Title: Bread Machine Tips 8
Categories: Breadmaker Bread Info
Yield: 1 Tip

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WP> Problem -- I just switched to bread flour, instead of all-purpose WP> flour. The tops of my loaves are sometimes "caving in", which almost WP> never happened using all-purpose flour. Any ideas?

Ah, the dreaded "Crown Loaf", too much liquid. My advice, remember what the dough ball looks like when you make bread by hand. You want that same smooth, silky look and feel in the machine. I usually add less total liquid than called for in the recipe, start the machine, let it run for a minute or so and start adjusting. That almost always means adding some liquid. I let the machine run for 30 seconds to a minute after each addition of liquid to let the mixture blend. Then I adjust again if needed. I sometimes find that I have to stop the machine and restart it because I've used too much of the kneading time making adjustments.

Note too that it isn't the fact that you switched to bread flour that's causing the problem, it's the different moisture content between sacks of flour. This is an adjustment you've been making automatically when making bread by hand because you were adjusting for feel. Now you're going to have to learn the visual clues for the adjustment. The dough should clean the sides of the pan and there should be no "smear" of dough at the bottom of the pan as it kneads. Except for rye breads, the dough ball should be soft, smooth, dry and not at all tacky to the touch.

[from a later message]

WP> That's all well and good, Joel, but what advice would you give to a WP> novice who has never made bread by hand before? Describing the "feel" WP> for a perfect doughball is very difficult. I still say that "if it WP> looks and feels like a baby's bottom, it's right."

Concur! Smooth - Silky - Soft - Dry. It cleans the sides of the pan as it kneads. No "smear" of dough on the bottom of the pan. No loose granules of excess flour around the periphery of the pan bottom. (And there's nothing wrong with stopping the machine to feel the dough ball if you must)

Posted by Joel Ehrlich to Wesley Pitts in the Fidonet COOKING echo Posted by: Rfm #402 @5461 THE THEATRE OF VAMPIRES ON WWIVnet From: Robert Miles Date: 20 Sep 97 National Cooking Echo Ä

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