Author Topic: Bread (Read 13059 times)

Nadir · « **Reply #25 on:** July 17, 2012, 01:17:18 AM »

My husband makes all our bread. Never used a breadmaker. always an oven or very rarely a griddle. We buy a bag of wheat (probably 25kg I think) from the feed and saddle shop. He grinds the wheat fresh each time using a Samap electric stonegrinder. So it is always fresh, delicious and nutritious. He's been doing it 20 years and still occasionally has a flop, so don't be downhearted if you have an occasional failure.

JohnGrey · « **Reply #26 on:** July 17, 2012, 07:16:46 AM »

I've been baking bread for quite a number of years. It's something that my mother and I used to do for fun, and I've done it virtually every week of my adult life. My only tips for bread-making are to make certain you measure precisely, use enough salt (it's a great stabilizer that helps even out the loaf), and that the most important part of the process is the knead-rise cycle. The number of times that you knead and let rise, or using an different second leavening, greatly affects the taste and texture of the bread. For instance, if you're making a bread like challah (or any bread that's heavy in sugar, butter or eggs) one can really improve how the bread comes out by refrigerating the loaf after the first leavening, for at least six hours, a second leavening and then baking.

songbird · « **Reply #27 on:** July 17, 2012, 09:26:19 PM »

Sweet (swedish) tea ring.
1 pck yeast
1/2 cup warm water (105- 115)
1/2 cup warm milk
1/3 cup butter and 1/3 cup of sugar
1 tsp salt
1 egg
Dissolve yeast in warm water, in large bowl. Stir in milk, sugar, butter, salt, egg (warm egg, not cold) and add 2 cups flour. Beat (you may use a mixer) Then work in another 1 1/2 - 2 cups more flour til it is smooth and no longer sticky. Place in a warm place.( you can pre heat the oven to 100 and then turn off, 80 degrees is warm) Place a cover/ towel over and let rise to double about 1 -1/2 hours. Punch down the dough and shape. Roll 1/2 of dough to a 15" X 9" rectangle. Smear melted butter on dough, not heavy. Then put filling on such as cinnamon/sugar (or any filling you like) sugar about 1/2 cup and 2 tsp cinnamon. Sprinkle it on the smeared butter. Seal the ends. Do the other dough the same.Put sealed edges down on greased cookie/pizza sheet. Shape into a ring. Cut 2/3 of the way through ring at one inch intervals. You are making a fanned out ring laying sections out a bit, a flare look. Heat at 350- 375. Have some aluminum foil to cover the outside of the ring into the cooking so as not to burn, like you do with pies. You can decorate the tea ring with icing or glazes, nuts or cherried cherries to look festive. You can also use the tea ring at Easter time and fill the middle ring with hard boiled eggs. Great for breakfast. You could also shape in the form of a candy cane.

Tea Ring for a meal! Use the same recipe as above with some changes: water 1 cup(using no milk) use less sugar about 2 tablespoons sugar is enough, use shortening instead of butter. Make up the dough and let rise. Then form in the same way; 2 rectangles and fill. Fill with tuna, one egg, some sauted onions and shredded cheese. Be sure the tuna is dry. Or use chicken chopped, or whatever filling you like. Put some slits on the top of the bread rolls for vents. And bake and serve with cheese sauce.

Calzone: same recipe or you may use bisquick. I use regular bread dough. For this recipe one roll is made, that is a larger rectangle rolled out. For filling: in a skillet sautee onion, gr. peppers in thin slices in 2 tablespoons of Italian dressing. Then spread that on your rectangle and then use thin sliced meats, very thin, and cheese, to your liking. You would like to get your meat at room temp and not cold before putting in the roll. Roll it up. and pinch closed. In this calzone it is not a spiral roll up like the Swedish tea ring, it is folded and pinched with air vents, slits and bake. Oh, this is so good! I watch for luncheon meat on sale. When due date comes up our store will take off 50% and even 75% and what a treat. Watch your dairy and they too can have dough ready to use! When you have that combination, it's time to make a calzone!

songbird · « **Reply #28 on:** July 17, 2012, 09:44:05 PM »

I love making bread. Our children made the Swedish tea ring the Tradition for Christmas. There is no Christmas without the Swedish Tea Ring. My sister got a blue ribbon for this. I am looking for pots that are small and like plant pots with a glazed enterior. I bought them as a set of 6 years ago and I love them for making individual bread pots at everyones table setting. I can not find them to buy. It makes me love my pots even more. If anyone spies them, please let me know. They are not ruffins(?) used for custards. My daughter would like to have pots like ma. If not she will have to wait til my death. Ha!

Pretzels are alot of fun. Easy! One yeast packet, 1 cup warm water, 2 1/2 cups of flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 tablespoon honey. (honey makes bread soft,,chewy) Put aluminum foil on cookie sheet and powder with flour. shape your pretzel and brush with egg yolk for gloss. Melt choc. chips, or cheese sauce or sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or powder sugar. As a family we put on the living room floor the plastic TWISTER GAME and put all the goodies there for fun and easy clean up.

Pizza dough: same idea, but add fine shreded cheese and use onion powder and garlic powder and use honey, it makes for a great texture. I roll out the dough on a greased cookie sheet with a can good( can of peas or whatever) it is the right size for rolling it out. Let rise about 20 min or so and add your goodies on top. Don't put cheese on top, put something over the cheese, mushrooms or peppers onions and that way the cheese will melt nicely and not burn.

Tiffany · « **Reply #29 on:** July 18, 2012, 10:48:19 AM »

Thank you Songbird! :)