Mike,
As for the science degree, it's helpful when explaining to people why some
of us DO go around in the lab coat and nerd pad :-), but as for baking
bread, I don't think it's essential. What is essential is to not believe
everything you read in recipe books and to be willing to experiment.
The process of optimizing a bread recipe isn't much different from that of
working on a new chemical formulation: When faced with a problem you (1.)
think about what might be causing the problem, (2.) theorize as to how you
might solve it, (3.) try your idea out, (4.) evaluate the results, go back
to (2.), or if you were successful, then (5.) apply what you've learned to
new problems (or write a paper telling your colleagues how clever you are).
First of all, I've found that in WW recipes honey and molasses seem to
retard yeast growth as compared to brown sugar. Try the same measure of
packed brown sugar instead of honey and you'll see a difference. I've
found that I need about 1 tsp. of yeast for every cup of WW flour to get a
decent rise. Many recipes use only half that amount of yeast. Oh yes, you
ARE resetting the bread machine after the first knead, aren't you? Seems
some folks might disagree with that, though.
The gluten helps to give the loaf structural strength to resist the weight
of the heavy flour compressing the gas cells produced by the yeast. Try
adding 1 rounded Tbsp. gluten and you'll see a big difference. The bread
enhancer isn't necessary, but if you want to try something like it, add the
following: 1 Tbsp. or so of lecithin, available at health food stores, 1
tsp. of ground ginger, then grind up a 500mg vitamin C tablet in a little
water and add to the dough. The lecithin seems to make the dough have a
silkier texture, the ascorbic acid (vit C) acidifies the mix a little,
which the yeast like, up to a point, and the ginger, . . . well . . . it
tastes good, if nothing else.
As for the Zo, I have the older vertical model (V15) and while it is the
best machine I've had, I no longer bake in it. I just use it for making
dough. Much superior to my KitchenAid, better than I can do by hand, and a
lot easier. The problem with baking in any bread machine is that, while
the cycle times are fixed, every time you measure out the components,
unless you measure by weight, there will always be some error which affects
rise time. The machine, oblivious to the state of the dough, marches
mechanically on, and the often poor and irreprodcible results explain why
so many bread machines end up being donated to charity, or worse. I
finally figured out that measuring flour, water, etc. by weight, not
volume, was the key to repeatability. A former neighbor used to be a
baker. I once asked him how he baked bread. He said, "Well, I dump a
hundred pound sack of flour into the Hobart, then add 5 lbs of sugar, then
20 lbs. of water, a pound of oil . . ." Get the idea? By weight, not volume.
For a while, I was "batching" my recipes. Once I had one I liked
optimized, I would weigh out all the solid components (except yeast) for
10-15 loaves or so into a 2 gallon plastic paint bucket with lid (Home
Depot), mix thoroughly, then weigh out the blend, add liquids, add yeast,
punch START, and every loaf came out just the same. Not very exciting, but
good for repeatability.
Overall, however, I think it's a lot easier to just measure everything out
quickly into the machine, punch "Dough Cycle" and when it's done, or an
hour later, or whenever I happen to remember, turn the dough into a bread
pan, put it in a warm oven with light on and when it has risen to the right
height, turn the sucker on to 350 F and come back in 35 minutes (WW) or 55
minutes (White). You also end up with a better looking loaf with better
internal consistency, and without mixer blade divots.
Hope this helps,
Quinn