One of the most tantalizing aromas that can permeate a home is the scent of freshly baked bread. Baking bread can be a very time consuming task, but there are recipes that make it simple for even a beginning baker. Freshly baked breads are great for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Imagine starting the day with a freshly baked cinnamon roll or fruit muffins. Try Texas Toast or Cheese Biscuits for dinner. Whatever your favorite, there is nothing as heartwarming as the aroma of baking bread.
There are a number of different types of flour that are used for bread baking, but usually a recipe will specify which type to use. Many flours are interchangeable and can be varied to suit individual taste and dietary needs. All wheat flour contains gluten which is the protein in flour. Gluten is what gives your baked goods body. The more gluten in the flour, the stronger the product walls will be.
Listed below are different types of flour that contain different amounts of gluten. They are arranged in a graduated scale with those containing the most gluten down to those containing the least. Listed next to each type of flour are common uses. The higher the gluten content, the more difficult it is to work the dough, therefore All-Purpose Flour is used more commonly than any other.
High Gluten - bread and pizza dough where a very strong wall is desired
Bread Flour - bread and pizza dough
Whole Wheat Flour - bread making
All-Purpose Flour - can be used for any type of baked product
Cake Flour - a softer flour, used for cakes where a light crumb is desired
Pastry Flour - similar to cake flour - used for pie crusts and other pastries
The key to good bread baking is the way in which the flour is handled. Yeast dough recipes usually have to be kneaded for about 10 minutes in order to develop the gluten. Quick bread recipes are more fragile and need to be mixed only enough to moisten the flour. Quick breads are usually more tender than yeast breads and are not intended for sandwich making as are yeast breads.
The recipes given below are all fairly simple to make. They are listed in the order of how much time each one takes. The Texas Toast is a yeast dough, but it does not have to be needed so it is fairly simple to make. However, it does have yeast and therefore needs time for the yeast to grow and the dough to rise. The fruit muffins are pretty simple to make and are great for breakfast. The biscuits have the shortest baking time and are a great bread to make for dinner. Leftovers can be reheated and served at breakfast or for dinner the next night. We will start with the Garlic Bread sticks as they can be made with purchased yeast dough and therefore are the simplest to make. The other recipes that follow, will be given in the order of how much time they take to prepare.
GARLIC BREADSTICKS
1 pkg. Frozen Bread Dough
½ lb. melted Butter
2 cloves crushed Garlic
Sesame Seeds
Allow the dough to thaw and come to room temperature.
Cut into portions equal to the size of a large golf ball.
Roll each ball of dough into sticks place on a greased cookie sheet.
Cover with a clean dish towel or plastic wrap and let rise for about 15 minutes.
Combine the crushed Garlic with the melted Butter and brush on the Bread Sticks; sprinkle with Sesame Seeds.
Bake in a hot oven (425 degrees) 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from oven and place on cooling rack. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes before serving. Yield
Approximately 12 Bread Sticks
CHEDDAR CHEESE BISCUITS
3 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 Tbsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. Salt
1/2 cup Soft Butter
2 cups shredded Cheddar Cheese
2/3 cup Milk
Adjust oven racks to positions 1 & 4 and turn oven to 450 degrees; lightly grease two baking pans.
Combine the Flour, Baking Powder, and Salt in a medium size mixing bowl.
Cut the Butter into the Flour with a pastry blender until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal.
Gently mix the shredded Cheese into the Flour Mixture.
Sprinkle the Milk over the Flour mixture and stir with a fork until all the Flour is moist.
Stir until the dough is soft and shape into a ball.
Turn out onto a board which has been lightly sprinkled with Flour and knead gently for 30 seconds.
Divide the dough in half and roll out to 1/2" thickness; cut out with round or square biscuit cutters.
Place on the prepared pans and bake for 12 - 14 minutes or until golden brown.
YIELD: 12 Biscuits
FRUIT MUFFINS
3 cups All-Purpose flour, 2 cups mashed or shredded
1 tsp. Salt Fruit
1 tsp. Baking Soda
3 Eggs
1/4 tsp. Baking Powder
2 cups Sugar
1 tsp. Cinnamon* or 1 cup Vegetable Oil
½ tsp. ground Nutmeg
1 Tbsp. Vanillaor Almond
Grease or spray 24 non-stick muffin cups. Set oven racks to positions
# 2 & 4; preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Measure Flour, Salt, Baking Soda and Cinnamon; mix together in a medium bowl and set aside.
Beat Eggs with paddle beater in electric mixer just until well blended.
Slowly add the Sugar and continue beating until all the Sugar is beaten in.
Lower speed to #1 and gradually add the Oil; turn speed back up to high and
continue beating until well blended.
Add the prepared Fruit and Vanilla; mix at low speed until well combined.
Slowly add the Flour mixture to the Egg mixture while still beating at low speed.
When all of the ingredients have been well-combined, pour into the greased pans and bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and dry.
Cool on rack for 5-10 minutes; turn pans over onto the cooling rack. The muffins should come right out. If not, gently tap the pan on the side.
TEXAS TOAST
(Tidbit: Pepperidge Farms produces 105 million slices of Texas Toast every year- the recipe that follows is simple to make and easy to eat.)
3 cups All-purpose Flour
2 tsps. Italian Herbs
1 scant Tbsp. Instant Yeast
1/3 cup Instant Dry Milk
2 tsps. Sugar
¼ cup Olive or Garlic Oil
1 ¼ tsps. Salt
1 2/3 cups Warm Water
Combine all the dry Ingredients in a medium-size mixing bowl.
Combine the Milk and Olive Oil and add to the dry mixture.
Beat well to combine all the ingredients thoroughly. The mixture should be a stiff batter; too soft to knead by hand but stiff enough to hold its shape.
If the dough seems to soft, add a little more flour; if too stiff, a little more water.
Spoon the Batter into an 8 ½ x 4 ½-inch loaf pan. Cover the pan with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow to rise in a warm place for 45 minutes, or until the bread has crowned over the top of the pan.
Bake the Bread in a preheated 350-degree oven for 35 minutes. Remove from the pan and cool before slicing.
Slice the Bread about ¾-inch thick; brush with garlic oil or garlic butter and grill on an outdoor grill or on a stovetop griddle.
Yield: About 12 slices of Texas Toast
All of the recipes above are good; the breadsticks, biscuits and Texas Toast are exceptional when served with hot homemade soups. The breadsticks are a very simple item to make and are good with Spaghetti or other pasta dishes. The biscuits go great with fried chicken or anything else that you want to serve them with. The muffins are exceptional for breakfast and go well with scrambled eggs and are also good as a snack or with chicken salad. The Texas Toast is a tasty accompaniment to Barbecued foods. Try one at a time and enjoy the preparation and enjoy the eating even more.
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