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Baking Delicious Home Made Whole Wheat Bread Revealed

26th January, 2011 - Posted by health news - No Comments

It is important to understand the special techniques in making whole wheat bread. Homemade whole wheat bread is characteristic for its texture and noticeable taste. It also contains important nutrients to keep you slim, healthy and fit. Some individuals use 100% whole wheat flour but fail to acquire the right firmness. Not following the guidelines might results in a pretty tough loaf in the end. Here are some tried and proven tips from the experts.

Basics

For the best 100% whole wheat bread, you are going to need following 3 things. First, always use adequately high protein flour, or alternatively, add some vital wheat gluten to the bread dough. Second tip: do not add flour until it is necessary. Third, kneading the dough has to be consistent and done non-stop. You will find that using a food processor helps you with the kneading process, since you get to save more time and effort. You can also use your hands or a mixer with a dough hook to get the job done.

To achieve a pleasing texture and a soft crumb you will have to be able to make strong gluten. That is because the whole wheat is heavier, compared to white flour. You get more gluten if you have higher protein content. Make sure you don´t add too much flour – you would be risking your loaves being too tough. Kneading the dough consistently supports the gluten with forming a consistent and strong matrix.

Now For The Recipe

To make a full loaf, you will need 2 tablespoons of vital wheat gluten, 3.5 cups of 100% whole wheat flour, 2 to 3 tablespoons of sugar, 1 1/4 teaspoons of salt, 1 package of dry yeast, 1 tablespoon of oil, 1 tablespoon of liquid lecithin and warm water. If you are using food processors to do the kneading for you, always use ice water. Later, when you master the procedure, you can start experimenting by adding extra ingredients, e.g. nuts or seeds.

The recipe mentioned above results in a loaf weighing about 1 1/4 pounds. The amount is perfect to be baked in a pan of size 8.5 x 4.5 inches. It is better to use this pan than using glass or metal. Metal is the best material because it allows the bread to bake evenly and you get a perfect outside crust. This pan also cleans up very easily.

The Process

There are various processes to make 100% whole wheat bread which will has a crumb and soft texture. It does not matter if you use a food processor or your hands, the process is always the same. Simply, the four processes are: the mixing process, the kneading process, the rising process and the baking process.

Alternatively, you could simply use bread makers to carry out the tough work.

You can also use bread machines that help you with the exact amount of every ingredient added in a certain order. The bread machine can all 4 processes for you. This is excellent with dough that is made with some white flour. But perhaps it is not too great for dough using only 100% whole wheat flour. Whole wheat bread requires more rising time and kneading time. However, do check the capabilities of bread machines, as they have improved massively and can help so much.

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