Posted in Homestead Kitchen
There has been much discussion for hand made bread versus machine made bread. Hand made means doing all the kneading by hand, using no tools but spoons to assist. Machine made means using a mixer of any brand or a bread maker, and having the machine knead the bread for you. Bread makers can also bake your bread for you. And they are my favorite.
I have owned bread makers since the early 90Â’s. At first it was the old style that made round loaves. I didnÂ’t like the look of them but they made good bread. It had a timer and I was able to put the ingredients in, set the timer, leave for work, and have fresh bread ready when we came home. However, the stirring paddle made a big whole in the bottom of the bread and I could not get used to the round shape.
But I soon discovered the “dough” cycle. Now, THIS was more like it!!! Have the machine make the dough and I could shape it anyway I wanted for all kinds of bread.
My son-in-law, Ken, fell in love with my pizzas. If he knew I was making pizzas with my homemade, machine-kneaded dough, he would break speed limits to get to our house! He would also ‘pig out’ on my rolls and buns. A guy like that can win the heart of any mother-in-law!!
Since that day of discovery, I have worn out at least 3 bread makers. Very rarely do I bake in it, but the dough cycle gets used constantly. I have made all kinds of bread; French, Italian, rye, whole wheat, white. Buns, large loaves, small mini-loaves, breakfast rolls and dinner rolls. I have become famous in the family for the rolls I make. Even my Peanut Bread, which is the newest bread on my list.
The secret, I believe, is the kneading done by the machine. My hands are not very strong any more, and I must save them for spinning, weaving and typing, so itÂ’s a win-win situation for me. Homemade breads with little or no labor effort on my part.
I have tried many different flours. The typical bread machine breads call for bread flour. The typical handmade bread recipes call for all-purpose flour. There is a difference between them. If you substitute bread flour instead of all-purpose flour for a recipe, then you need to add more water. If you go the other way and substitute all-purpose for bread flour, you need to add less water. The best way to tell is to watch the kneading process and when the dough is in the pretty little ball in the bottom of the machine, lift some out to see the stickiness of it. If itÂ’s too dry, add more water; if itÂ’s too sticky, add more flour. Simple as that!
If you are following a traditional handmade recipe, then put the ingredients in backwards. Put the liquid in first and the yeast in last. It makes the mixing easier.
Next week on the Homestead Kitchen, I will share one of my favorite roll recipes!
