baguette.

The end result is a fairly good, chewy, light bread that some people like (particularly the

owners of the machines). Machine bread compares favorably with many store-bought breads,

depending where you live and how available good fresh bread is. Glazing or slashing are not

possible. Underbaking and overbaking, doughiness, or moist patches in the loaves may be a

problem, as well as uneven browning of the crust. (Bread machine owners can tell you many more

problems.)

Bread machines only produces acceptable white or whole wheat loaves. If you modify the

recipe with added ingredients or substitutions, complications arise and you have to start tinkering

with the process and keep an eye on the machine. It partially defeats the time-saving reason for

using it in the first place.

The biggest disadvantage (besides its cost), however, is probably the size of these

machines. They are bulky and heavy, not easy to store in a modern kitchen that is already

crowded with microwave ovens, mixers, food processors, blenders and myriad of other space-

demanding kitchen items.

Points to Remember

Breads may be unleavened, (matzo and tortilla), or leavened (yeast breads). Leavening is the

process of adding air-holes into the dough to make it light and airy.

We use two types of bread leavening agents—baking powder for quick breads (e.g. zucchini

bread) and yeast for our common breads.

Today's baking powder is double-acting. One set of chemicals start forming bubbles when

you introduce moisture, a second set when you heat the batter in the oven.

Two points you need to remember about yeast dough:

. Keep yeast happy by providing them favorable environment

. Develop gluten fully in your the dough.

Ideal temperature for dry yeast to revive is in very warm water, 105 to 110°F (41 to 44°C).

But they thrive at a cooler temperature of around 80°F (27°C) to produce bubbles in the

dough during its rise.

Baking yeast need food to start and do their work. They love sugar the best but they can also

live on starch in flour. They don't like too much salt or spices or too acid environment.

Gluten develops from two proteins in contact with water that all wheat flour contains. Only

kneading develops gluten fully. Other flours contain little or none of the gluten-forming

proteins and don't produce light breads, unless you mix in at least some white wheat flour

with the dough.

High-protein, low-starch flour (bread flour) makes the best yeast breads. All-purpose flour is

a good choice for quick breads.

Yeast bread dough needs to rise once or twice before shaping to develop light texture and

good flavor. Quick bread dough doesn't need to rise.

Don't let the bread dough over-rise just before baking, or the fast rise in the oven (oven

spring) may rupture the dough.

Control the staling of your bread. Bread stales fast at refrigerator temperature, much slower

at room temperature, nearly stops in freezer. Staling is reversible—heat the bread with

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