Date: Sun, 21 Dec 2008 09:51:56 GMT -------------- BEGIN bread-bakers.v108.n046 -------------- 001 - ALAN MARSON - Super Size Sandwiches 003 - Mike Avery - English muffins 006 - poacher2@aol.com - Re: stand mixer 007 - "Leigh Monichon" Subject: English Muffins - Mary Fisher Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2008 21:10:39 +0000 (GMT) Can i cast a alternative view on the subject of English Muffins? English Muffins are normally baked in a tray with a lid; so roll as a baked flat top, made from a very soft dough, creating a very soft open internal texture . Crumpets or Pikelets - are quite different, they are made on a griddle and are turned over during baking, they are made using a batter, so a pourable dough, which is quite often a combination of yeast and baking powder raised. --------------- MESSAGE bread-bakers.v108.n046.2 --------------- From: Subject: Super Size Sandwiches Date: Tue, 16 Dec 2008 12:21:18 -0600 I got roped into making 30 sandwiches for a Posada (Christmas Party). And I dreaded making all those little sandwiches. Then I came up with a brilliant idea, make 2 giant sandwiches and then cut them at the party. So I took this recipe that I like for rolls and made 2 big flat loafs of bread, split it down the length, put the mustard, mayo and meat on and bingo ready to go. It looked really neat too, I have some special plates I made for 9x13 cakes (cut some wood and painted it). Save this in case you ever have to make sandwiches for a large group. 2 Tbsp instant yeast 1/4 cup warm water, 110 F 1 1/2 cup buttermilk, heated to lukewarm 1/4 cup sugar 1/2 cup butter, melted 1 tsp salt 4 1/2 cup enriched all-purpose flour 1/2 tsp baking soda Dissolve yeast in warm water in small bowl. In a medium bowl, combine buttermilk, sugar, melted butter and salt. Sift flour and soda into a large bowl. Pour yeast mixture into buttermilk mixture, then add to flour. Mix well. Let stand 10 minutes. I have a heavy duty ABM that takes 4 cups of flour with no problem and I use it to knead/mix the dough, I just dump everything in and push the button). Grease well two 9x13 pans. Divide the dough into 2 pieces and put one in each pan, spread evenly. Let stand 30 minutes, or until risen nicely. Bake 30 minutes at 400 F or until golden brown. --------------- MESSAGE bread-bakers.v108.n046.3 --------------- From: Mike Avery Subject: Re: stand mixers Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2008 03:17:03 -0600 "Werner Gansz" wrote: >Brett Baker's comments on KA stand mixers are consistent with my >experience also. A mixer should be able to handle whatever amount of >dough fits into it. I think the new KA's are intended primarily for >mixing cake batters. There aren't enough bread bakers out there to >warrant the extra cost of bigger motors and metal gears. I hate to rain on Werner's parade. but I have yet to see a mixer, commercial or amateur, that fits that description. While running a bakery, we had a 30 quart Hobart that was older than most people in this list. It had a chart that showed its load limits. You could make as many mashed potatoes, as much cake batter or beat as many egg whites as would fit in the bowl. Making bread reduced the capacity. When you made bagels or pizza dough, 10 pounds or so was the upper limit. A friend bought a Hobart knockoff. It came with a similar chart. Most professional mixers do. What distinguishes a professional machine is they tell you what it's load limits are, in ways that make sense. "14 cups of flour power" - the KA rating - is absolute nonsense. In another bread baking forum bakers weighed a cup of flour. The weight range was from less than 100 to more than 200 grams. Milling companies think a cup should weigh 120 grams. And the flour power rating has to be reduced if you use whole grain flour. However, that ignores the fact that 14 cups of flour being used to make a 100% hydration starter is a very different thing than 14 cups of flour being used to make bagels. The Hobart had an excellent chart. You could look up what you were making and scale your load accordingly. The Hobard lasted about 35 years with no real maintenance. The person who bought it from me had a drive shaft replaced when it snapped. Too much pizza dough, I suspect. If you want to make pizza dough or bagels, Hobart sells special machines to handle the extreme load. An ordinary Hobart that will last 30+ years in most bakeries will die inside of 2 years in a pizza joint or bagel shop. All in all, I don't think ANY mixers are really designed to handle anything you put in the bowl. Mike --------------- MESSAGE bread-bakers.v108.n046.4 --------------- From: northstarkennels@aol.com Subject: Re: secrets Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2008 07:44:28 -0500 >While I am not willing to part with all of my secrets for an >authentic German Christstollen I had a great aunt who felt the same way about her fruit cake, unfortunately the recipe died with her. Now no one in the family can remember her fondly for it every holiday season as we could have kept her memory alive through continuing this family tradition. --------------- MESSAGE bread-bakers.v108.n046.5 --------------- From: Subject: English muffins Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2008 07:16:47 -0600 I would like to wish everyone, especially our wonderful hosts of the bread baking news, a Very Merry Christmas. Reading the comments about English Muffins I had to get my 2 cents in. It's rather funny. I live in Cuernavaca Mexico and I have had friends in England email me and ask me what are English Muffins? So I gathered some pictures of the so called English Muffins and sent them to them. But of even more interest, in the foreign community in Cuernavaca we have a Mexican born young man from English Parents, he considers himself English and even went back to England for most of his schooling. He runs a catering business doing cakes for weddings, and other events. He also makes very good English Muffins in his small kitchen which he sells at gatherings of Gringos. I shall have to ask him how he does it. --------------- MESSAGE bread-bakers.v108.n046.6 --------------- From: poacher2@aol.com Subject: Re: stand mixer Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2008 08:55:13 -0500 I have the Cuisinart 7 qt mixer with a 1000 watt motor. The mixer is great for bread. Victor --------------- MESSAGE bread-bakers.v108.n046.7 --------------- From: "Leigh Monichon" Subject: Viking Mixer Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2008 09:04:16 -0800 I had wanted a Viking mixer for years... dreamt about it, thought about it, finally bought one. The first one emitted smoke on my first batch of bread. They took it off to repair it, ended up replacing it instead, and the second one smoked on the second loaf of bread. It was the same size batch I make regularly in my 20 year old KitchenAid. At that point the shipper (King Arthur Flour) and I agreed that it wasn't a match and cut our losses. I'm told the new KitchenAids are not like the ones I have; perhaps the same thing happened to Viking - or I got two duds. I gave up after two, though. Leigh --------------- END bread-bakers.v108.n046 --------------- Copyright (c) 1996-2008 Regina Dwork and Jeffrey Dwork All Rights Reserved