Well, here was my first attempt at making Reinhart's Whole Grain hearth bread. I just finished it this morning after having both the biga and soaker in my refridgerator for two days. I have made loaves before, real simple ones though, some turn out fine, some are bricks. Always with organic whole grains though especially since I am the grocery buyer at my local co-op and we recieve fresh, organic, locally milled flours...and it cost me a little less than the normal shopper : )

Any thoughts? I'd love to hear comments! One thing I noticed though is the crumb is very tight : /

Mild Rey bread Attempt

 Being a new member in this cool informative site, i would like to share my newest attempt to bake a Mild Rye loaf (50% AP). Pictures attached will do the talking. However, the crumb was gilatinous and rubbery, beacuse the dough was very hydrated. The end result, had a bland taste rubbery crumb, though airy and somewhat spongy. I'll reduce hydration next time.

I don't have any vital gluten, so i kneaded the dough in running water to get rid of some starch.

Iam learning as i go..

I hope I don't double post--my first try seems lost.

I like to make King Arthur's Multi-Grain Loaf (http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/multi-grain-loaf-recipe ) but it is still a bit heavy and stales quickly.  Dan Leopard suggests using sourdough starter along with the yeast to help the loaf stay moist and enhance the flavor.  He suggests that you add 150 g starter for every 500 g of flour in the recipe (approx. 30%).

Does that mean ADDING 150 g starter to the recipe for every 500g of flour or does it mean REPLACING 150 grams for every 500 g. flour.  My inclination is the latter.  In the above recipe, for example, there are 14 oz of flours in the recipe.  4.2 oz is 30%, so I would add 4.2 oz of starter, replacing 2.1 g. flour and 2.1 g. water.  But is that right, or should I just be adding 4.2 g. starter to the recipe as it stands????

My other question is that this recipe calls for "Whole Grain Bread Improver".  I make my own by adding vital wheat gluten plus a little vinegar.  Do I still need to do this if I'm adding sourdough starter, or does the starter replace the "improver"???  My inclination is to continue to add the vital wheat gluten to help the structure, but the vinegar to acidify it won't be necessary.

Opinions please?????

Janknitz

I've recently found (for various health reasons) I need to switch to a low glycemic diet.

Breads 'are' on it, however, they now must be wholegrain, with as little finely ground flours as possible...argh!

Anyone have any recipes they'd care to share, or opinions on this?

Thanks--I really don't want to give up all my breads.

Should I increase the yeast content?  What do you all think?  What variations do y'all (or you all) foresee?

Molasses Bread



1 cup whole milk
1/3 cup molasses
1/2 teaspoon active yeast
3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup rye flour

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup rolled oats

1/4 teaspoon salt


Scald milk, and cool rapidly to "blood warm."  Once cooled, mix milk, molasses, and yeast; do some dishes, and allow to air dry.  Slowly add flours, oats, and salt to liquid mixture.  Cover bowl with plastic, and allow contents to sit for some hours.  Spoon into oiled muffin pan, and/or shape as 1/2-inch thick round.  Bake at 400 degrees F.

I tried out this recipe:

http://www.breadtopia.com/spelt-bread-recipe/

And it was great!

I especially loved the honey, which was added to aid in fermentation, but left a nice residual sweetness behind as well.  I think I might have had a bit extra honey in there when I made it.

The ingredients were thus:

530 grams (about 5 cups well fluffed up) whole spelt flour
350 grams (~1+1/2 cups) water
10 grams (1+1/2 tsp) salt
3 Tbs honey or sugar or 2 Tbs agave
1/4 cup sourdough starter

The video goes into details which I've summarized below:

You basically combine the ingredients and let sit for 3 hourr at room temperature, doing a single stretch-and-fold at one hour intervals.  You then let it bulk ferment overnight, pinch the top to make a tight skin and seal, let sit in a proofing basket for an hour and a half and bake until 200F on the inside.

Has anyone else tried this recipe?  I think this is the best wheat bread I've tasted in my (short baking) life.

I like buying Arnold's WW breads and Thomas's english muffins that are high in fiber- more than your normal "whole grain" products that you can buy.  Does anyone know how they add the extra fiber in their bread products, to make them even healthier,

Is there a way to assess a recipe for the nutrient data, to find the fiber content?  I'd specifically like to know how the fiber can be increased at home though.

Thanks a bunch!

Does anyone know if there is any qualitative difference in the nutritional value of flour that has been ground by hand as opposed to flour which has been ground by an electric mill?

People who juice their own juices say that slower is better. The heat generated by a fast motor destroys nutrients from the vegetable.

Is this also true of milling flour?

If a small electric mill can grind 100 pounds of flour in one hour I imagine the heat generated must be significant. But then again, flour intended for bread gets cooked.

I am looking for a way to lighten up a loaf of whole grain bread made with freshly ground wheat. Currently I use... 5-6 cups of flour, I start with 5 and work my way up until the dough feels right 1 tb of salt 1/3 cup oil 1/3 cup honey 1 TB yeast proofed with 1 cup of warm water an additional cup of warm water. This makes a great roll, but when I tried to make a loaf it is just too heavy and does not make a good bread for slicing. I am looking for something a little lighter like the texture closer to a comercial loaf of bread or that of the honey wheat bread served at steakhouses like outback or lonestar. I would prefer to stick to only my fresh ground whole grain (currently hard white wheat, hard red is available locally also)  Any help?

BTW, I am not a baker and I have very little experience in the baking department, I just love fresh baked bread and there only seems one way to get it, Make it yourself.

I bake my bread in cast iron loaf pans. I love how the bread (using PR WGB recipes) tastes but my crust is always heavy, thick, and not so good. I want the convenience of baking in loaf pans, but I would like a softer, thinner, crust. What am I doing wrong? What can I do to improve the crust?