13
Knowing your ingredients
Introduction
Waking to the smell of homemade bread baking in
the kitchen is one of the most comforting memories of
childhood. Can you remember rushing downstairs to
taste the bread, hot out of the oven, with butter
melting on top? What a great way to start the
morning! The Morphy Richards Breadmaker can create
that same experience every morning.
There's very little effort on the part of the baker,
because this Breadmaker is a sophisticated appliance
with a computer memory that does all the work for
you. Just follow the recipe instructions, and wake up to
fresh baked bread in your Breadmaker. But don't stop
at baking bread in this appliance. Besides being able to
do all kinds of speciality breads, including wholemeal,
you can also prepare doughs for croissants, bagels,
doughnuts, pizzas and more. Everything is easy and
tastes homemade, because it is.
Understanding baking
It is often said that cooking is an art relying on the
creativity of the chef while baking bread is much more
of a science. The process of combining flour, water and
yeast results in a chemical reaction that produces
bread. Read the following information carefully to
gain a better understanding of the importance each
ingredient plays in the breadmaking process.
Important special note on flours
Flours, while visibly similar, can be very different by
virtue of how they were grown, milled, stored, etc.
You may find that you will have to experiment with
different brands of flour to help you make that perfect
loaf. A Baking Tips Guide has been provided on pages
26-27 of this book to assist you with these experiments.
Storage is also very important, as all flours should be
kept in a secure, airtight container.
All purpose flour / plain flour
All-Purpose Flour is a blend of refined hard and soft
wheat flours especially suitable for making cake
breads. This type of flour should be used for recipes in
the cake/quick bread section.
Strong plain flour / bread flour
Bread Flour is a high gluten/protein flour that has
been treated with conditioners that give the dough a
greater tolerance during kneading. Bread Flour
typically has a higher gluten concentration than All
Purpose Flour; however, depending on different
milling practices this may vary. Strong plain flour or
bread flour is recommended for use with this
Breadmaker.
Whole wheat flour/wholemeal flour
Whole Wheat Flour/Wholemeal Flour is milled from
the entire wheat kernel which contains the bran and
germ and makes it heavier and richer in nutrients than
All Purpose Flour. Breads made with this flour are
usually smaller and heavier than white loaves due to
the sharp edges of the bran and the germ cutting the
gluten strands. To overcome this Whole Wheat
Flour/Wholemeal Flour is usually mixed with Bread
Flour or Strong Plain Flour to produce a high light
textured bread.
Self-raising flour
Self Raising Flour contains unnecessary leavening
ingredients that will interfere with bread and cake
making. It is not recommended for use.
Bran
Bran (unprocessed) & Wheat Germ are the coarse
outer portions of the wheat or rye grains separated
from flour by sifting or bolting. They are often added
in small quantities to bread for nutritional enrichment,
heartiness and flavour. They are also used to enhance
the texture of bread.
Oatmeal
Oatmeal comes from rolled or steel-cut oats. They
are used primarily to enhance flavour and texture.
Yeasts (active dry yeast)
Yeast through a fermentation process produces gas
(carbon dioxide) necessary to make the bread rise.
Yeast must be able to feed on sugar and flour
carbohydrates in order to produce this gas. Active dry
granular yeast is used in all recipes that call for yeast.
There are basically three different types of yeast
available, fresh, dry and instant quick rising. It is
recommended that traditional dry yeast be used,
however, instant quick rising can also be used in lesser
amounts. (Note: The recipes in this cookbook were
developed using traditional dry yeast). Fresh or
compressed cake yeast is not recommended as they
will produce poor results. Store yeast according to
manufacturers instructions. Ensure your yeast is fresh
by checking its expiration date. Once a package or can
of yeast is opened it is important that the remaining
contents be immediately resealed and refrigerated as
soon as possible for future use. Often bread or dough,
which fails to rise, is due to stale yeast being used. The
following test can be used to determine whether your
yeast is stale and inactive:
1
Place half cup of lukewarm water into a small bowl
or cup.
2
Stir 1 tsp of sugar into the water then sprinkle 2
tsp. of yeast over the surface.
3
Place bowl or cup in a warm area and allow to sit
for 10 minutes undisturbed.
4
The mixture should foam and produce a strong
yeast aroma. If this does not occur, discard mixture
and start again with another packet of dried yeast.
