Bread dough

I am not sure of that, shrivelfig.. though I think that when I last made pannetone it involved a third rising and that is quite delicate when baked the old fashioned lengthy recipe way. I am posting mainly to welcome you to a2k and say I love your screen name.

The Art of Baking Bread
Eating Wisely: The Art of Baking Bread
by Michele Brode
Boulder, Colorado USA
From NEW BEGINNINGS, Vol. 16 No. 4, July-August 1999, pp. 134-136

The art of baking bread is, in many respects, like the art of breastfeeding: the science behind each is fairly standard while the art of each is unique to you and your baby or you and your bread dough. Just as using basic techniques (positioning and latch-on) can help you breastfeed your children, using basic ingredients and techniques can lead you from a fantastic loaf of bread through pizza, sweet rolls, and on to your own creative endeavors.

The basic ingredients found in bread are flour, water, sugar, salt, and yeast.

Flour

The type of flour - whole wheat, processed white bread flour, or all-purpose flour - is important. The following recipes use a combination of whole wheat flour and white flour. Using only whole wheat flour would necessitate an adjustment of the other ingredients' measurements. Other types of flour such as rye, amaranth, and oat should not be used in these recipes because the proteins glutenin and gliadin are plentiful only in wheat flour. These proteins form the structure of breads made with yeast. As these proteins are mixed with water, they form a net (gluten) that captures tiny bubbles of carbon dioxide given off as the yeast eats the starch in the flour, thereby causing the bread to rise.

Both bread flour and all-purpose white flour will make good bread. Buying great flour will take you a long way toward great bread. Using a "hard" wheat bread flour is best because it has a higher protein content. All-purpose flour can be used with good results, but cake flour is "soft" wheat and should be avoided when baking bread. Organic flours taste the best and are the best for you but can be more expensive. Bread flour should be purchased and used within a couple of months. Any flour that has been sitting around for more than a few months may have turned rancid and should be discarded. Buying flour from a reputable store that has a quick turnover will ensure that the flour you buy is fresh.

Water

Water activates the protein in the bread. You don't need any special kind of water unless the water in your area is highly chlorinated. That can sometimes kill yeast. If you have trouble getting yeast to work, try using bottled water instead of tap water.

Yeast

Yeast makes bread rise and helps develop the flavor. Long, slow risings will give you rich, tasty bread. Short risings leave the bread tasting yeasty. This is because a long rise gives the yeast a chance to develop flavor by eating the starch in the flour and turning it into carbon dioxide and ethyl alcohol.

Yeast comes in many forms. Active dry yeast is the most reliable form. It can be bought in packets or in jars. If you begin to bake bread regularly, it is more economical to purchase yeast in jars. Remember that yeast has a shelf life and should be used before the expiration date. If you are unsure if the yeast is "active" you can mix the yeast with water and sugar and "proof" it. If it is still good, it will begin to foam and bubble in a few minutes. If it is too old, it will not foam or bubble.

Salt

Salt adds flavor. The less processed the salt you buy the better for your bread. Plain sea salt adds the best flavor and reacts well with the other ingredients. It also has many trace minerals not found in plain table salt. Salt also regulates the growth of the yeast, so don't skimp on what a recipe asks for. If you do, the yeast will grow differently and you may end with a flop.

Sugar

Sugar is necessary to jump-start the yeast. Without the sugar, the yeast would take much longer to begin to eat away at the starch in the flour and, consequently, the rising times would be much longer.

Mixing

All of your ingredients should be at room temperature, because if they are too cold the yeast will not grow. However, the yeast may come straight from the refrigerator. When you mix these ingredients you are starting the process of unraveling the proteins in the flour and letting the water work on them. It's much more than just combining the ingredients, so mix for awhile or have your children help. It's the perfect messy, gooey task.

Kneading

Kneading builds the net of protein for your bread. It will start out gloppy and end up elastic and firm. That elasticity tells you that the proteins are strong and evenly distributed through your dough. How can you tell if you've reached the "elastic and firm" stage? Natalie Dupree, a well-known television chef and cookbook author, describes properly kneaded bread dough as "smooth as a baby's bottom." There is no right way to knead bread. However, folding the dough and pushing it down and away from you with the heel of the hand will make sure that the proteins are stretched and distributed. Knead for at least 5-8 minutes. You cannot over knead bread by hand but you can certainly ruin it by not kneading enough.

Rising

This is when the yeast eats the starch from the sugar source and makes carbon dioxide and ethyl alcohol. It is important that you keep an eye on it. Too fast and the bread will not taste good. And too much rising or too little and you end up with a doorstop. These recipes use a long slow cool rise. About 70 degrees is good. But it will simply take longer if it's cooler and faster if it's warmer. To see if your dough is done rising, stick a finger in the surface. If the dent does not spring back or fill in, the dough is done. If the dough collapses, it's overdone.

Baking

Baking turns your science experiment into an aromatic and tasty loaf of bread. First the yeast gives another burst of growth because of the warmth in the oven. Then the bread hardens the protein structure so that your loaf stays tall and full of those tiny air bubbles that make it springy. Then it kills off the yeast and bakes out some of that yeasty flavor.

You can tell when your bread is done by time but it's not always going to be exactly what the recipe says. You can also use an instant-read thermometer to test the internal temperature of the bread-it should be 200 degrees Fahrenheit. But easier than that, take it out of the pan and thump the bottom. If it sounds hollow, it's done. If it sounds thick and like a thud, it needs more time.

Take the bread out of the pan and cool on a rack or anything that lets air circulate. This will keep the bottom crust from getting soggy. If you can, let the bread cool one half-hour before you cut it. This will keep it from failing apart. Then enjoy!

Bread baking is not foolproof, but mistakes are usually edible, and you will make a better loaf next time. There are many great books to help you along if you have problems. The best are Beard on Bread by James Beard and Cookwise by Shirley O. Corriher. Trust your instincts, watch your dough, and be flexible. These are skills you have learned from being a mother and they will make you a great baker too.

Bread making's third rise
Making Whole Wheat Bread

Kneading
The best kneading surface will allow you to comfortably rest your palms on the surface without having to bend over. A table or kitchen counter works for most people. Kneading is when you push on the bread, fold it over on itself, and push it again -- over and over. For one loaf, about 300 strokes should be about the right amount. (That takes me about 15 minutes.)

As you knead you may need to sprinkle a little flour on the kneading surface to keep it from sticking. Don't add too much. Or, you may need to wet your hands if the dough is a little dry. As you knead it the dough will become less sticky. It is better to be a little too wet than too dry. If it is too dry it will not rise adequately.

To test whether it is fully kneaded try the windowpane test: stretch out a small bit of the dough as thinly as possible. If it can gently be stretched almost paper thin without breaking, you have kneaded it enough.

First Rise

Shape dough into a smooth round and place it seam side down into a bowl large enough for the dough to double or even triple in size. Cover the bowl to prevent the dough from drying out. If you are in a hurry place it in a warm place. Otherwise, leave it at room temperature (around 70 degrees F.). If you want to slow it down (maybe to fit your schedule) then put it into the refrigerator. That way you could leave it overnight.

Many suggest letting the dough rise until it has doubled in volume. That is not a dependable test. It is better to use the finger poke test.

Finger poke test: Stick a moistened finger gently about 1/2 inch into the dough, then remove it. Does it feel firm or spongy? If it feels firm and the hole fills in a little, then more rising time is needed. (If the hole does not fill in, but instead expands a bit and slumps downward, it has risen too long.) If the dough feels spongy and the hole does not fill in at all, the dough has risen enough and should be deflated.

Second Rise

Deflating: Press your moistened hand gently into the center of the dough. Then flatten the sides. Carefully take dough from bowl and reshape it into a small ball and replace it into the bowl and cover it again for the second rise.

The dough will rise about twice as fast the second time. Use the finger poke test above to determine when it is finished rising.

The second rise can also be done with the dough in the refrigerator. It will take much longer but will result in even better bread.

Shaping

Before shaping, place dough on kneading surface top side down. If necessary, dust the kneading surface lightly with flour to keep it from sticking. Flatten the dough into a circle about an inch thick, pressing the gas bubbles out of it. Then fold the dough over on itself all the way around and form a ball again.

Cover with a damp cloth or inverted bowl and allow it to soften or relax, which will usually take about 10 minutes.

Then place dough again top side down on kneading surface. Again, flatten it into a circle about an inch thick. Fold the dough down on itself to where it almost covers itself. Then begin pressing the dough from one side to the other and let the gas come out the edge. Fold this in from the sides, so that the dough is about 2/3 the length of your bread pan. Roll the dough toward you snugly so it does not trap air pockets. Press the ends and the seam together to seal them. Then place the dough in the center of your greased pan with the seam down. Press the dough gently to cover the bottom of the pan.

Third Rise (in pan)

The third rise should take about half the time the second rise did. Keep the top of the dough from drying out. One way is to keep it covered with a damp cloth.

This time, do not use the finger poke test, but the finger press test to determine when it has risen enough and is ready for baking.

Finger press test: Press gently on dough with moist fingertip. At first it feels firm and the identation fills in rapidly. Halfway though the rise, it feels spongy on the surface but firm underneath. When ready for baking, it feels completely spongy and the indentation fills in slowly. If you wait until the dent from your finger remains, you have waited too long. It is better to put bread in the oven a little early rather than a little late.

Baking
Cook in the center of your oven. Preheat the oven so it will be 350 degrees F. when the bread is ready to put in. It should take about an hour at this temperature. If the place you are cooking in is not hot enough, it will just take longer to cook. If you use no sweetener or fat in your dough, you can cook at a higher temperature and it will get done sooner. (Cooking at a higher temperature will give the bread even more taste.) Many ovens have hot spots so you may need to turn the loaf after a half hour or so.

To keep bread moist, spray a little water on the top right before putting it in oven. Also, spray some water on your oven sides or baking tiles when putting bread in. It is also helpful to place some hot water in another pan as you start cooking the bread.

If you are baking without a pan, roll the bottom of the dough in coarse cornmeal before placing it on the baking tiles to prevent sticking.

Just a couple of ad-ons: Sugar is not absolutely necessary to make good bread. Also, what in a home kitchen would be a third rising is the proofing stage of bread-baking in a professional kitchen. They have these neat warmers (proofers) where the molded bread sits for a quick final rise before being baked. Multiple slow rising does contribute to a more compact crumb, without lots of air bubbles. It also contributes to the flavour, making the bread more complex on the palate.

Bread dough
Thanks, all. I think I'll try the triple rising soon. I have to fit it all into my schedule, so this will take a bit of planning. I'll report on the results.