freshly ground flour - dough not gluteny

[LaBellaVita]

am I doing something wrong? Maybe using the wrong kind of recipe for freshy ground flour?

 

I can make some really good bread, but sometimes my dough looks almost like cream of wheat or something, its just not stretchy and it makes heavy loaves. I have been flipflopping recipes lately, trying to find a great one for my flour, maybe that is part of my problem? I need to use recipes specifically for freshly ground flour?

 

Do I have to add extra gluten?

 

 

Thank you!!!

 

[Homemaker]

It may be the type of wheat you're using. Winter red seems to do best in bread for me. Soft white was a disaster. It's more suited to pastries.

[CrabGrassAcres]

Try adding some egg and let the dough rise while wet. Most people seem to get their dough too dry. I also use honey or molasses to help feed the yeast and it rises better.

[LaBellaVita]

It may be the type of wheat you're using. Winter red seems to do best in bread for me. Soft white was a disaster. It's more suited to pastries.

I'm using a combo of hard red and hard white.

[LaBellaVita]

Try adding some egg and let the dough rise while wet. Most people seem to get their dough too dry. I also use honey or molasses to help feed the yeast and it rises better.

many of the recipes I was using had honey in them, haven't tried molasses yet.

 

Well, today I'm just using regular ole flour as I ended up buying some and I had success, made some DE-lish bread.

 

I'll go through my recipes maybe try one when I have more time, and see. I've used the Breadbecker's recipes and seeral others.

 

Thanks.

[Darlene]

I don't buy bread anymore...I make it from fresh ground flour I make from my grains.

 

I add 3T gluten and 1T lethicin to the bread and the loaves come out beautifully.

 

Try that.

[Vic303]

Depending on the quality of the grain I am grinding (some has less gluten than others), I will add 1/2c-3/4c of vital gluten to a 10c flour batch. That yields 3 large loaves for us.

[Darlene]

Good point Vic...the 3T gluten and 1T lethicin is per loaf.

[Cavediver]

I don't buy bread anymore...I make it from fresh ground flour I make from my grains.

 

I add 3T gluten and 1T lethicin to the bread and the loaves come out beautifully.

 

Try that.

 

Hi Darlene,

Where do you get lethicin?

Is lethicin the same as commercial conditioners?

 

I've been experimenting with home-ground wheat breads and a bread machine. So far, I like the flavor of hard white mixed with a little hard red wheat, but I'm not happy with the density and rise of the loaves. Adding gluten has helped (3 tablespoons per 3 cups of flour), but I think it could be better.

 

I've looked at the dough conditioner on the Honeyville web site, but I'm not sure if that's a direction I should go, or if I need to change the recipe.

 

If it helps, here's the ingredient list

1C milk

3T water

4t honey

1T butter

3C Flour minus 3T

3T Gluten

3/4t salt

1t bread machine yeast

 

Thanks,

Jay M

[Darlene]

The dough enhancer would work...it has the lethicin in it. I don't buy the dough enhancer though because all the extra stuff they put into that isn't necessary, except for the lethicin.

 

Anyway, get some of the dough enhancer if you can find that easily. The lethicin I found at the health food store, or you can find it online.

 

www.breadbeckers.com is where I buy my lethicin.

[LaBellaVita]

Depending on the quality of the grain I am grinding (some has less gluten than others), I will add 1/2c-3/4c of vital gluten to a 10c flour batch. That yields 3 large loaves for us.

Vic, that is a lot of gluten. My recipes call for nothing close to that amount. I wonder if that wil help. I'm going to try it.

 

I guess I should have noted that I have a Family Grain Mill, is the quality of flower that much different than using a high-powered one like the NutriMill?

 

Darlene, I've been thinking about making a Breadbecker's run, I'll check out the lethicin. Thanks!

[jtsmama]

Depending on the quality of the grain I am grinding (some has less gluten than others), I will add 1/2c-3/4c of vital gluten to a 10c flour batch. That yields 3 large loaves for us.

Vic, that is a lot of gluten. My recipes call for nothing close to that amount. I wonder if that wil help. I'm going to try it.

 

I guess I should have noted that I have a Family Grain Mill, is the quality of flower that much different than using a high-powered one like the NutriMill?

 

Darlene, I've been thinking about making a Breadbecker's run, I'll check out the lethicin. Thanks!

 

I have the family grain mill and get beautiful flour for my breads. Like Vic and Darlene I also use vital wheat gluten and lecithin powder.At first I only ordered the hand base and found that I had to grind the flour twice in order to get it fine enough. LOL took me a long time to do that.Then I ordered the motor base..should have in the first place and once through on the finest setting works very well for me.For two loaves of bread using about seven cups of four I use 1/3 cup gluten and 2 Tlbs. lecithin powder.I hope it helps to know the problem isn't the mill.