Chapter 243 : making bread (part two)

Whole grain flour

Mill grains of whole wheat and you get whole grain flour. Sieve the flour.  You now have plain white flour. You have removed the germ, bran and many nutrients. The plain white flour has a lighten colour and increased shelf life than whole grain flour.

Whole grain flour is high in complex carbohydrates, high in fibre, high in vitamins and minerals. Low in omega-3 saturated fat and low in refined carbohydrates.

For a small loaf I use 300ml of water and 3 cups of flour. For a big loaf I use 400 ml and 4 cups of flour.  The critical thing is the ratio of water to flour.  100ml of water to one cup (250ml) of flour.

Gluten flour

The gluten holds the dough together as the bubbles form. The dough rises.

Two proteins in the flour (glutenin and gliadin) use water to form an elastic mass of molecules that we call gluten.

Gluten holds the dough together. It holds the gases in. The bread rises. Gluten gives the dough elasticity. Stops the dough becoming crumbly.

Kneading of the dough causes more gluten to form. Causes more proteins and water find each other and link together.

Yeast

Yeast is a single cell micro-organism. A type of fungus. Reproduces asexually. Yeast cells grow bigger then divide. The yeast used in baking eats carbohydrates (simple sugars). Producing carbon dioxide, ethanol and water. The carbon dioxide gas forms pockets or bubbles.

Dried yeast does not require refrigeration and has a long shelf life.

Yeast when mixed with a weak solution of water and sugar will foam and bubble as it ferments the sugar into ethanol and carbon dioxide.

Yeast breaks down the starch molecules in flour to simple sugars which it then eats.

Yeast ferments dough. Fermentation breaks down large molecules into smaller, flavorful ones. Proteins into amino acids, starches into sugars, amylose and maltose into glucose, fats into free fatty acids. Smaller molecules have more flavour.  

Salt

Salt provides flavour. Without it bread tastes insipid and flat.

Gives strength to the gluten.

Retards the fermentation of the yeast. Yeast needs water. Salt absorbs water which slows yeast.

Salt gives the bread a better colour.

Sugar

Sugar provides “food” for yeast, which converts it to carbon dioxide and alcohol.

Sugar enhances bread flavor. Sugar gives the crust a golden colour.

Sugar improves the crumb texture.

Sugar helps retain moisture in bread

Sugar can be in the form of white sugar, brown sugar, honey, molasses, corn syrup or in a liquid (fruit juice, beer, wine or soft drink). The type of sugar alters the flavour and colour of the bread.

Artificial sweeteners cannot be used. They provide no food for the yeast.

Too little or too much sugar will slow down yeast activity.

Bread improver

It is claimed breads improvers help the bread rise, aids gluten and makes commercial bread making more predictable and reliable.

I can make bread without a bread improver. With a bread improver the resultant bread will slightly more predictable.

Every bread or baked product you buy has a bread improver or a flour enhancer in it. The ingredients appear safe. They are chemicals and have long names but everything I eat is a chemical with a long name.

Bread improvers normally contain:

Amylose comes from ground wheat. Normally found in flour. It helps reduce starch to maltose upon which yeast feeds.

Emulsifiers (monoglyceride, calcium stearoyl lactylate) ensure bubbles are retained in the flour.

Emulsifiers help condition and strengthen the dough, improve crumb whiteness, retain moisture, soften crumb texture and control fat crystallisation. The improved water retention improves the keeping qualities of a loaf.

Reducing agents that alter gluten

Oxidants that strengthen gluten

Olive oil

Mono-unsaturated fatty acids.  A healthy oil. Can’t make bread without some oil from somewhere.  

Variations

herbs; fresh or dried

olives, sun-dried tomato, grilled capsicum

nuts, dried fruit, soya grits, sunflower seeds, pumpkin kernels 

Coat with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, polenta

wheat hearts or semolina

Vegetables: If you add mashed vegetables to the dough you need to decrease the amount of water. The alternative way is to grate the vegetable; place in a tea towel, squeeze the liquid from the vegetable and then add the dried vegetable to the flour and the juice to the liquid. This method works really well for unwanted zucchini.  Add the squeezed grated zucchini to the flour and decrease the total amount of liquid slightly. The resultant bread will be moister than normal and last longer.

Exotic flours: you can easily replace some of the wheat flour with flour made from rice, rye, barley, oats, maize, sorghum, millet, buckwheat, legumes, and potato. I’m sure I’ve missed something but you get the point. Replace a cup of wholegrain wheat flour with any other flour and you will not have to alter the basic recipe. If you start taking out more wheaten flour you made need to add extra gluten. If the loaf is crumbly; like a muffin or a scone then it is lacking gluten. A crumbly loaf is not a complete disaster, you can still eat it but the loaf will not keep well and the trail of crumbs will not please everybody. Personally, I prefer gluten.

If you cannot acquire or make some of the more exotic flours another option is to add rolled grains to the flour. Substitute a cup of rolled oats (or barley, rye, triticale) for a cup of flour and proceed as normal.