Classic white - Mk II

I changed a few of the ingredients used in my classic white loaf (see elsewhere on this blog) - and came up with a slightly different result.

Here goes (and you'll need to follow these quantities exactly): 

·         * 1 ¼ cups of tap water water

·         * 3 cups of plain white flour  

·         * 1/4 cup of wholemeal flour

·        * 1 tbsp of table spread/marg

·         * ¾ tsp of salt

·         * 1 tbsp of honey

·         *  1 ¼ tsp of instant (dry) yeast 

Again, I use a “basic” bread setting – with a “medium crust” heat setting) on the machine, and used my rubber spatula to help throw loose flour into the dough ball as it was initially mixing.

 Again, the whole process took just on three hours.

  The result? A great-tasting, slightly sweeter loaf with good internal density . . . not too thick/not too airy, if that makes sense. The hole left by the mixing paddle was also minimal.

Interestingly, by the following morning, when I carved it for toast, the crust was very soft, but the loaf held its shape well. Unfortunately, the dome had ‘deflated’ (not sure why . . .), but this had no ill effects on my ability to carve the loaf.

As toast, it had a rich mellow taste that was somewhat sweeter than the white loaf made using sugar and oil.

I also suspect the ¼ cup of wholemeal flour added to the richer taste.

The next variant – Classic White Mk III – which is baking now has slightly less wholemeal flour (about 1/8 of a cup), and I have used raw sugar as the sweetening agent.

I’ll report on the outcome when it’s ready. So stay tuned!