BUTTER, MARGARINE and OTHER FATS AND OILS serve several purposes in bread making as they tenderize the bread, add flavor and richness and contribute to the storage life of bread by retaining moisture. An excess of fat, however, can inhibit rising, so measure accurately.
Butter, margarine and solid shortening are interchangeable in the recipes. Butter and margarine can be used right from the refrigerator. You may wish to cut cold butter or margarine into 4 pieces for faster blending, placing them into the corners of the pan. Low- fat or
EGGS add color, richness and leavening to bread. Use large eggs. No premixing is needed. Egg substitute can be used in place of fresh eggs. One egg equals ¼ cup of egg substitute. To reduce cholesterol, you can substitute 2 egg whites for each large egg in the recipes without affecting the result. Watch the dough during the knead cycle as some minor adjustments may be necessary to get the dough to the right consistency. See Special Notes on Flour section.
A special tip when using eggs is to run under warm water or place in a bowl of warm water about 1 minute before cracking as this helps the egg slide out of shell better.
SALT has several functions in making bread. It inhibits the yeast growth while strengthening the gluten structure to make the dough more elastic, plus it adds flavor. Use ordinary table salt in your bread maker. Using too little or eliminating the salt will cause the dough to over rise; using too much can prevent the dough from rising as high as it should. “Lite” salt can be used as a substitute for ordinary table salt providing it contains both potassium chloride and sodium. Use the same amount as recommended for table salt.
YEAST is a living organism, which through fermentation, feeds on carbohydrates in flour and sugar to producer carbon dioxide gas that makes the bread rise. Active dry, fast rising or bread machine yeast can be used in your bread maker. Use only the amount stated in the recipes. Using a little more can cause the dough to over rise and bake into the cover. Fast rising yeast and bread machine yeast are virtually the same and are interchangeable with one another.
DO NOT USE COMPRESSED CAKE YEAST IN YOUR BREAD MAKER. RECIPES IN THIS BOOK WERE TESTED USING ONLY ACTIVE DRY, FAST RISING AND BREAD MACHINE YEAST.
Keep yeast stored in the refrigerator. You may find it handy to purchase yeast in glass jars so you can measure the exact amount you need without having to waste any. If using yeast packed in a ¼
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