Bread baking amateur--tips appreciated.

[ThisOlGirl]

Actually, I'm a baking/cooking in general amateur. I've been baking my own bread for about the last 6 months, and I've got white, baked in a bread machine bread down. So I just tried to bake a whole wheat loaf, and the results were pretty embarrassing. I don't even know how to describe it. The dough was in "ropes" (for lack of a better word), it didn't rise, but it was baked. My yeast hasn't expired, it's the same yeast I used a week ago for my white bread. I made sure I bought whole wheat bread flour (at least that's what the label on the bulk bin said). Is wheat bread something that's not do-able in a bread machine? I feel like I'm ready to try my hand at actually baking bread in an oven, so maybe this is the perfect time to start.

Any tips are greatly appreciated. I just want my kid to stop laughing at me. :D

[Bethella]

Did you use a whole wheat bread recipe or the same white bread recipe just substituting the wheat flour? I'm not sure what you mean by "ropes" (photos would be appreciated). I suspect that you might have not had enough water in the dough or that it was overkneaded.

[gloriamarilyn]

I've finally found a recipe that is perfect almost every time- I don't know if it's the eggs, or what the difference is. I've even used freshly ground wheat flour, added seeds of all sorts, and still had light, fluffy bread as a result. I generally use regular whole wheat flour, and add things like flax, chia, sunflower seeds, etc.

4 cups whole wheat Flour

1/2 tbsp Salt

1/3 cup Sugar

2 tbsp instant Yeast

Make a well, and add:

2 eggs

1/2 cup oil

4 cups very warm water

More flour

Knead to make a good, elasticy dough, and set in a covered bowl to rise. Punch down 3 times, every 15 minutes. On the 4th time, punch down and form into loaves or buns.

Bake at 350 until well browned and done

[longskirtlotsakids]

Youtube is awesome for bread tutorials.

[ThisOlGirl]

Thanks everyone! I always forget about Youtube. Once I have the whole wheat bread thing figured out, I'lll be on to conquering sourdough.

[Destiny]

Thanks everyone! I always forget about Youtube. Once I have the whole wheat bread thing figured out, I'lll be on to conquering sourdough.

I'd love a good breadmachine sourdough recipe, if you figure one out. I tried to make sourdough starter once and it was....not awesome. :pull-hair:

This recipe is FANTASTIC:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/cinnamon-r ... etail.aspx

[WifeofBill]

I'm trying to learn basic bread making myself. I've tried before and failed so miserably that it took me years before I was willing to try again. I made a pretty decent pizza crust that was crispy on the outside and soft and chewy on the inside. This weekend I want to learn how to make Texas Roadhouse yeast rolls. Found a recipe that seems easy enough. If it fails, I will be sure to post pictures :), if it succeeds I'll post a link to the recipe.

[bookiewookie]

Gloriamarilyn, that recipe looks super yummy! I'll have to give it a try sometime. I like whole wheat bread, but I've never had the courage to make it (when I bake, it's usually white bread).

[sparkles]

This is our go-to whole wheat bread for Mr. Sparkles's sandwiches. I've been making it for a couple of years now, pretty much on a weekly basis, and it's never failed me yet. The pain de mie pan is a nice plus (love square sandwich bread) but it's not a necessity. From kingarthurflour.com--great products, excellent recipes and lots of help if you need it. (Another really good site for bread bakers is thefreshloaf.com. And craftsy.com also has an excellent course in artisan bread baking with Peter Reinhardt. They're always having sales, often half-price. Once you buy, it's yours forever. He's also got a freebie on pizza making--I always have at least one batch of his neapolitan dough in the freezer ready to go.)

100% Whole Wheat Pain de Mie (from King Arthur Flour)

1 cup (8 ounces) lukewarm milk

1 cup (8 ounces) lukewarm water

6 tablespoons (3 ounces) butter

2 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons (1 1/4 ounces) sugar

1/3 cup (1 1/4 ounces) Baker's Special Dry Milk or nonfat dry milk

1/3 cup (2 ounces) potato flour or 1 cup (2 1/4 ounces) potato flakes (not buds; flakes)

5 cups (21 ounces) King Arthur 100% Organic White Whole Wheat Flour*

2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast

*For the very best results, we recommend our organic white whole wheat flour. Barring that, choose our regular white whole wheat flour. Using a traditional whole wheat flour, one milled from red wheat, won't give you nearly the nice results that white whole wheat flour will.

Combine all of the ingredients, and mix and knead them—by hand, mixer, or bread machine—to form a smooth, supple dough. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl or dough-rising bucket, cover the bowl or bucket, and allow the dough to rise till puffy though not necessarily doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.

Lightly grease a standard (13" x 4" x 4") lidded pain de mie (pullman) pan. Transfer the risen dough to a lightly greased work surface, shape it into a log, and fit it into the pan. Flatten the top as much as possible. Cover the pan with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise until it's about 1/2" below the lip of the pan, about 45 minutes.

Carefully slip the cover onto the pan, and let it rest an additional 15 minutes while you preheat your oven to 350°F. Bake the bread for 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, carefully remove the lid, and return the bread to the oven to bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes, until it's golden-brown on top and tests done; an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center will register 190°F. Remove the bread from the oven, and turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool completely. For a soft, flavorful crust, brush the loaf with melted butter while warm. Yield: 1 loaf.

[Arete]

sparkles,

If you don't use a pain de mie pan, do you cover the bread with foil when it first goes in the oven and take it off for the last 15 minutes?