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Solving
The 7 Most Common Whole Wheat
Bread
Baking Mistakes
by Beth Scott
Let’s face it EVERY
cook makes mistakes (yes,
even us professional bakers make boo boo’s).
I’m going to list here, the 7 most common
whole wheat bread baking mistakes that you’re probably making, or might
make if you’re not forewarned, and what you can do about them.
Whole Wheat Bread
Baking Mistake 1
Forgetting The Salt:
By far the most common bread baking mistake is when
the salt is
forgotten to be added to the whole wheat bread dough.
This results in very bland bread, and even effects the rising of the
dough. Making your whole wheat bread flat on top.
The best solution for this is to use a post it note
as a reminder to
yourself, to add the salt to the whole wheat bread dough.
You can stick the post it note where ever you’re
most likely to see it
(fridge, recipe book, etc..)
Whole Wheat Bread
Baking Mistake 2
Overrising Bread Dough?
The second most common mistake is when the whole
wheat bread dough is
allowed to over rise, which leads to it falling.
This usually happens when the whole wheat bread
dough is forgotten
about. And with so much going on our lives, who doesn’t forget things like this
now and then?
But don’t fret, there is a solution: If the
whole wheat bread is
already in the bread pans when it over rises simply use a pair of
kitchen scissors to cut the excess dough off the sides of the unbaked
loaves.
Separate and roll this dough into a few small balls
of dough.
Allow them to rise 20 minutes to 30 minutes on a small oiled cookie
sheet, and then bake them on 350 Fahrenheit, for 15 to 20 minutes as
whole wheat rolls.
Also allow the whole wheat bread dough to rise for
about 15 to 20 more
minutes before baking if it is extremely flat on top.
Another solution to help you keep from forgetting
about your bread, is
to use a timer which will beep loudly after the selected time period is
up.
Using a timer can also help stop other whole wheat bread baking
catastrophes from happening.
Whole Wheat Bread
Baking Mistake 3
Killing The Yeast:
When you heat up your water to put your yeast in, it
is easy to
accidentally make the water a bit too hot. This mistake will kill
the yeast and your bread will not rise
To correct this mistake I strongly
recommend you invest in a cooking thermometer, to measure the
temperature of the water with.
Whole Wheat Bread
Baking Mistake 4
Recipe Too Large?
If the recipe you use makes too much dough for your
family’s needs and
you worry that the extra bread will grow stale before you use it, fear
not.
It is perfectly safe to refrigerate unused dough for
a few days and
allow the whole wheat bread dough to finish it’s rising time once you
get it out to use it.
You can use a ziploc bag or plastic wrap over bowls
that contain your
whole wheat bread dough, to store it in your fridge and still prevent
oxidation.
Whole Wheat Bread
Baking Mistake 5
Burned Bread:
Yup, nothing tastes worse than whole
wheat
bread
which is black as charcoal.
To avoid this, be sure you follow baking times and
temperatures
strictly. And again use a timer to remind yourself when it’s time
to remove your whole wheat bread from the oven.
Also remember that gas ovens and electric ovens vary
in their
temperatures. If you’re using an electric oven you should bake
almost all pastries on 350 Fahrenheit.
Sometimes a recipe will call for you to start baking
a loaf of bread on
a higher temperature, but will also usually tell you to turn the heat
down after a certain amount of time.
Whole Wheat Bread
Baking Mistake 6
Mistakenly or purposefully using the wrong
type of flour:
If you
are baking whole wheat bread, the only way to get good results is by
using whole wheat flour to bake your bread.
There are different recipes for all the different
types of bread and
they all use one specific flour for each recipe.
So don’t try any substitution hoping that by adding
rye flour for
instance, you will actually turn a whole wheat bread recipe into rye
bread. Because you won’t.
Whole Wheat Bread
Baking Mistake 7
Bubbles In The Bread Dough:
Last but not least there is the
problem of air bubbles (also
called
“pockets”) which create large holes inside the whole wheat bread, after
it’s done baking.
The best solution for this is to pinch any such
bubbles whenever you
see them in your whole wheat bread dough, before you bake it.
This will immediately deflate
the bubble.
Now you are armed with the knowledge of the 7 most
common whole wheat
bread baking mistakes (most of which also apply to all other rising
breads) and how you should deal with them.
So don’t let the bread mistake blues get you down
ever again.
Are you fed up with recipes that tell you what to
do, but not HOW to do
it? Beth gives step by step instructions on exactly how to bake
your own bread and many other food items. Visit her site now to
claim your FREE subscription to her Baking
& Recipe Tips Newsletter
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