I make bread all the time in all kinds of shapes. I make rye bread once in a while too. Rye is great for Rueben sandwiches and Ham and Cheese sandwiches. You are right about the store bought bread from the store....glue.
We go to a specific store here that does three or four types of rye bread. Hubby can't get enough. He is full German. I am only half so I just eat half.
I use to make bread by hand all the time. But by hands and wrists can’t take all the stirring and kneading anymore. So several years ago, I bought a small Bosch stand mixer with a hook, which I love. Now it does all the hard work. I will most likely get a bread machine one of these days, if my hands can no longer shape or handle the dough. Fresh bread is the best. We never get tired of it. They don’t make this stand mixer any more. I bought an extra bowl as well, when I purchased it. It was half the price of the newer bigger versions that they make now. I hope mine never craps out!
I was digging in my kitchen "junk drawer" yesterday and found those crumpet molds and wondered what they were for. Maybe I'll try my hand at crumpets soon, after I dig the molds back out of the Goodwill bag. Edited to remove deplorable acronyms.
There you go (again) with those “deplorable acronyms”, @Beth Gallagher …… I just do not know what we are ever going to do about you.
You remind me that I purchased rings to make ciabatta buns, because my sloppy dough spreads out into ciabatta pancakes.
I got my shiny new Breville bread machine all cleaned and set up. I'm going to test it with my favorite tried-and-true white bread recipe today. It came with a very nice manual/recipe book that is 1" thick and spiral bound, so I have plenty of new recipes to try, but I want to see how it handles a familiar loaf.
If you find a recipe for a decent whole wheat bread that is not real dense and would make good sandwiches, please post it. I make white breads and brioche, but solely for making French toast.
I have never made a successful whole wheat loaf; they always bomb out somehow so I haven't tried one in a long time. I'm kind of bummed over the Breville. It seems to work OK so far, but one "leg" is shorter than the others so it tends to shake around when it's kneading. I put a thin magazine under it but for the $$ I think that is unacceptable. I guess I'll see how the bread turns out and if it's good I'll put one of those little silicone stickers under that foot. Not sure it's worth the premium price tag over standard bread machines, though it does have a nifty light to see into the machine without opening the lid.
John, when making 100 percent whole wheat bread, if I want a lighter version, I usually substitute approx. 2 cups of the 100% whole wheat flour for 2 cups of bread flour in my recipe. I have found it makes it less dense; lighter in texture and color. I like 100% whole wheat bread but some of my family does not. Also, after using different brands of 100% whole wheat flours, I have found that King Author whole wheat flour is darker in color and has a much stronger wheat flavor than say, Gold Medal wheat flour.
So you would use 1/2 King Arthur whole wheat and 1/2 white bread flour? I like the light texture of commercial whole wheat bread, but am sort of afraid to ask how they get that much fiber in it without making it dense. I can't do it.