More Easy Bread Recipes - Gwen's Nest (2024)

FAQs

What does adding an extra egg to bread dough do? ›

But besides the nutritional benefits there are a few other good reasons to use egg in breadmaking. It makes the bread lighter and fluffier. The reason for that is the fat in the yolk that inhibits gluten formation just as any other fat would. This results in a looser dough that can expand and puff up more.

Fats keep your bread moist. If your loaf was too dry, try adding a tablespoon or two more oil next time you make it. Likewise, water does more than hydrate your dough. It helps yeast do its thing, activates gluten and determines the volume of your loaf—all crucial for the right results.

Our resident bread expert Barney Desmazery's top tip is to add extras after proving. 'Any nuts, seeds, small or chopped dried fruits, olives, fresh thyme or rosemary can be added without changing the dough. For the best distribution, scatter the ingredients into the dough at the 'knocking back' stage.

The usual reason why bread becomes too dense is due to using flour with low protein content. When your loaf is spongy and heavy, you might have also put too much flour into it or made the dough in a cooler or too warm setting.

The fat and lactose in milk help with tenderizing the crumb of the bread making it softer and sweeter. The crust of the bread also gets more caramelization. Be aware that bread made with milk should not be baked at too high of a temperature to prevent it from browning too much too soon.

If there isn't enough egg, your batter or dough may not be able to hold its structure or could end up overly dry or dense. On the other hand, if there is too much egg, your baked goods could lose their shape due to excess liquid, or have a rubbery (or even overly cakey) texture depending on the recipe.

Ever wondered, "How do bakeries make bread so soft?" The answer lies in their techniques and special ingredients: Consistency: Bakeries often use machines to ensure consistent kneading and proofing times. This consistency is key to producing the same soft texture batch after batch.

Adding sugar weakens the gluten structure, absorbs water, and eventually makes the bread lighter and softer. As a result, sugar improves the bread's taste, structure and texture. Yeast also eats up sugar to produce carbon dioxide, which raises the dough and makes bread fluffy.

For a fluffy bread texture, the key is to let the bread rise long enough. Now, you may be wondering “how long does it take for bread to rise?” The short answer is that it depends on the temperature of your kitchen. For bread to rise, yeast must be activated, and yeast is very sensitive to temperature.

What gives bread the best flavor? ›

Fat. If you're looking to ramp up the taste of your favorite bread recipe, we recommend adding a bit of fat. A fat like butter, olive oil or coconut oil in small quantities will help your bread achieve a higher rise and it will also boost its flavor by tenfold.

Butter, technically a dough enrichment, tenderizes bread dough and limits gluten development, yielding a softer, more tender crumb and a richer flavor. The butter in this sourdough babka dough makes the interior tender—and delicious. Photo by Maurizio Leo.

While bread flour is the best option, it can sometimes be used if you don't have bread flour. “Check the protein content,” advises Chef Jürgen, since it can vary from brand to brand, and an all-purpose flour that contains protein on the higher end of the range, 12 to 13 percent, will produce a better outcome.

Carbon dioxide is responsible for all the bubbles that make holes in bread, making it lighter and fluffier. Because gas is created as a result of yeast growth, the more the yeast grows, the more gas in the dough and the more light and airy your bread loaf will be.

Kneading length varies greatly in yeast bread recipes. Some doughs take just 3–5 minutes, while others can take up to 10–15 minutes. For those longer knead times, if your arms are getting tired, feel free to pop the dough back into your stand mixer and use the dough hook for a few minutes to give your hands a break.

Eggs as a leavening agent

Leavening agents are used to help batters rise. We usually attribute this reaction to yeasts and baking soda, but egg whites are also perfect for this role.

However, if you add too many eggs to your cake batter, then your end result could be spongy, rubbery, or dense. Like flour, eggs build structure in a cake, so they make a cake batter more bonded and dense.

In cookie formulations, for example, egg proteins permeate the dough and coagulate “contributing rigidity to the crumb and assisting the gluten to hold the volume attained.”² In a custard or pudding, this coagulative property is responsible for the custard texture and mouthfeel.

They can make the dough more delicate and crumbly, creating a softer texture in the final baked product. Structure: Eggs act as a binding agent, helping to hold the pastry dough together. They provide structure and stability, especially in recipes where a more substantial or flaky texture is desired.