In the last few days I have come across two interesting new products
which claim to enhance machine-baked bread. They are a bit pricey, so
I resisted the impulse purchase. I'm wondering if anyone else has seen
or tried these yet. Do they sound worth a try or just a waste of money?
In Sears (of all places) I saw Red Star Bread Machine Yeast. It was $7
for a 7-ounce jar! Real sticker shock when I noticed the price since I
buy a giant 2-*POUND* package of regular Red Star yeast at Costco for
about half that price. So what was different about this jar? It
included a couple of additional ingredients, a dough conditioner and
an emulsifier, whose chemical names escape me at the moment.
New product number two was spotted in the April 1994 (in a new,
slicker and glossier 8.5 x 11-inch format to boot) Williams-Sonoma
catalog. This product is called "Lora Brody's Bread Machine Boost." It
is not clear exactly what is in it -- on the front of the package it
says "This all natural blend of bakers' ingredients will dramatically
improve the rise, texture, crumb, crust and flavor of every loaf of
bread you make." On the front of the package it describes the product
as a "bread baking enhancement formula and yeast activator." At the
top of the bag it says "Goodbye to shrunken, sunken, shriveled
loaves!" The product logo is a flying loaf of bread (similar to a
flying toaster). Here is the catalog description: "This is the baker's
secret! Add this all-natural mix along with yeast, just as commercial
bakeries do, and the results will delight you. Your bread will rise
considerably higher, with true bakery flavor, superb texture, fine
crumb and crustier crust. The 10-oz. package is enough for about 20
loaves, either machine or handmade." It sells for $8.00. Lora Brody is
the author of two bread-machine baking books "Bread Machine Baking"
and "Desserts from your Bread Machine," coincidentally sold on the
same page.