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I recently received a paninni grill and I am having trouble finding the correct type of bread to use with it? Any ideas on where to purchase the correct type of bread to use with the pannini maker? Looking for places in Northern NJ or New York City. Thanks.

Aside from the fresh greens and the chatter with the farmers, one of the best things about the opening of the Mt. Pleasant Farmers Market each spring was the return of the Breadline bread, fresh on Saturday mornings. Alas, since the acquisition of the Breadline by La Brioche Doree, apparently a French attempt to revenge themselves on globalizing Americans by foisting soulless pseudo-French baguettes on us, the bread seems not so much declining in quality, as plummeting. Anyone else noticed this? And, will it be worth eating at Michel Richard's Citronelle now that the Ciabbatta -- originally named Palladin, after Jean-Louis -- is no longer a delight?

I've been trying to stay fairly low-carb for health reasons, and have just bought a bag of Carbalose flour. It's not the same thing as Carbquik baking mix--it's supposed to be a straight substitution for flour. I've read a lot of recipes but haven't been able to get answers to some of my questions. I thought that maybe some here could help me figure this out. Some of it has to do with the chemistry involved in baking. I've been reading The Bread Baker's Apprentice and the La Brea bread cookbook, and thinking about sourdough and breads with long fermentation times. I'm wondering if a low carb flour would even work for sourdough breads (would there be anything for the yeasts to eat?) Here is what the website says about it: Considering the ingredients, can any of you chemists figure out what would happen if I try to make sourdough or long fermented breads with this? If it would even work at all, that is. I've also thought about combining with regular flour to just make a lower carb bread, which would be better than nothing.

Abra asked in the pastry thread about a tanoor oven in reference to ATAF's thread on Iranian Bread. I really love flatbreads and have the fortune to live in a country that offers Yemenite, Iraqi, Iranian, Tunesian, Indian, Italian, Ethiopian, Druze, Bedouin, Moroccan and Bukharan flatbreads. I am sure I have missed a few. I found this very interesting article on flatbreads. On the Flabread Trail Here in Israel, you will find a number of shishlik restaurants make fresh flatbread in their Taboona. The wood fire is built on the floor of the oven and the bread is baked on the side walls. the dough is placed either by a round padded piece of wood or with a metal hook. I once saw a baker put the dough in with bare hands. I thought he was nuts, but he must have asbestos hands like some of the restaurant chefs. The Bedouin and the Druze here make their bread on a sajj which looks a bit like an inverted wok. The Bedouin also used to bake their flatbread in hot sand. What type of flatbreads do you like? Have you tried making flatbreads? I have only made foccacia.

Is iranian bread one of your favourite breads? want to know how its done? Check out my post at this link

Had some unused baker's yeast so used it to bake a loaf of raisin white bread... Just tried baking this recipe I found and it turn out ok and tasted good... Happy Baking Don

Interior: Soft, rolled like a baguette, slightly sweet bread....it was white inside so i don't think it had eggs....maybe milk , maybe potatoes to enrichened Exterior: No crust what so ever. I was thinking portuguese bread but not sure..... Thanks

Just baked a loaf of focaccia using white leaven at 100% hydration. Did not do a good job at dimpling the top before baking though. Adjusted the contrast just a little to give a better cross-section of the bread. Happy Baking... Don

Over the last few days, after completing a starter I'm happy with, I've been experimenting with sourdough baking. I guess I make a lot of the beginner mistakes, before finding a routine that works. Inspired by this excellent forum, and this thread in particular ; http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=27634 I'm making another atempt, all will document it here and hope for some feedback. In the mean time, I can tell you all about what went from at my last atempt, finished about 60 minutes ago. - To counter the "pancake effect" on wet dough (mine was at 70%), I've read that it can be smart to throw in a glass or so of water on a cast iron pan or something to provide steam and better heat transfer during the first few minutes. This is said to help developing the crust. Since I don't have room for pizza baking stone, cast iron pan AND bread in my electric oven, I used my turbo fan for a couple of minutes instead..... BIG Mistake !! :-) After 20 minutes I had to take it out of the oven. It was turning black and burnt! The botton, resting on the pizza stone, was turning into black carbon. And the top were also turning darker and darker. 40 minutes, and It would have been a black heap of coal :-) Anyway.. I ended up with a bread that looks real good, a bit on the "over finished" side, but with an apealing a nice and airy crumb. Taste wise however... This is a disaster! The crust tastes burned, and the crumb is not baked 100%, so it "swells" in your mouth when you eat it. My guess is that all this is the turbo-fan's fault. I swear to never to that again .-) Edit: After posting, I noticed that there Was a Q/A Thread fro the tutorial, with posts from 2006. Admins, feel free to move my post at will .-)

I recently did a small study on thawing bread. Since you cannot use a plastic bag when thawing it (Crust gets real bad), some kind of "breathing" material must be used, meaning dehydration. So, how much water is lost during thawing ? Here are the results. (Total weight loss over approximately 12 hours.) Plastic: 0% (start weight 149g, end weight 149g) Paper: 1.9% (start weight 104g, end weight 102g) Cloth: 4.9% (start weight 122, g end weight 116g) Other details; the bread was baked with a 65% hydration, baked into round loaves and cut in halves. Three halves have been used in this "experiment". This means that all loaves have a “cut”, and is not totally surrounded by crust. This probably has an effect on the total result, but the comparisons should be valid. I conclude with the cloth/fabric giving the overall best results, but at a higher dehydration cost. (I like crispy crusts!) I guess the overall best approach would have been to put half baked loaves in the freezer ? Any other thoughs on preserving bread ? (Complete details of my "experiment" can be found on my homepage/food blog. Go by clicking here

Apple Quickbread This is a tried-and-true recipe for a very easy apple quickbread, taught to me many years ago by a Japanese friend. I don't know the recipe's original source. Apple Bread Makes 2 9 x 5" loaves 2 cups sifted flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 cup vegetable oil 1 cup sugar 3 eggs, beaten 1 teaspoon vanilla 4 to 5 apples, peeled, cored, and cut in eighths Preheat oven to 375F. Sift together first 4 ingredients. Combine oil and sugar. Mix in eggs. Add to flour mixture, mixing well. Add vanilla. Mix. Stir in apples. Bake in 2 greased 9 x 5" loaf pans 50-60 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Let cool in pans 10 minutes before removing. Keywords: Dessert, Easy, Fruit, Cake ( RG1698 )

So a friend of mine just gave me an Amish Friendship bread. The instructions state to "mash the bag" for 6 days and bake with it on the seventh. It gets "refreshed" on the 7th day. This contradicts everything I have ever read about caring for a starter but apparently people have been passing this around for a while. The "starter" has no real character, and my guess, no real leavening power. But I'll play with it and pass it on as requested. I wanted to know if any one out there has been given this before and what there experience has been? I can't wait to see! Shane

So I'm readying myself to make pumpernickel, but I don't have pullman pans. Is there something else I can substitute for the pullman covers on, say, a standard loaf pan? At the same time, can somebody give me a good lead on some inexpensive pullman pans?

Today, I acquired a bread maker from a friend who is moving and needed to get rid of some stuff. I have never used a bread maker, and I haven't particularly wanted one because I am comfortable making bread dough by hand or sometimes in my food processor. However, I am always up for a cooking experiment, so I took the bread maker just to see how it works. After examining the bread maker, I have found that it has a setting for pasta dough. Has anyone tried making pasta dough in the bread maker, and if so would anyone recommend it? If so, why? If not, why not? As in the case of bread dough, my interest in using the machine for pasta is not motivated by any aversions to doing the work by hand. I'm just curious about different methods of making things, their pros and cons, etc.

Hi everybody! I am looking for websites on chinese bread shaping or, in case you are familiar with it, would you like to share your technics? I saw many interensting books on the matter, but I don't speak chinese and the translated ones don't seam as interesting. Tepee on the Chinese forum already direct me on this site http://www.jodelibakery.netfirms.com/ For example, I started out from trying steam buns in the shape of flower and I like the idea so much that I tried it out on a brioche dough. The result is not yet optimal, as you can see, proofing some flowers lost the shape, for sure is more suitable for a stiff dough. Thanks for sharing! Franci

Mom's Irish Soda Bread Mom thinks she got this from a decorating magazine at least 30 years ago, but she's not sure. 3-1/2 c flour 1/2 c sugar 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp baking soda 2 tsp baking powder 2 eggs 1 pt sour cream 1 c raisins (I use currants.) 2 tsp caraway seeds Mix dry ingredients. Fold in eggs and sour cream. Stir in raisins or currants and caraway seeds. Mold into a round loaf (dough will be sticky), put into a greased pan (a pie pan works well) and sprinkle with flour. Cut a cross in the top and bake at 350 degrees F. for about 1 hour or until light brown. Keywords: Easy, Bread ( RG1670 )

Hidden away in the Bread volume of the Time-Life Good Cook series is a truly spectacular Irish Cream Soda Bread. Unfortunately, while overseas, I've left behind a good portion of my library in New York. This is one of those breads that I love making for special dinners. Anyone happen to have a copy of the book who could post or e-mail me the recipe? Gracias in advance!

Gingerbread Hamantashen Nice change from the typical hamantashen. Fill with pear or apricot lekvar. 2-1/2 c all-purpose flour 1/4 tsp salt 2 tsp ground ginger 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp allspice 1/4 tsp cloves 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1 tsp baking soda 3/4 c brown sugar 1/2 c margarine 1 large egg 1/2 c molasses 1 tsp vanilla Mix together the flour, salt, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg and baking soda. Use an electric mixer to cream together the brown sugar and margarine. Add the egg, mixing it in, then the molasses and the vanilla. Add the dry ingredients and mix until well combined. This will make a very soft dough. Turn it out onto a work surface, cut in half and form into 2 flat squares. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a minimum of one hour (can be done a day or two ahead and kept in the refrigerator). Generously flour worktop (I like to roll this dough out on parchment paper because it tends to stick a little as it's so soft). Roll the dough approximately 1/4" thick. Use a cutter to cut 2 to 3" circles. Place about 1 tsp. of filling in the center of each circle and fold up three side, pinching to form triangles. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake at 350 for 9-11 minutes, until the edges are just starting to brown. Cool. Keywords: Jewish, Kosher, Easy, Cookie ( RG1666 )

Rez Bread My friend Big Lou, who pays an visit to my shop early most mornings for coffee and the latest gossip, is a member of the White Earth band of the Ojibway/Chippewa American Indian tribe. Although he's never lived on the reservation, at one-half blood he's a legal member of the band and entitled to their hunting, fishing and wild ricing rights. One of the other benefits available through the tribal government is access to commodities through the USDA food assistance programs. Every time Lou visits his relatives on "The Rez" they send him home with far more food than he can use. Last week, for instance, he brought flour, corn meal, raisins and a Trial Mix consisting primarily of chopped dates and walnuts. I try and come up with recipes using as many of the surplus commodities as possible. In the spirit in which the government made the food available, I always bring a sample for Big Lou. We hope to develop enough recipes to make up a small cookbook to distribute on the reservations. Using a quick bread recipe named from “The Bread Book” by Betsy Oppeneer called "Vi's Brown Bread", (after her MIL), I came up with this recipe: REZ BREAD (* indicates USDA Commodity) 1 c Raisins* 2-1/4 c Hot Coffee 1-1/2 c Sugar 3 T Butter (room temp) 2 Eggs (or 4 Tbl Dried Egg Mixture* + 6 Tbl Water) 2 T Molasses (or 2 Tbl Corn Syrup*) 2/3 c Milk (or 3 Tbl Dried Milk Powder* + 1/2 Cup 2Tbl Water) 1-1/2 tsp Vanilla 3-1/4 c AP Flour* (or substitute 1 Cup Whole Wheat Flour*) 1/2 c Corn Meal* 1-1/2 tsp Salt 1-1/2 tsp Baking Powder 2 c USDA Trail Mix* (or any dried fruit and nut mixture) In a Large Bowl, Soak Raisins in Hot Coffee about 30 min, unitl lukewarm Preheat Oven to 350, Grease two 8.5 x 4.25 Pans Add Sugar, Butter, Eggs, Molasses, Milk and Vanilla with Raisin/Coffee mixture. Mix Well. In Medium Bowl Whisk together Flour, Corn Meal, Salt, Baking Soda and Trail Mix. Add Flour mixture to Raisin Mixture all at once and Stir until just combined. Spoon Batter into Prepared Pans. Bake for 1 - 1 hr 15 min. (toothpick test or 190 degrees) Cool in Pans for 10 min. Remove from Pans and wrap in Foil, let set overnight SB (it's a VERY hearty bread) Keywords: Bread, Intermediate ( RG1663 )

Just got his Handmade Loaf and am enjoying reading for now. I decided to start with his crusty potato bread but am wondering whether this particular formula would function well in the refrigerator overnight and then kneading and so forth as is noted the next day. It's the addition of the potatos and refrigerating I'm worried about in particular. I don't know whether anything (flavor, texture, rise, etc) will be compromised if I mix the night before and then knead, divide, shape and bake the next day.

Anyone know where in Vancouver we can find something similar to the Calebaut chocolate loaf we get that Rhys Pender & Alishan Driediger make at Okanagan Grocery in Kelowna?? http://www.okanagangrocery.com/index_files/page0007.htm We will be staying at our condo in Yaletown for two weeks starting this weekend and I think we might have withdrawal symptoms if we don't have chocolate bread for that long!!! This bread is highly addicitve, and it is nothing like pain au chocolat that you see in most bakeries. There are chunks of dark chocolate throughout, and the bread dough is also chocolate.

My wife loves bread pudding (chocolate, banana, you name it) and I am having difficulty finding restaurants that serve a good rendition for dessert. Any suggestions? So far the best I've tasted out of NYC, was a white chocolate bread pudding at Food For Thought in Marlton.

This is a fully risen loaf on the picture, about 1.25 hours after shaping. I'm seriously concerned with its skin (or absent of such... notice the holes). The loaf stays pretty low, and doesn't have ovensring (even if I don't wait until it that risen) - in the oven it can be seen that surface "breathes" severily, i.e. gases intensively go out through the holes... Before it went to the pan it seemed to have nice and smooth surface. What's wrong happened with the loaf? There was no retarding.

Hi, I've recently got medium ground rye flour and whole rye grains. Is it possible to make a 100% sourdough rye bread, like those dense and hearty german style ones without the use of white rye flour?? Can someone help me with the formula?? THX

I love this book! I've made the recipe for Basic Hearth Bread many times before but now I want to do the "ultimate full flavor variation." I've already let the sponge ferment in the fridge for 24 hours but she says for even more flavor, "refrigerate the finished dough overnight; take it out 1 hour before shaping it." So...does that mean that I mix the dough, let it rise, then refrigerate it overnight, take it out, shape it and let it rise again? I appreciate any advice anyone has