Hi all. I see disposable scalpels for sale on Ebay. They are quite cheap and I would imagine very sharp. Do you think these would work well for scoring dough? Thanks. Dave

Hi~ I have had my DLX mixer for about  two weeks and I cannot for the life of me figure out how to get good gluten development using it, with either the roller/scraper or the  dough hook. I've made my regular sandwich loaves (4 batches) that I've always gotten great results in my Kitchen Aid Pro 600. I bought the DLX in the hopes of making larger batches, and since it gets such glowing reviews I thought I couldn't go wrong. Now I'm not so sure!!

Here's my recipe:

Honey wheat Bread

4 cups warm water

2/3 cup melted butter

2/3 c honey

2/3 cup vital wheat gluten

2 T instant yeast

4 t sea salt

10-12 cups freshly ground white-wheat flour

I mix the liquid ingredients first and whisk in the VWG so it doesn't lump, then add flour (managed to get not quite 10 cups before it was enough), salt and yeast and mix till it came together. I rested it for 20 minutes at this point, then proceeded to try kneading. I managed to get *some* kneading action, I could see the roller indentations on the dough (and good "donutism" as I heard someone call it), but after 12 min of this there was still pretty much NO gluten developement-the dough tore easily and there was no "sproinginess" like I normally get in my Kitchen Aid (2-loaf version) in much shorter times, 6-8 mins . At this point I tried the dough hook. My dough skewered itself on the end of the hook and spun around. Since I have read that newbies tend to think nothing is happening when it is, I decided to  "walk away" and let it do its thing. For 12 more minutes. I did check periodically, poking to see how it was developing, but 12 minutes later, I still wasn't impressed.

While it wasn' terrible, it wasn't springing back like it normally does, and it was not even close to passing a window pane test. I know that may not be the end-all of dough testing, but I could tell just by touching and it not really being springy at all that it wasn't ready. I did a triple rise (2 in the bowl and one in the pans) and it rose well in the bowl, with a so-so rise in the pans. Texture was decent, but a little denser than usual. I can make better dough in my KA or even my bread machine.

Is there something else I could do to increase the kneading action? I have heard others here say they have gotten a good window pane in 7-8 minutes in the DLX~how is that possible? I want to do that too! :o)

Any advice you can give will be greatly appreciated. I am about ready to send this very expensive workhorse back!

Thanks!

Hilary

I know it sounds kinda nutty, but how might a loaf of bread baked in an outdoor gas grill (lid down, of course) turn out? Would it taste strange? Would it bake properly?  If it is possible, what are some tips for success?

I have been making the same quick wheat recipe in my Zojirushi model BBCC-V20 for years with only rare problems. Fresh ground wheat and barley with a bit of fine milled whole wheat for texture. Recently every loaf seems unmixed, it sits in two partly connected squares and rises only about 1/3 of the way, very dense. I have tried everything I can think of in the mix reciepe and am sure it is a machine problem (mostly sure that is). I look at the abnormal indicator page of the manual and it does talk about a problem where the motor does not operate during knead cycle due to the weight of the contents...excessive load on the motor.

Has anyone else experienced similar problems or can you point me to a solution?

Thanks.

Hi Everyone,

I have been a long time reader of this forum, but this is my first post, and I am in need of some advice. I have been baking for the past 2 years with good success, when it was time for me to pick up and move across province to go to university. My old stove was one of the smaller ovens, which was perfect for creating good steam, and my loaves were great, though I could not bake a long baguette!!!

So I was delighted when I arrived at my new apartment which had a brand new stove. It has a digital temperature gauge (this has to be good I thought), it is a larger capacity as well (also good I thought), but no... nothing. My loaves bake, but they don't brown!!!! I get no crust!

Today I made my weekly Hamelmans Toast Bread (though I use an au levain), it was looking perfect, but it did not brown!!!! I left it in there for 20 more minutes and still nothing. No Browning, no crust.. I am devastated. This is the 3rd loaf that has been like this.

Has anyone had any experience with this??? I believe that the problem might be temperature, but I don't have a thermometer at the moment and cannot test it, and I thought maybe someone here could think of something.

Thanks in advance for any help or thoughts

The Mighty Twix

Happy Canada Day!

I'm in a bit of a quandary about a mixer purchase. So far I have done all my mixing or kneadind in a bread machine or lately by hand. I'm thinking a mixer would be nice. I like the 1000W, 7Qt Cuisinart at Costco since returns are hassle free if there is a problem. It's $499 CDN and I'm not sure how that compares to Bosch or Electrolux. The other option that interests me is a used 20 Qt Hobart purchased online. I see a few at reasonable prices now and then. Is a 20 Qt mixer huge overkill for the 3 or 4 loaves I make a week? Actually I know it is, but is it even feasible? Would a 20 Qt be able to do a reasonable job on small batches? I'd hate to buy one and not be able to put it to use. Any input would be appreciated. TIA. Dave

I finally took possession of a 15 L Hobart I purchased second hand 6 weeks ago.   Had to wait a while for it to be delived from 200 miles away and it arrived yesterday.

The first trial was a double batch of Jasons Corcodillo Quick Ciabatta which went very well.  The only puzzling aspect was how far to let the gluten develop in the mixer.  I think I under kneaded, but a few folds as it was rising seemed to help.   Like the recipe says, the oven spring is very good indeed.

A soft, holey crumb resulted and a bread that might need to be eaten the next day as its difficult to slice up !

Next time I'll try leaving it to bake longer to get the crust to dry out just a bit further.

I'm looking forward to trying out all those wet and slack dough recipies that are such a pain without a machine.

Paul. 

I finally got tired of making my Kitchen Aid mixer smoke, and ordered a Magic Mill DLX 2000 (Electrolux Assistent). I made a variation on the New York Deli Rye from _Breadmaker's Apprentice_ (I didn't use the onion or caraway), using 100% of a mixed rye/white flour barm instead of the sponge. Based on what I'd read online, I started with the liquid ingredients in the mixer, then added dry slowly. It did a beautiful job of kneading, I think I'm in love.

I got it from Pleasant Hill, along with 150 pounds of wheat and rye. Now I just have to wait for my Mill-Rite to get here :(

Loyd

Hello Everybody,

It's been awhile since I have posted, but I have been lurking and doing a lot of baking since my brief apprenticeship at Pearl Bakery in Portland.

I am getting ready to purchase my first spiral mixer and I have had no luck finding any independant mixer reviews.  I am wanting to start in the one bagger class range that will mix around 70 to 80 pounds, but there is a huge price variance between something like TMB's SPL50 and Fleetwoods AMEs. 

I know the quality is superb on the Esmachs and Kempers, but they are out of my budget right now as I am trying to buy new.

Can anybody throw me some websites that have some unbiased reviews?  How about the Fleetwoods?  I know that they are made in China, but how do they mix and hold up?

I will be grateful for any help and or info.

Darren   

Hey everybody,

I'm looking at buying a 20 qt mixer for some light commercial baking (for a local café, farmers market, etc.) and possibly some intense home baking.

I've been finding tons of Hobart A-200 in the $1200-1800 range, often with questionable history and function. A perk is that there are tons of reasonably priced accessories and replacement parts out there.

I've also been finding a bunch of Univex 20 qt mixers for $500-1000, some of which have been checked out or refurbished. Extra parts and bowls, however, seem a bit expensive when compared with the Hobart.

So obviously Hobart is the golden standard in the mixer world but I'm seeing some great deals on the Univex models. It seems hard to pass up a Univex since I can purchase two (or even three) for the same price as a Hobart.

What are your histories with these mixers? How do they stack up to Hobart? Any info would be helpful!

thanks in advance,

Tom