Some random thoughts in response to recent postings:
(1) Egg wash ... a double dose of egg wash (just an egg beaten to blend, but
you can add a little milk or water if you find the plain egg too thick) makes
a lovely, mahogany brown and shiny crust ... IF you put the first coat on
right after shaping the bread, LET IT DRY, and then put the second coat on
just before you pop the bread in the oven. If you don't let the first coat
dry (which means letting the bread rise UNCOVERED), you just get a sloppy
mess. Naturally, if you're sprinkling seeds or decorations on the top of the
crust, you do it after the SECOND coat is brushed on.
(2) Making tons of bread ... two techniques that work for me are
(a) Let half of the batch rise again! I've never had bread resent an
additional rise, though under kneading is a serious sin. So, if your batch
is more than your oven can take, just shape half of it and let the other half
rise until the first half is out of the oven.
(b) Pack 'em in! It's a little bit of work in re-arranging once the
crust is set (about 2/3 of the way through the baking time), but I can indeed
fit a dozen smaller loaf pans into my standard gas-range oven. You put four
front-to-back across the back of the top shelf, and two side-to-side across
the front of it. Repeat for the second shelf. When re-arranging, move
front-to-back and left-to-right, and (sigh) change shelves. this sounds much
more awful than it is, once you've done it. Here's some visual help (a shelf
as seen from above):
First pass 1 2 3 4
--5-- --6--
Second pass --6-- --5--
4 3 2 1
the saving grace is, you don't have to turn each individual pan around
because you're re-arranging them so the end that started in the middle
finishes on the outside edge. With this trick, I can bake a dozen Christmas
stollens at one time (and I need to!)
(3) With sincere respect to all those who "weighed in" on measuring flour
... if you're not a commercial baker, you may well be able to succeed nicely
with proper rounding. You round flour DOWN and kneading time UP. You can
always work in more flour as required. Bread's a natural experience ...
we're not in humidity-controlled chambers, the wild yeasts do their thing,
every now and again the children drop an apple into the rising dough. Relax
and enjoy it! Now, if you are trying to make a buck doing what you love ...
control is a key. And, if you're brand new it's better to measure and
succeed than estimate and get bricks. But over time, mellow out and enjoy.
Back to those bunny breads......