. That's right - years ago there was 50% more yeast
in a packet. Pricing pressures have forced companies to reduce package size in a
variety of industries. A year ago, my favorite yogurt came in an 8 ounce container;
today it is in a 6 ounce container. The cost is still the same. Why
do they call it inflation when the packages get smaller? Go figure!
The major yeast companies contend that
today's yeast is more active and therefore, not as much yeast is required to make a loaf
of bread. This may be true, but I have found that using more yeast gives me a bigger
fuller loaf of bread and the bread baking process takes considerably less time. All
my recipes use one full tablespoon of yeast or one and one half packets of yeast.
Try it and see for yourself. No more letting the dough rise covered, in a warm
place, etc. No more waiting more than an hour for dough to rise. With more
yeast, second rising time is generally only 30 minutes. Using more yeast really
works - much faster rising times and bigger fuller loaves.
A good rule of thumb is one full
tablespoon of yeast for every 4 to 4 1/2 cups of flour. If your recipe calls for a
tablespoon of yeast make sure that you use a full tablespoon or one and one half packets
of yeast.
BREAD BAKING TIPS - BUYING
YEAST
I always buy my yeast in quantity. The price difference is incredible and
it lasts for well over a year when stored properly. You do not need to
refrigerate and unopened package. Just keep it in your pantry. Don't let it get
too hot or too cold.
A quarter ounce packet of yeast cost
about 75 cents, US, in the grocery store. A two pound loaf of bread uses one and one
half packets of yeast. That is a yeast cost of more than one dollar, US, per loaf. You may as well buy your bread at a bakery.
The quarter ounce packets are just too expensive.
Yeast is less expensive when purchased in
four ounce jars, but still costs too much. A four ounce jar contains 16 quarter
ounce portions of yeast. A quarter ounce portion of yeast costs about 55 to 50
cents, US. The yeast required to make a two pound loaf of bread costs about
75
cents, US. This is still no bargain by anyone's standards by anyone's
standards.
Active dry yeast is available in two
pound packages. Two pounds of yeast is 32 ounces of yeast or 128 quarter ounce
portions of yeast. The cost of a two pound package is about three dollars, US, in a
membership store. Three dollars divided by 128 portions gives us a cost of 2.3
cents, US, a packet/quarter ounce portion. Since we use one and one half quarter
ounce packets per loaf, that would be about 3.5 cents yeast cost per loaf. What a
cost savings! Buying yeast in quantity is the only way to go. Compare the
price: YEAST COST - OVER ONE DOLLAR PER LOAF vs. 3.5 CENTS PER LOAF! That is 1/28th
the price!
You might say to yourself that I will
never use that much yeast. You don't have to - it pays for itself. Here is
another way of looking at it. Once you have made three loaves of bread the rest of
the yeast is free. Follow the logic. One two pound loaf of bread uses one and
one half packets of yeast, at a cost of over one dollar. After making three loaves of
bread using yeast purchased in quarter ounce packets you have spent over three dollars on
yeast. You could have bought a two pound package of yeast for the same three
dollars and would now have 123.5 quarter ounce portions left. You could make 80 plus
loaves of bread with the yeast left over and not spend another cent on yeast.
Will it keep? Yes. I have
kept yeast for over a year and it was still good. I store my yeast in the
freezer once opened. A two pound package of yeast comes in a foil bag. Fold/squeeze the
air out of the bag and seal the top with a clip of some sort. The type of clip used
to seal an opened bag of potato chips works well.
When making bread, take the yeast out of
the freezer, use what's needed and put the yeast back immediately. Exposure to air,
oxygen, and temperature will steal the life of the yeast. If you forget and leave
the bag out open on the counter over night, part of the life of the yeast will
be lost. Get it out, use what's needed, fold the air out of the bag, seal the bag and then return
the yeast to the freezer right away.
Instant yeast, also known as bread baking
machine yeast, comes in one pound packages and goes for about the same price as active dry
yeast.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - BAKING ISSUES & STONES
Baking
stones are fun to experiment with, but rarely needed in bread baking. I only use a baking
stone to stop the bottom from burning when making a large loaf that
requires extra baking time.
Baking stones are sometimes
misunderstood. Years ago, a friend of mine bought a pizza stone. The directions said to make the pizza on the stone and then put it in the
oven. That completely defeats the purpose of the stone. The whole idea of the
stone is to preheat the oven with the stone in the oven to get the stone hot.
The stone has mass and holds heat. Baking stones, pizza stones and oven bricks
all perform the same function. The theory is that you will get a better crust.
When using a baking stone, in
your home oven, you
are trying to simulate a brick oven. Stones are great, but you
can make "artisan" loaves in
your home oven without using a stone. You can get
a crusty loaf by varying the temperature at different stages of baking -
first hot, then normal and then leaving the bread in the oven at low heat to dry out.
When a loaf is finished baking it out gases hot vapors and wets itself. That is
why bread comes out of the oven crispy and then the crust seems to soften
as it sits for a while.
The only time I use a baking
stone is when I'm making a huge loaf. When the baking time is so long that the
bottoms would otherwise burn. The stone retards the cooking on the bottom of the
loaf. When I have bottom burning issues, I use a stone.
I make a seven pound loaf on a deep dish dark coated pizza pan.
It looks like something out of the middle ages. I bake the loaf for 52 minutes.
I use a stone to stop the bottom from burning because the loaf takes so long to
bake.
I also put a tin foil shield on top of the loaf, after 15 minutes, to stop the top
from burning.
Even pizza does not require a
pizza/baking stone. I use a dark coated pizza pan. Pan color really makes a
difference. When making a loaf of sandwich bread I always use dark pans and never
the silver pans. If you use silver bread baking pans, the bottoms of the loaves
will not cook properly. I don't even own silver pans.
Position in the oven also
affects the bottom. If you want something darker on the bottom then lower it in the
oven, closer to the element in your electric oven. If you want less dark then raise
it in the oven. If you have top burning issues, cover with tin foil after the
loaves are browned to your liking.
Baking stones are great to
experiment with, but very rarely required in bread baking. You may discover
how to make your perfect loaf. I use mine only for bottom
burning issues due to extended baking times on large loaves.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - ACTIVE DRY YEAST vs. INSTANT YEAST
In
my opinion, active dry yeast produces better more consistent results for home
bakers than the newer instant yeast. Active dry yeast has been around since WW
II. Active dry yeast needs to be "activated" by soaking it in warm water when
making bread. Active dry yeast can be used when making bread by hand, using a
bread machine or using a mixing machine.
Instant yeast, also known as
quick yeast or bread baking machine yeast, has been around for about 15 years.
Instant yeast was developed with commercial baking in mind, not the home baker.
Instant yeast is added to the dry ingredients in big mixing machines at
commercial bakeries. Instant yeast is also added to the dry ingredients in a
home bread machine.
Control of temperature is the
key to successful baking at home or commercially. In commercial baking the big
mixing machines create friction and produce needed heat. When making bread at
home in a bread machine the heating element turns on during the mixing
process and adds the needed heat to activate the instant yeast. When making
bread by hand, if you use instant yeast, there is not enough heat in the process
to produce big full loaves, even if you soak the instant yeast in warm water.
Instant yeast and active dry yeast are not the same. Active dry yeast was designed for home baking. That is why I use and recommend the
old standard active dry yeast. When using active dry yeast I am in full control
of the bread baking process and I get consistent results.
Most home bakers in Europe are
using instant yeast for hand bread baking and bread machine use. I do not
recommend instant yeast for home baking by hand. Can a whole continent be doing
it wrong? Who knows? I have heard stories of people in the UK preheating their
flour before making bread. That is indicative of temperature problems when using
instant yeast. You do not have to preheat flour when using active dry yeast.
In the US, two major brands of
yeast are available - Red Star and Fleishman's. Red Star sells a two pound
package of the good old fashioned Active Dry Yeast. That is what I use and
recommend. Fleishman's sell a two pound package of what they call Instant Active
Dry Yeast. Is it instant yeast or is it active try yeast? Again, who knows? I have found that the good old fashioned active dry yeast
produces better more consistent results in home baking.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - COLORING YOUR LOAF - DARK BREAD
I
make a really nice dark pumpernickel rye bread. I use organic rye pumpernickel
meal, bread flour, garlic, molasses and ground caraway. I grind my caraway in an
electronic coffee grinder. If I make a
regular rye I don't grind my caraway. Once you grind caraway the grinder is no
good for coffee anymore. The caraway leaves a flavor that will ruin the coffee.
Back to the rye bread. It is a
dark colored loaf. The coloring does not come from the pumpernickel meal or the
molasses. I add two table spoons of non flavored caramel coloring. That is the
trick to dark bread - period. Non flavored caramel coloring is a food service
product. I buy it in gallon jugs, like molasses. It comes in smaller containers
also. It's something you will have to look for. It's not a typical grocery store
item. Non flavored caramel coloring is a concentrated product. A little goes a
long way.
I read years ago about some
special dark rye flour from Minnesota or North Dakota that you need to make a
dark loaf. There is no dark rye flour out there that will give a dark loaf. The
molasses won't give you a dark loaf either. I have added instant coffee among
other things to color my loaves. Food service knows what they are doing. It's
just food coloring. Industry also uses food coloring to make egg
bread. A small amount of egg yellow food color goes a long way. It is also a
concentrated product, just like non flavored caramel coloring. I buy it in a 32
ounce bottle. I use 1/4 tsp of
egg yellow food coloring in a two pound batch of sweet rolls.
If you have kids and want to
have some fun. Buy some food coloring and let them add it to your next batch of
bread. Red, green, blue, the kids will either love it or just not eat the bread.
Just a fun thing to try.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - ARTISAN SPONGE STARTER
Sponges
are used as starters in most artisan breads. If you have never used a sponge
starter you will be pleasantly surprised with the results. Your loaf texture and
feel will be softer, like a sponge. That's where the name comes from. It is a
really nice tool that every baker should be familiar with. By the way, your
crust can still be thick and chewy and crusty with a spongy center in your loaf.
To make a sponger starter mix
equal parts of cold water, bread flour and a small amount of yeast. I use 1/2
tsp of active dry yeast per 2 cups of water and 2 cups of bread flour. Mix
thoroughly and then cover the bowl with a plate and let
sit at room temperature for 18 to 24 hours. You can mix it with a wooden spoon
every once in a while if you like. There are no fixed rules on sponges. You can
make a quick starter by using equal parts warm water, bread flour and 1/2 tsp of
active dry yeast. Let it sit at room temperature for an hour or so. You will
have a quick sponge to add to your next batch of bread.
You can experiment with your
sponge if you want. Try using less yeast. You can also keep the sponge in the
fridge. You can not mess it up whatever you do, but the optimal sponge will peak
at time of use. Yeast is an organism. Its activity will peak at some point in
the baking process. Heat, the quantity of yeast used and the time sponge sits
are all variables. If you use warm water it will peak sooner. If you refrigerate
the sponge it will take longer. Just like bread rising, it will rise to point
and then peak - the rising will stop. If you peak the yeast you will get oven
shoot while baking. If you miss the peak you won't get any oven shoot. Just
experiment. It's fun. It's all part of the learning process.
Now you have a sponge starter.
To make a loaf with your sponge simply substitute starter for flour and water in
the recipe for your next loaf. The sponge is equal parts water and flour so it
is easy. If you use one cup of sponge starter in your next loaf just decrease
the recipe by 1/2 cup of flour and 1/2 cup of water.
If you were to let the sponge
sit for a few days and feed it every three days some more flour and water it
would sour and become a sourdough starter over time. When I make pizza dough in
my bread machine I leave the dough I don't use in the machine for a few day and
let it ferment (sour). I use it in the next batch of bread that I make.
Sometimes I just pull the remaining dough out of the bread machine and use it to
make another pizza.
Give it a try. Experiment.
Bread baking is a craft. You will never know it all. There is always more to
learn.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - WHOLESOME INGREDIENTS
Ingredients are just as important as the crust, look and texture.
I make a nice
rye loaf using a pumpernickel meal. Any meal for that matter is good.
Meal is high in fiber. Meal is just coarse ground flour with nothing removed.
You can make your own meal with a flour mill that has a course setting.
Stone-ground whole wheat flour is one of my favorites. Any stone-ground flour has more
nutritional value that a commercially milled flour. Commercial milling uses
steel grinding wheels. The wheels heat up in the grinding process and bake off
some of the nutritional value. That does not happen with stone-ground. The stone
grinding wheels don't heat up.
Unbleached flour is better than bleached. Flour is
bleached using chlorine. That's what makes it white. The food value is removed for storage
and fed to farm animals. Food
value is added back when the flour is latter sold to the consumer. We know it as
all purpose flour. Adding the nutritional value back is called enriching.
Unbleached is more natural. Never removing in the first place and not having to
add back.
Gluten content of flour is also
important. Bread flour has high gluten/protein content - fourteen grams of
protein per cup. All purpose flour has 11 grams of protein per cup. The high
gluten/protein content is what gives us a big full loaf. You pay more for high
gluten flour. You need it in bread baking. All artisan breads use high protein,
high gluten flour.
For sweetener don't use
refined sugar. Again go natural with honey or molasses. Honey for whole wheat -
molasses for rye. Use vegetable oil or olive oil. No animal product. Use water
and no milk. Use no eggs. Salt is a must, but you can use sea salt or some other
substitute.
Think nutrition, fresh and
wholesome. Buy fresh ingredients. Flour from a small health food store may have
been around for a while. Ask if it is fresh. Special order your flour or get it
from a food broker. From a food broker it will be fresh. Their product does not
sit on the shelves long.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - WHOLE MILK MOZZARELLA FOR PIZZA
It is getting harder and harder
for the consumer to find good mozzarella cheese for making pizza at home. I live
on the west coast and I now have to special order whole milk mozzarella cheese.
All the stores are carrying is skim milk mozzarella. The skin milk cheese does
not melt properly and has no pull. If a novice tries making a pizza with skim
milk cheese they will be disappointed and think that you can't make good pizza
at home. I make better pizza than I can buy. Hot, fresh, the way I like it from
my own oven.
Ask your store to carry whole
milk mozzarella cheese. If you have to, special order it. I just bought a case
today that I had to special order. It cost me $50 for four 5 lb bags. I freeze
it. When I am ready to make a pizza I take a bag out of my freezer and smash it
with my rolling pin to break up enough cheese to use. It works fine. The cheese
is just going to melt anyway.
I have had problems getting
good parmesan cheese also. Some brands have no flavor and don't melt in cooking.
The shredded parmesan seems to be ok, but again it depends on the brand.
We consumers need to be more
assertive with our local stores. If you have a problem in your area getting
quality cheese, go in and talk to the manager and ask them to stock better
quality cheese. It's out there. Complaining never hurts. If they won't stock
good whole milk mozzarella or good parmesan cheese then start looking around.
Once you find a source you will be set. Look in your phone book yellow pages for
food brokers, wholesalers and distributors. Make some phone calls. If they are
not into pizza supplies ask who in your area is.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - Elusive Oven Shoot or Oven Spring
Oven shoot or oven spring is elusive. It's part of the craft of bread baking.
Look at the picture to the left. It is a good example of oven spring, also known
as oven shoot. I put a one cup measuring cup in the picture to give you some
perspective on the size of the loaves. Both loaves have good oven shoot.
They are two pound loaves. I made the dough in my bread machines. They were
baked for 22 minutes at 375 degrees in my home oven. These loaves are light and
make good sandwich bread. My kids love white bread. Great for peanut butter and
jelly sandwiches. I like white bread for simple Swiss cheese and mustard sandwiches.
Every once in while you will notice your loaves seem to magically shoot up while
baking. Why? It's not magic at all. It's part of the craft which you will only
learn with practice. There is an optimum time to put your loaves in the oven. The
yeast needs to be in it's most active stage to get oven shoot. It has to be on the up
swing. If you let your dough sit and rise, you will see it rise vigorously to a point and
then the rising slows. The activity of the yeast will increase to a point and then become
less active. To get oven shoot you need to bake your loaf when the yeast is
on the up swing. You will only learn how to get oven shoot over time. Just being
aware of oven shoot or oven spring is a start. Make a mental note the next time
one of your loaves turns out like the ones pictured. I found that it helped me
to keep a log while learning bread baking. I had a spiral notebook and recorded
my bread baking experiments. That's part of the scientific method used in
laboratories and in industry.
I can get
oven shoot consistently because I monitor the temperature of my bread baking
through out the process. Home bread baking is all about temperature. To make the
loaves pictured, I first made a sponge. I took equal parts warm
water and flour and some yeast. Mixed them together and let them sit for an hour
before adding my sponge to my bread machines. I substituted equal parts water and
flour for sponge in my recipe. My dough was really active at the end of my first
rise when I put my loaves in the oven. I did not bother with a second rising at
all. My loaves were in the oven after a mixing period of about 30 minutes and a
first rise of about 30 minutes. Remember it's a craft. There are no absolutes.
Think about it. No second rising to get these beautiful loaves and I did not
knead by hand. My bread machines did all the work. I just get the credit.
These loaves are white
bread which is
not fashionable today. The flour is bread flour. Bread flour is high
protein, unbleached and fresh. It's fresh because I buy a commercial product in
50 pound bags. I use olive oil and honey. No milk or eggs.
No animal products. When you make your own bread you decide what ingredients to
use. Next time you make a loaf compare it with the picture. Learn the basics of
bread baking and build your skills from there to become an artisan bread baker. Learn right from the start.
There are not short cuts to becoming an artisan baker.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - About Flour
Flour is the most important ingredient in a loaf of bread. You get
what you pay for with flour. You pay more for high gluten content, unbleached
flour, stone ground flour and freshness.
Flour is grown all over the country and the world. Some areas produce high
gluten content flour. Spring and winter wheat are known to have high gluten
content in some areas like Montana, North Dakota and Texas. When a farmer brings
his wheat to market it is tested for gluten content and then packaged and sold
according to the test results. Soft wheat has a low gluten content and when
milled is sold as cake flour. Wheat that tests out at 11 grams of protein per
cup is milled and sold in grocery stores as all purpose flour or to restaurants
and hotels as general purpose flour. Flour that test out at 12-14 grams per
cup is milled and sold as bread flour. The best of the best wheat tests out at
14 grams of protein per cup and above and brings in the most dollars for the
farmer. It is known as bread flour/high gluten flour. Some brand names I'm
familiar with are Power Flour, Full Power, Kyrol, and Montana High Gluten. I
currently use a Pendleton Mills product called "Power High Gluten Flour". I live
in the northwest and that is what my supplier carries.
The Power Flour I use is unbleached and enriched. Unbleached is a real plus. The
all purpose flour you buy in the grocery store has been bleached with chlorine
bleach to make it white and to remove all the nutritional value for storage.
Before it is sold, the nutritional value is added back and the flour is then
enriched. I always buy unbleached and freshly
ground flour. Commercial bread flour gets to market fast and is sold quickly. It
is a fresh product. I don't mind the mill enriching my flour. They know what
they are doing and are adding all good things. They actually enhance the flour.
Vitamin C, Niacin, Thiamine, Riboflavin, Folic Acid and enzymes to improve
baking are added to my Power Flour. The only thing this
product is lacking is that it is not stone ground. Stone ground is best because
commercial flour mills use steel wheels in grinding. The wheels heat up and bake
off some of the nutritional value in the grinding process. Some purest baker's will grind their own flour
fresh as needed. I personally prefer commercial bread flour. It's fresh and it's
done right.
The real value of a high gluten flour is in the baking. High gluten flour
produces bigger fuller loaves than AP flour. The Gluten is the "glue" that holds
the dough together and allows the gas produced by the yeast to stretch the air
pockets to the fullest without breaking. You need to locate a source for high
gluten flour to advance in your bread baking and become an artisan baker. It is
a must!
A good example is pizza. I made a pizza with AP flour recently because I was out
of bread flour. It was not all as good as I am used to making. The crust was just not right. It did not taste right
to me and it did not have the right chew. I make pizza like the best pizza shop and this was
sub-par. A lot of people have never used bread flour in pizza and probably
think you just can't make really good pizza at home. Wrong! Also, the "bread
flour" sold in five and ten pound bags in the grocery store is not what I'm
talking about. Sometimes I think it is no more than AP flour with gluten added.
It stiffens up too soon when kneading and is just not the real thing. Any flour
can be used by the beginner for making bread. An artisan will only use the best
available. You can't
go wrong with a 50 pound bag of commercial bread flour. Again, the most
important ingredient in bread baking is the flour.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - Economics of Home Baking
It might be time to start shopping more in stores with cement floors. Money is
tight these days. There is talk of recession and even
depression. Now is a great time to start making your own bread and saving a
little
money in the process.
I like to use the best and freshest ingredients in my bread baking, but
dollars matter. The fifty-pound bag of unbleached bread flour that I have been
buying from a food broker has gone from $14 US in the last year to more than $28 US.
That is just too much to pay. It doubled in price in the last year due to the
increase in energy costs. Remember $145 a barrel oil? With oil now at about $50
US a barrel, my flour is still $28 US! I have just started buying 50
pound bags of bread flour at a big-box store for $14 US. It is bleached vs.
unbleached, but for the money it is a better deal. They also have the best price
on 2 pound bags of active dry yeast.
Home economics used to be taught in schools. We are all watching our money today
and there are ways to save. When using a "lesser" flour, try soaking it for a
few hours before baking. I define a "lesser" flour as one that is not freshly
ground or has a lower than optimum gluten content. My food broker's flour is
freshly ground at the mill and sold within days. Grinding your own flour is
fresh ground by definition. Flour purchased at a big-box store may have been
sitting in a warehouse distribution center for who knows how long. You may not
make that much bread and a 50-pound bag is around for quite a while. The fresher
the flour the better, but when you are watching your money there are things that
you can do.
You can store the flour in your chest freezer. Freezing will preserve the
freshness and moisture content. Keep your yeast in the freezer once you have
opened the bag. Try putting bay leaves in your flour to stop little black bugs
from taking over. If you have bugs, sift the flour to remove them. In a lot of
places around the world the bugs would be considered a source of needed protein.
The idea of soaking the flour in water is because flour loses moisture over
time. The drier the flour, the faster your bread will go stale. Remember, the
baking process simply removes the water from the loaf after it has taken its
shape in the oven. Industry actually measures the moisture content of flour with
expensive metering equipment and uses the results to formulate their batches of
dough. By soaking your flour in water we are
increasing the moisture content of the flour and our resultant loaf will stay
fresher longer. (Note: I never over bake my loaves.)
We will get an added benefit from soaking our flour. Less expensive flour
generally has lower gluten content. All purpose flour has lower gluten content
than bread flour. Premium/artisan bread flour has an even higher gluten content.
By soaking the flour we will activate more of the gluten in our flour. We will
in effect stretch the gluten we have further. We get the effect of having a
higher gluten content than we actually have. We can get better results with a
"lesser" flour. It is a way to make your food dollars go further.
Remember, the gluten is the glue that forms the structure of our loaf. The
gluten forms the air pockets in the loaf. The glue becomes sticky when mixed
with water. It is generally known that kneading activates or works up the
gluten. What I am saying is that soaking adds to the effect of kneading. Soaking
will give you a bigger, fuller, lighter loaf than dough that was kneaded only
and not soaked. That is how we get more from a "lesser" flour without paying
more for a "greater" flour.
To sum all this up do the following: Mix equal parts of flour and water and put
in a tsp. of yeast. Let it sit for a few hours or even over night. Use this
starter in your next batch of bread. Just substitute starter for equal portions
of water and flour as called for.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - Temperature and the Craft of Bread Baking
Controlling temperature in the bread baking process produces
consistent professional results. Temperature monitoring is part of the craft of
bread baking. Get a thermometer and use it. I still measure
temperature to this day when I bake. It might sound a bit compulsive, but
temperature control makes a big difference.
I made a loaf of my signature seven pound pumpernickel rye for pot luck a few days ago. I
wanted the loaf to really impress my friends. As I describe the process note all
the little things I did to control the temperature. Experienced bread bakers and novices alike will pick up a few tricks and get
a bit closer to making that perfect loaf. I'm writing this article to stress
how important temperature is in bread baking.
My seven pound loaf is made using three two pound bread machines. First, I make
a sponge. A sponge is also known as a starter - same thing. I take three cups of warm water and put it in a mixing bowl. Then
add one tsp of active dry yeast. Then add three cups of bread flour. I mix it
with wooden spoon and put a plate over the top and put it in the fridge over
night. (Always use a wooded spoon! - It's tradition only.) Temperature is not
important at this point.
First thing in the morning I take the sponge out of the fridge and feed it. The
sponge is now all bubbled up and ready for the next phase of the process. I put
in one half cup of bread flour and one half cup of warm water and mix it with my
wooden spoon. The flour I add is the food. Then I put the
bowl in the sink with the plate covering the top and fill the sink with warm
water. I want to bring the temperature of the sponge starter up. Every twenty minutes
I drain the water and add new warm water to the sink. After about an hour my
sponge starter is ready to go. The dough is warm. When the dough first came out of the fridge
it was too cold to be used at that time.
This part is really interesting. I take my three two pound bread machines and
put two cups of warm water in each one. Turn on the machines and let then run
for twenty minutes. This is to warm them up. I used to make thirty two pound
loaves on a Sunday. It was an assembly line operation. I found that the first
batch, the first three loaves, were the runt of the litter. The machines were cold. That is
why we run the machines with warm water for twenty minutes before starting the
dough making process.
Now it's time to make the dough. I put one cup of water at 112 degrees, measured
with a candy thermometer, in each machine and add a heaping TBS of active
dry yeast and two TBS of molasses. Put one third of the sponge in each machine.
Put one cup of bread flour in each machine and then add a heaping
tsp of salt and a TBS of oil to each machine. At this point the machines are too
hot and will not start. I remove the bread pans from the machines and take an ice cube and put it on the
temperature sensor on the inside bottom of the machine for a few seconds. I put the pans back in. That does the trick. I press go
and the machines start mixing. I add one half cup of pumpernickel rye meal, one
half cup of dark rye flour, three TBS of caraway seeds, one
half tsp of dill and one quarter tsp of garlic powder to each machine. I use a
cake frosting plastic spatula to help mix things up in the machines by hand. It speeds
up the process and gives me better kneading. I add bread flour as required until
I lose the glossy look on the surface of the dough and get the right touch. The amount of bread
flour is variable to an artisan baker and based on look and touch as explained
in my series.
When the machines are done mixing and kneading the dough I let the dough sit in
the machines to relax for a few minutes. Then take the dough out and braid the three
two pound plus loaves into one big ball of dough and put the seven pound dough
ball on a fifteen inch oiled deep dish pizza pan. I sprinkle meal on the top of
the loaf and then make a tic-tac-toe pattern
on the top of the loaf with a sharp knife. I don't bother with a first rising.
The loaf goes right into the oven at the optimum time. The loaf is light and great for ham and
cheese sandwiches. The size is for looks only and always impresses my friends. It looks like
something out of the middle ages.
Once the dough has risen, I put it in a pre heated oven at three hundred seventy
five degrees. I put my baking stone in the bottom of the oven on the lowest rung
during the pre heating. The loaf, in the fifteen inch pan, goes on the stone. When the loaf
first goes into the oven it gets oven shoot in the first few
minutes of baking. After twenty five minutes I put a tinfoil shield over the top of the
loaf to stop the top from burning. Total baking time is fifty two minutes. The baking
stone is used to stop the bottom from burning. After fifty two minutes I turn off the
oven and take the loaf out of the pan and put it back in the oven on the hot
stone. The loaf will
out gas warm vapors and wet itself if just left to sit on a rack outside the
oven. Keeping
it in the warm over dries up the vapors and keeps the crust artisan crispy.
That is a loaf to brag about. Sometimes I make the loaf with one batch of white dough, (honey instead of molasses and no garlic or dill), one batch of dough as
described and one batch of dough with half as much caraway, ground, and two TBS of
non-flavored caramel coloring. That is the loaf pictured.
Look at all that was done to control temperature: Brought the starter to temperature by
letting it sit in the sink full of warm water; Ran the bread machines with warm
water in them for twenty minutes before starting; Used an ice cube to reset the
temperature senor on the machines; Measured the temperature of the water in each
machine with a candy thermometer; Left the loaf in the warm oven to dry out. I
have heard of people in Europe warming their flour in the oven before baking,
but that is another story. See how important temperature is? All the little steps
make a really big difference.
BREAD BAKING
TIPS - Pizza: Thick Crust vs. Thin Crust
Thin crust pizza is default pizza. If you don't know what you are doing
you will end up with thin crust pizza by default.
I was raised in Upstate New York. Thin crust pizza
was very popular. New York City is famous for their thin crust pizza. On the
other hand, Chicago is famous for their thicker crust deep dish pizza. Thick
crust vs. thin crust is all about personal taste. Producing a thick crust vs.
thin crust pizza is about how and when you make the dough. I have had people
ask me for my secret dough recipe. Dough is dough. There is no secret to dough.
Dough is flour and water and yeast and salt and maybe some oil and maybe some
seasoning.
Yeast baking is a craft. There are a number of variables in making pizza. The
type of flour used makes a big difference. The temperature of the dough making
and storage are variables. The amount and type of yeast are variables. The
time from mixing and kneading till the pizza is put into the hot oven is a
variable. All variables relate to the type of oven used. There are many types of
commercial ovens and then there is the basic home oven. The amount of oil used
to coat the pan, whether or not a corn meal coating is used and the temperature
of the oven are all variables. Whether you use a pan at all is based on the type
of commercial oven and whether or not you use a stone and peel in a home oven.
There are many variables. You have choices based on your hardware - the oven,
pan, stone, etc.
It's really not that complicated. You get what you get. I advise people going
into the pizza business to start with the oven. The pizza you will be serving is
based on your choice of oven type and size. Home ovens are home ovens. Gas vs.
electric does not matter. Commercial ovens run a lot hotter than home ovens and
may heat up to 800 degrees. They are really hot because they need to serve
customers fast. Home ovens don't need to get that hot because we can wait a
little longer for our pizza.
Back to thick vs. thin. In a commercial operation it's all based on work flow.
Same thing goes at home. A lot of pizza shops don't make their own dough. They
buy their dough. It shows up once a day in the morning in trays with lids
holding six balls of dough. Shops that do make their own dough make it once a
day early and store the dough for later use in the same trays. When it's time to
make a pizza they take a ball of dough and press it out on a pan or hand toss it
or just spread it out by hand and put on the ingredients and into the oven. The
work flow I have just described generally produces a thin crust pizza. The yeast
in the dough becomes partially played out over time and therefore the dough
won't rise that much in the oven. To make thin crust at home I make my dough in
the morning and let it sit in the fridge all day before I make my pizza. If I
wait till the next day I will get a really thin crust pizza. Some pizza shops
keep dough for a few days. These are thin crust operations.
I call thin crust default pizza because a novice who does not know how to
work with yeast and does not activate the yeast properly will end up with a thin crust
pizza and very happy - by default. When I make thick crust pizza, I use freshly
made dough. I prefer thicker crust pizza. It's just that simple and it's faster
to make at home. I make the dough, make the pizza, eat the pizza - no waiting.
For pizza shops it's about work flow and marketing. There was an advertising
battle going between two really large pizza chains. One claimed to have fresh
dough, the other aged dough. It went to court and they are probably still
fighting now. No way of making dough is better than another. It's based on
personal taste and the work flow of the operation. You can make either thin
crust or thick crust at home in a home oven. It's all about personal taste. It's
also about knowing the craft of yeast baking. If you don't know the craft, you
will produce thin crust pizza by default.
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Patron
Letters
(Current)
(emai)
January, 10, 2013
Hi Steve:
My name is
****, I baked for many years
commercially in the Marine Corp,
***, *******, bakeries and retirement homes. I
was pretty good in what I did. I also am a good cook! But needless to say even
though I made recipes for anywhere from 100 to 500 portions and know how to
convert a recipe up & down I never really did any major baking at home, except
cakes & cookies. Besides, when I did bake, it ended up
to be enough to feed an Army (or Marines) in my case!!
I only baked bread that
didn't involve yeast & was never able to have my
homemade cinnamon rolls come out to my satisfaction!
Then as you already may know, I purchased your video
bread DVDs and wow! What a
wake up I had! Just realizing the fact to adding more yeast to the recipe would
make up that much difference. I have had 2 tongue cancer operations since 2007
and have had over 13 centimeters of my tongue removed! I now can only eat
pureed foods & really don't have any taste buds any more, so I became very
depressed. Well I got tired of that, and my self pity, that I decided to do
something about it. My success in my food service experience is the fact that I
follow the recipes. I baked 2 loaves of your white bread recipe & my wife &
family loved it, So my wife asked me to make cinnamon rolls for her work,
They to came out perfect! I ended up with 42 rolls out of that recipe!
Not 48, Oh well. I want to thank you for getting me back on track.
But the main reason I am
writing you, besides thanking you,
is to ask for more bread recipes, including the
most important sour dough recipe, but mostly the sour dough starter recipe! Also
the best way to keep and store the breads & sweet breads I make,
that I don't give away. Again, Thank you very much! and looking forward
to hear from you.
Respectfully:
****
LOVE YOUR VIDEO!!!!!!!!!!!!!11:
I'll
be 50 come this summer. I have tried countless times over the years to make
bread. With your ability to TEACH I just finished making my first PERFECT
loaf of bread.
I
can't tell you how much it means to me to have found the PERFECT teacher.
Know what synched it for me? the way you describe the dough asking for more
flour. OMG, you have no idea how that one thing has empowered me as a future
baker. Oh, and just as important was your covering the yeast and how the
problem is probably not enough!!!! Woo hoo!!!!!!
I've
been baking bread for two solid weeks determined not to give up this time.
I'm afraid I was at the end of my rope and ready to give up until I watched
your video. Had I not watched it, I probably would have eventually given up.
I watched it at least five times before I started baking. I'm glad I did,
because once you start you have all kinds of questions that need to be
answered, RIGHT THEN, before you put it into the oven.
Glad
you mentioned different climates render different results, but mostly glad you
allowed for that in your teaching. what a relief!
Thanks
a million!
Jude
XXXXX
Hi Steve, You da Man!!!!:
My wife and I are so glad you put this info on
DVD. I've tried to bake bread in the past and
only been marginally successful. The very first time I tried going by
your instructions making a sponge, the oven temp, and other information,
it yielded us the BEST bread ever!
Coming from an Italian neighborhood on the west
side of Chicago, we were spoiled by great, crusty, fresh, soft on the
inside, flavorful breads and pizza. There is no doubt they were good and
still are BUT the bread I made using just some of your concepts paid off
extremely well for us both taste-wise (excellent) and money-wise (which we
now have to be VERY watchful of). The last time we bought a large loaf
(about the same size as the loaf I made today) it cost over $6!! C'mon!
How can anyone pay that much for a loaf of bread even on an infrequent
basis.
Tomorrow (the starter, a double batch this
time, has been working since 10 a.m.) I'm making bread for our little
neighborhood New Year's Eve gathering at our house. Your bread will be
used both as "bread" and as the base for the turkey dressing or stuffing
whatever you call it as well. So I thought I'd try incorporating some
sautéed onion, rosemary, sage etc., into the loaf for the stuffing and
have the other one more like what we had today. Superb-o-mento my friend!
I don't have any dark bottomed bread pans but I
thought I'd try using my trusty cast iron Dutch Oven tomorrow and see what
kind of results that gets--I'll deflect the heat from the bottom so it
doesn't burn the bread's bottom crust.
Steve, you sure have made saving money, eating
MUCH better bread and having fun doing it a whole lot of fun. You can bet
that on New Year's Eve we'll be telling the neighbors exactly WHY the
bread they'll be telling us, "Tastes better than anything we've ever had
before," does.
Really, really amazed what happened. I don't
think we could even buy bread that good. We'll certainly tell and teach
others.
You're something else and have contributed in a
very positive way to this world--and with Santa running this year with
only about 3.3 reindeer and a light load, what you've done is quite
important.
Greg XXXXX
Hi Steve,
I started baking bread when I retired about 8 years ago. Bought
a lot of books and videos and the like. Most of them worked pretty well. And
most of them required 2 to 3 days to make bread.
To be honest, I can't remember where I came across your videos,
but am glad I did. I lose track of time anymore, but think it was several
months ago I purchased them.
Of all the books and recipes I've accumulated, your method has
become the workhorse in "my bakery". Both my wife and I thoroughly enjoy the
bread using your method and it doesn't take three days. Just this morning my
wife mentioned she was going to visit one of her artist friends and wondered if
I could bake some bread for her to take along. So I made two loaves of the
basic white bread and added 1/2 cup of toasted sunflower seeds to it. That has
become one of our favorites and it makes the best toast ever.
Anyway, thanks again for your great video lessons. They're much
appreciated by us and our friends in Phoenix, AZ.
Bill XXXXX