PATENT FLOUR....
A couple of years ago I saw this ingredient on one of my grandfather's
cookie recipes (he was a professional baker for over 30 years) and called
King Arthur to see if it was available. They told me it was made from the
'tip of the wheat' (if I'm remembering correctly), they didn't sell it
under a different label anymore, and to use their all-purpose. It has been
working fine for me since then. I'm curious to learn of other experiences
people have had comparing patent to all-purpose.
BUGS....
I've also heard about using bay leaves, and place a couple on every pantry
shelf and near my flour (finally a use for the bulk package from Sam's
Club...). When the weather warms up, if an ant sneaks in, I wipe down the
counter tops, floor and door areas with white vinegar--I haven't had any
ant problems in 2 summers.
Hand Kneading....
I've been enjoying these emails for a while & would like to input my
experience.....Bread making with my KitchenAid always seemed more work than
it was worth, so I got a Welbilt ABM6000. The texture of the bread it made
was never right, the blade almost always got stuck, and I resolved to just
make dough in it until the whole bread pan fell apart one day. So I gave
up bread making until I went to a recent King Arthur class. The instructor
was so nonchalant about measuring flour, testing water temperature on his
wrist and the method of kneading, that I went home, tried it with my SAF
yeast sample--and I have been hand making at least two loaves a week since
then. With so much recent success, I can't figure out what caused those
previous bread disasters (it was NOT my desire to make endless variations
of bread pudding). To sum it all up, I would strongly recommend SAF yeast,
King Arthur all-purpose, and having fun with your dough.
-Tammy