| Author | |
JenniferS
Forum All-Star
Joined: Nov 09 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1049
|
| Posted: June 07 2008 at 1:49pm | IP Logged
|
 |
|
I have been baking our bread for several months. I try to make it with whole wheat flour only, and I've been getting a decent rise. A friend just bought a grain mill and we ground our own wheat flour. We both baked bread with the freshly ground wheat, but we did not get a good rise at all. My friend added extra gluten to her's, I did not. Our loaves look about the same. What did we do wrong? How can we get freshly ground wheat to rise?
Thanks.
Jen
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
JodieLyn
Forum Moderator
Joined: Sept 06 2006
Location: Oregon
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 12234
|
| Posted: June 07 2008 at 1:58pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
how odd.. my freshly ground wheat makes a much lighter bread than purchased ww flour.
This is the recipe I use:
BEST WHOLE WHEAT BREAD
2 loaf version for the KitchenAid
2 cups water (110 degrees)
1 Tbsp. yeast (SAF instant)
2 c ww flour
Stir to mix well, then cover and let sponge 30 minutes. Turn machine on to stir to "punch it down;"
add:
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup honey
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
3 c ww flour
Mix to blend. If needed add more flour by 1/4-1/2 cupfuls until dough cleans the sides of the bowl and is no longer sticky. Knead on #2 for 6-8 minutes. The flour amount is approximate; use only enough flour the cause the dough to pull away from the sides of the mixer bowl. Do not add more flour.
Cover with damp towel. Let dough rise in covered bowl 30 minutes until doubled. Turn machine on to punch down, remove from bowl to oiled counter, divide into two pieces. Form into loaves and place in greased loaf pans. Let rise in warm oven (turned off) until 1 1/2" above the rim of the pans. With loaves still in oven, turn oven on and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cover with clean damp towel to soften crust.
__________________
Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
JenniferS
Forum All-Star
Joined: Nov 09 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1049
|
| Posted: June 07 2008 at 2:34pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Jodie,
We used mostly red wheat and some white wheat. What kind of wheat do you use?
Jen
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
JodieLyn
Forum Moderator
Joined: Sept 06 2006
Location: Oregon
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 12234
|
| Posted: June 07 2008 at 2:50pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
half and half.. white wheat has a high gluten content.
__________________
Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
Mackfam
Board Moderator
Non Nobis
Joined: April 24 2006
Location: Alabama
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 14656
|
| Posted: June 07 2008 at 3:06pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Weird. My fresh ground comes out better, too. Could it have been a super humid day? Was your wheat old? The finer you grind the wheat, the lighter the loaf of bread. I grind on a Whisper Mill set to the finest setting. I don't add any gluten to my loaves, but I did find that where we live lemon juice helps with the rise (because of our hard water) as well as adding an egg.
It took me 18 bricks to perfect my loaf of bread.  In the end, we found that our recipe for "brick #13" was the best loaf we could get. It rises nicely and is light and tender on the inside. I bake in a bread machine though. Big difference in a bread machine loaf and hand kneaded loaf!! The crumb is much chewier and yummier if you ask me in a hand kneaded loaf. Laurel's Kitchen calls for a "righteous 10 minutes" of hand kneading.
I will say that my recipe for brick #13 will work with praire gold (what you're calling white wheat) but it will not produce a rise in red wheat. I have to use a different recipe for that one. There are differing amounts of naturally occurring protein in the two wheats. Try just using one kind of wheat per loaf and perfect that recipe.
It may just take a few more bricks before you figure out just the right combination and proportion of ingredients.
__________________
Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19 , ds 16, ds 11, dd 8, and dd 3
Wildflowers and Marbles
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
JenniferS
Forum All-Star
Joined: Nov 09 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1049
|
| Posted: June 07 2008 at 3:30pm | IP Logged
|
|
|
Wow. Thank you ladies. My mix was half and half, but my friend's was mostly red wheat with a little white wheat. It was a very humid day when we baked. Didn't even think about that. I really like the prairie gold, so I'll try just using that. Thank you so much.
Jen
|
| Back to Top |
|
| |
|
|
4Real Forums : Our Lady's Loom, Larder, and Laundry
Topic: Bread Baking Question
