Dance of the Vegetable Patch

 

Breadmaking Lesson Six - Other Breads

These loaves all use the basic white bread recipe (a loaf for learning) as a base.  I'm listing all these variations here to show you how simple it is to work out your own variations.  You can use these ideas with your bread machine dough too.

Wholemeal loaf

Change 4 cups plain flour and 1 tablespoon gluten flour, for

3 and 3/4 cups wholemeal flour and 1/4 cup gluten flour, or

use half wholemeal and half white flour

Milk loaf

Use milk for the liquid or

add 1/2 cup dry milk powder with the dry ingredients

You may like to add 1 egg too if you are after a richer bread

Rye bread

Add 1/2 cup molasses (and less water) with the liquid.  Leave out the sugar.  Substitute about 1/3 rye flour for the plain.

Mixed grain bread

Use

2 cups wholemeal flour

1/4 cup buckwheat flour

1/4 cup wheatgerm

1/2 cup rye flour

1/2 cup gluten flour

and about a cup of seeds, nuts, etc

For a darker loaf, use 1/2 cup molasses instead of sugar.

Herb bread

Add dried or fresh herbs into the dry ingredients

Sweet buns

Add 1/2 to 1 cup milk powder, 1/2 cup suger, spices, 2 eggs, 2 tablespoons melted butter and some dried fruit (optional).

Hot cross buns

Make sweet buns.  Sit them close together on baking tray.  Glaze with beaten yolk and water.  combine 1/2 cup plain flour with liquid (about 60-90 ml water) to thick cream consistency and pipe crosses onto buns (use a plastic bag with the corner cut out or a piping bag).  Prove then bake.  Combine 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup water and 1/4 teaspoon agar agar in a saucepan and boil until all have dissolved.  Use to glaze after they're cool.  An alternative glaze is warmed jam.

Onion and mushroom rolls

Gently saute chopped onion and mushroom.  Make basic white or wholemeal dough.  Roll dough out.  Use an 8 cm scone cutter to cut out circles.  Put a teaspoon of filling on each circle.  Fold in half and press edges together to seal.  Prove.  Brush with glaze.  Sprinkle with seeds and bake.

Savoury crescents

Roll plain white or wholemeal dough out and cut into triangles.  Sprinkle with freshly chopped herbs or cheese or olives or combinations of these.  Roll up.  Prove, glaze and bake.

Sweet crescents

As above, but use an enriched white dough.  Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon or grated chocolate, or pureed dried fruit, or anything else you can think of!

Spinach bread

Add chopped, cooked, well drained spinach to white or wholemeal bread dough.

Pizza

Use half the quantity of basic white or wholemeal dough.  Roll out thinly.  Top with tomato paste/sauce, grated cheese and other pizza toppings.  Bake.

Rolled onion/cheese bread

Roll dough out to a large rectangle.  Sprinkle with sauteed onion or grated cheese or both.  Roll up and bake on tray or in tin.  Alternatively, before proving you can cut the roll into pieces and turn them scroll side up, place them side by side and bake them as savoury scrolls.