Instructions: Ingredient Tips:
1.Fats
2.Sugar
3.Eggs
4.Yeast
5.Flavourings

TIP #1 Fats

Fats such as butter, margarine and oil have a lubricating effect on the glutens meshwork. In other words, adding fats will permit your dough to stretch more easily.

Fats help improve flavour, tenderness and quality of the bread. Butter is usually used in rich, sweet and festive breads. It is important to use shortening to grease your pans, instead of butter or oil which can cause the bread to stick to the pan or burn.

TIP #2 Sugar

Sugar is quick food for the yeast, helping it to produce carbon dioxide gas that allows the yeast to activate.

Sugar adds flavour to breads and can give a golden colour to the crust. Substitute brown sugar, molasses or honey for fancy or whole grain breads. Too much sugar can slow down the yeast action or stop it from acting altogether.

TIP #3 Eggs

Eggs add nutrition and colour, provide volume and bind ingredients together.

Use large eggs in recipes unless another size is specified. Used in large quantities, eggs will colour dough yellow. Egg products can replace whole eggs in many recipes.

TIP #4 Yeast

Sprinkling active dry yeast over a mixture of warm water and sugar, and letting it stand for 10 minutes, will allow the yeast to proof or start to ferment.

Too much heat will kill the yeast.

Too much sugar will cause the yeast to rise at a slower rate than normal. 1 package of active dry yeast or approximately 1 tablespoon (15 mL).

TIP #5 Flavourings

Extracts, flavours and liqueurs should be added to ingredients at room temperature.

Volume Tips:
To avoid the dough spilling over the pan, do not let it rise to more than double its size before kneading.

Too much flour or salt, or too little, will inhibit the glutens performance and the dough will not rise to its full potential. Substituting finer grain flours for coarse or heavier grain flours to allow gluten to stretch can prevent a flat or compact loaf. Use the amount of flour your recipe calls for to ensure the dough will hold its shape while baking.

Maintain the oven temperature your recipe calls for, or one side of your loaf may rise higher than the other.

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