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Using Bread Machine Mixes In Your Oven
by
Dennis Weaver
You don't have to own a
machine to enjoy the variety of machine mixes. And you don't have to make blocky, square loaves with holes in the bottom. You can make wonderful rolls, traditional sandwich loaves, and artisan loaves with or without the aid of a machine. In this article, we will tell you how to convert any machine mix into great breads by hand, with your stand-type mixer, or with your machine.
First, we'll show you how to bake tempting breads from machine mixes without a machine. We like to make more than one loaf when we bake so we'll use two mixes and combine them. (When we have more than we can use, we slice and freeze it.) We'll mix these in a bowl instead of using our stand-type mixer and bake one in a pan and make one into a classy artisan loaf just to demonstrate versatility.
To mix in a bowl, empty the mixes into a large bowl. Mix the yeast in the warm water and add the mixture to the bowl. Add melted butter. (Be careful to let the butter cool below 140 degrees so that it will not kill the yeast.) Stir with a spatula until the mass starts to stick together. When you cannot comfortably stir any further, dump the dough onto a floured surface and begin kneading. (The dough will likely be slightly wetter than you can handle by hand. A tablespoon or so of flour on the counter should make it just right. Do not add too much flour--a softer dough will rise better.) Knead the dough until it is elastic--ten to twelve minutes. Place it in a greased bowl, cover it, and let it rise until doubled--about an hour.
To mix using a stand-type mixer, empty one of
the mixes into the mixer bowl (or half of one
mix if you are baking a single loaf).
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Add the yeast and the water
and mix with your dough hook on medium speed for
40 seconds--to start to dissolve the yeast. Add
the other mix (or the rest of the mix if you are
baking one loaf) and the melted butter and continue
mixing at medium speed for another four minutes
to develop the gluten. If the dough is too sticky,
add one tablespoon flour. Place the dough in a
greased bowl, cover it and let it rise until doubled--about
an hour.
Once the dough has risen, you may form the dough
into rolls, a pan-shaped loaf, or a free-standing
loaf.
To form a free-standing loaf, pull the dough around
the center creating a taut outer skin and a well-shaped
loaf. Pinch the seams together on the bottom and
place the loaf on a baking sheet that has been
greased and sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover the
loaf and let it rise until doubled--about an hour.
To form a pan-shaped loaf, pull the dough around
the center to form a taut skin and place the loaf
in a large greased 5 x 9-inch loaf pan. Cover
and let rise.
To form rolls, cut away egg-sized chunks of the
risen dough and pull the dough taut around the
center of the roll as you would a loaf, pinching
the seam on the bottom. Place the rolls on a greased
pan, cover, and let rise. One
machine mix should make a dozen medium-sized rolls.
Most artisan loaves are baked with a thicker,
chewier crust than pan-shaped loaves. To create
these crusts, the
is baked in a steamy environment and it is baked
to a higher internal temperature in order to drive
more moisture from the loaf. (Moisture trapped
in the interior of the loaf will migrate to the
crust and soften it.) The internal temperature
of crusty breads should reach 210 degrees. If
you would like to bake a crusty, artisan bread,
visit out site or elsewhere on the internet for
instructions.
Bake the pan-shaped loaf at 350 degrees for 30
minutes or until done. The interior of the loaf
should be at least 190 degrees.
Bake rolls for 18 to 20 minutes at 350 degrees
or until done.
Copyright 2003-2007, The Prepared Pantry (www.prepraredpantry.com
). Published by permission
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Dennis
Weaver is a baker, a recipe designer, and a writer.
He has written many baking guides and How
to Bake, a comprehensive baking and reference
e-book--available free at The
Prepared Pantry which sells baking and cooking
supplies and has a free online baking library.
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