Basic Ingredients
Ye a s t
Yeast is actually a microscopic plant. Simply stated, without yeast, your bread will not rise. When moistened by a liquid, fed by sugar, and carefully warmed, yeast produces gases which power the dough to rise. If the temperature is too cold, the yeast will not be activated; if it's too warm, it will die. The Oster® Deluxe Bread and Dough Maker takes care of this worry for you by maintaining just the right temperature in the baking chamber at all times. You can use either “active dry yeast”, “ quick acting”, “rapid rise yeast” or one of the new “Bread machine yeasts” in your Oster® Deluxe Bread and Dough Maker. Important: The amount of yeast for Extra Large Loaf recipes may be the same or even less than what is called for in Large recipes. For best results, use yeast amounts as indicated in each recipe.
S u g a r s
Sugars sweeten the bread, brown the crust, and lend tenderness to the texture. These jobs can be performed by white or brown sugar, molasses, maple or corn syrups, honey, fruits or other sweeteners.
F l o u r
In order for the bread to rise, the flour has to have a high protein content. You should always use a “bread flour” (for white bread recipes) in your bread maker to get the best results. Do not use
Unlike white bread flour, whole wheat flour contains bran and wheat germ which inhibit rising. Wheat breads therefore tend to be heavier in texture and smaller in size. A lighter larger loaf can be achieved by combining whole wheat flour with white bread flour for wheat bread recipes.
L i q u i d s
When liquids are mixed with the proteins in flour, gluten is formed. Gluten is necessary for rising. Many recipes use dry milk, but other liquids, such as fruit juice, beer, and water work too. It's a delicate balance: A recipe with too much liquid may cause the bread to fall during baking while a recipe with too little liquid will not rise.
S a l t
Salt inhibits rising, so be very careful measuring. Ordinary table salt will do.
F a t s
Many breads use fats to enhance the flavor and retain moisture. Typically, we use margarine in these recipes, but butter may also be used.
8
