Bread Making Class

[MEAN CHEF]

I will be doing a bread making class on February 26 at 11AM Pacific time.

We will be making an easy, nice tangy white loaf of bread (actually 2 loaves or 1 loaf and 6-8 rolls - your choice). All are welcome to participate, but I will gear this first class to beginners, the yeast fearful or anyone else who is willing to give it a try.

In the next day or two I will post the equipment requirements and ingredient requirements so that everyone has sufficient time to round up what is needed. You will need approximately a 3 hour block of time to complete the bread.

[MEAN CHEF]

Equipment required for Bread making class:

Sheet pan or baking sheet
parchment paper
Mixer with dough hook (not needed if doing by hand)
whisk and wooden spoon
Bench knife or dough knife or large chefs knife
measuring cup and spoons
Plastic wrap or clean kitchen towel
2 saucepans
oven
cooling rack
a scale (optional but handy for weighing dough for rolls)
2 (1 lb) Loaf Pan
8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 3/4"

[MEAN CHEF]

Ingredients needed for bread making class:

3/4 cup water
1 tablespoon dry active yeast (not instant nor rapid rise)
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon salt
6 - 6 1/2 cups BREAD flour
1 egg

[Marg (CaymanDesigns)]

Okay...got the ingredients and equipment...now I need the directions to get to your house for the class.

Seriously, how does the class take place? On the boards or in chat? I've heard about the classes before but was never quite clear on how they were done. I don't need a bread class but there are areas I'd love to learn about but not sure what to expect.

Thanks for your time,

[MEAN CHEF]

We will do it right here on the board.

[*Shelly*]

MEAN CHEF wrote:
We will do it right here on the board.

You might want to be available in Zaar chat for "real time" help too. Just a thought.

[Gina*S]

I'm excited! I do have to ask though Mean... something I've always wondered... why unsalted butter and then salt? If I can use salted that would be great, but when you convince me otherwise (and I'm sure you will be able to ), what kind of salt is best for bread? I have iodized and kosher.
Ciao, Gina

[MEAN CHEF]

Gina*S wrote:
I'm excited! I do have to ask though Mean... something I've always wondered... why unsalted butter and then salt? If I can use salted that would be great, but when you convince me otherwise (and I'm sure you will be able to ), what kind of salt is best for bread? I have iodized and kosher.
Ciao, Gina

Generally in all baking unsalted butter is used for two reasons: 1.) salted butter is normally an inferior product and the salt is used to mask any off taste. 2.) The amount of salt varies in salted butter, therefore you can't control the amount of salt.

I never use salted butter at all for anything.

[Gina*S]

Gotcha. What kind of salt do I need? And does the fat content of the buttermilk matter?

[MEAN CHEF]

Gina*S wrote:
Gotcha. What kind of salt do I need? And does the fat content of the buttermilk matter?

Kosher salt. I use low fat buttermilk.

[Heather Sullivan]

MEAN CHEF wrote:

Gina*S wrote:
Gotcha. What kind of salt do I need? And does the fat content of the buttermilk matter?

Kosher salt. I use low fat buttermilk.

I've not seen Kosher salt over here. Can I use a course sea salt or similar? I have some nice British Maldon salt too but that's very crystal-y.

[MEAN CHEF]

Heather Sullivan wrote:

MEAN CHEF wrote:

Gina*S wrote:
Gotcha. What kind of salt do I need? And does the fat content of the buttermilk matter?

Kosher salt. I use low fat buttermilk.

I've not seen Kosher salt over here. Can I use a course sea salt or similar? I have some nice British Maldon salt too but that's very crystal-y.

You can use table salt, but use only 3/4 as much.

[Kim D.]

I've made bread before, but I still don't feel real comfortable making bread. I'd love to join you guys! Will someone be posting pictures?

[WaterMelon]

Probably I will take some pics, maybe on my own time, if I'm unavailable on that day.

Mean - can I halve the recipe? 6 cups of bread flour sounds like an awful lot to me (only 2 of us, and we don't eat bread everyday)

[MEAN CHEF]

WaterMelon wrote:
Probably I will take some pics, maybe on my own time, if I'm unavailable on that day.

Mean - can I halve the recipe? 6 cups of bread flour sounds like an awful lot to me (only 2 of us, and we don't eat bread everyday)

Maybe just for you.