The Antique Touch

Many people like the old style look that comes on top of such things as chocolate cakes. This can easily be achieved with use of a lace paper doily. Placing the doily on top of your cake, sprinkling powdered sugar, and then removing the doily will leave a sugar outline that provides a stylish finish.

For the best results the powdered sugar should be sprinkled from a shaker, it tends to provide a much more even spread.

Baking Powder

In baking, freshness of the baking ingredients can have an impact on the final result. This freshness also applies to baking powder and yeast. Baking powder will stop having the same potency after about six months from when it was opened. Always mark the opening date on the baking powder container this will enable you to know how fresh the contents are.

It is equally important to store your baking powder, and any spices in an appropriate place. Heat will have a detrimental affect on the baking powder reducing its potency.

Getting the Consistent Results

The oven is the vital piece of equipment in home baking. It is essential that the oven is preheated before any bread is placed in it. Also when using the oven, place the bread in the center to ensure an even bake, as the air can circulate all around.

Biscuit Dough

It is very easy to overwork biscuit dough. To avoid this only mix the ingredients gently and only roll the dough once. Overworking the mixture will result in your biscuits becoming hard and tough, something that might be suitable for soup, but will find sparse appreciation elsewhere.

To ensure your biscuits come out perfectly when being cut, always dust the cutter with flour to prevent sticking.

Choosing between Butter or Margarine

If a recipe asks for butter, use butter, margarine should only be used a last resort. Margarine will normally end up as a runny mess, due to the fact that margarine is in the majority just water, oil and artificial colorings. Margarine is generally the more unhealthy option as well, as it is full of trans fats linked to a shortening of life expectancy.

Don't give up. It a simple message but with perseverance the bread machine will see you making healthy home baked bread in no time. Listed below are some tips that can make using your bread machine that little bit easier.

The most important thing any new owner of a bread machine can do is to read the instruction manual. Most manuals will come with a care and maintenance section, included in this or often separately is a section which talks about what should be done before you start baking. One of the most important steps is to run the machine through a baking cycle with no dough in it. Do not be tempted to start with dough straightaway.

Care and maintenance is important. After baking the mixing paddle needs to be removed. You will find that often the dough mixture has baked the paddle in place, and it can become a nightmare to remove. Lubricant, in the form of olive oil or margarine, will make this easier if spread on the paddle before baking. Whatever you do, do not try and use a knife or similar metal tool to force the paddle out. It probably won't work and you will just end up scratching the non-stick coating on the inside of your machine.

Cleaning is also an issue, which can impact the performance of the bread machine. Many manuals will state that the pan and paddle from the machine can be dish washed; don't take the risk. It is a lot safer to wash the inside of the pan with warm soapy water; it is recommended that the pan is not submerged in the water. Leaving the inside of the pan to soak for a quarter of an hour should be sufficient to allow a dish cloth to clean to a high standard.

New owners are often faced with baking issues with their first attempts using the new bread machine. Recipes are there to be followed but even following the recipe to the letter may not provide perfect results. There are variables that will impact upon the baking process. The freshness of the ingredients is vital, but of equal importance is air temperature, humidity and even altitude, all of these variables will change the baking process.

It is quite possible that you may need to adapt the recipe and instructions to make the bread machine produce perfect bread. Always remember that where you change a recipe or instructions, you will need to make a note of it or else you will never be able to reproduce the results again.

Where a loaf comes out of the machine sagging in the middle, it is normally a consequence of their being too much liquid and/or water in the dough mixture. Reducing the liquid amounts should resolve this, although if it doesn't there may be an issue with the yeast being used.

The yeast could make your bread sag or it could make it rise too much. If the latter is the issue try adding some salt to the mixture. Salt will reduce the amount of growth that the yeast undertakes. If the yeast grows too much then the bread can easily rise too much, causing a collapse and the possibility of an uneven surface on it. The reverse is also true, if the bread is sagging, try removing some of the salt from the recipe, it may allow a greater rise in the bread.

The crust is often another issue. Many people find that the bread will come out of the bread machine with a crust that is too thick or hard. The most common cause of this is that the dough mixture is too dry. This is easily rectified with the addition of extra water or milk. Some bread machines also have a 'sandwich' setting which will avoid a hard crust being formed.

A similar problem occurs where the roof of the bread does not brown evenly. The best way for fixing this is to place some aluminum on top of the bread prior to baking, although ensure that the aluminum is dull side up.

Just before the buns are put into the grill for baking, cover the buns in an egg white wash. The wash can easily be made from an egg white combined with a tablespoon of water. Once covered in the wash, the buns can be sprinkled with some sesame seeds, creating that authentic look. Cooking time will vary, depending on your grill, so it may be a case of a few attempts before perfection arrives.

Dinner rolls can be made on the same grill; just remember to place the dough mixture on a raised pan.

Bread loaves can also baked on your grill. The easiest way is to get a ready mixed batch. Follow the instructions; again grill temperatures can vary so loaves may take a bit more attention. Remember though to score the top of your dough before baking, otherwise you may end up with your loaf splitting down the side as steam tries to escape.

There are a number of baking tips that may make your outdoor baking more successful

The grill is of course much easier to move around than your oven, so the use of the grill means you can enjoy fresh baked bread almost anywhere. The grill can provide that aroma of the freshly baked bread outside whilst you are camping or even out in your back garden when you have friends and family around.

In the hottest days of summer, you won't have to be cooped up in a stifling kitchen to get your favorite bread recipe cooked. What's more if you ever suffer from a power cut, you could well be the only person in the neighborhood with fresh bread.

A covered grill is one of the most useful items a cook or baker will ever have. The cover is of course the important part; it will turn your simple grill into the equivalent of an oven. So if your grill doesn't have a cover then try manufacturing one from an overturned pot, it will turn a useful tool into a vital one. In a covered grill, the heat will circulate as it rises up around your food. The heat, of course can come from any number of sources; gas, charcoal or wood, are all suitable fuels. The fuel source is a personal preference although many people prefer to use gas as it will not impart that charcoal taste on your bread, which comes from charcoal or wood burning.

If cooking on a grill always remember that it is hottest nearest the fuel source, even if the air does circulate. To avoid uneven baking or burning make sure your bread is held above the flame. Many people have a shelf built into their grill for just such a purpose, be it the baking of bread or potatoes. If your grill doesn't have one, it is important that you improvise a shelf or else your baking experience may not be all you hoped it would be.

The easiest way of baking on a grill is to buy those ready mixed products available in many stores. Many bread mixes will have recipes and instructions on the packaging, from these instructions it is possible to produce excellent bread, as well as hamburger buns and any number of rolls.

In baking using your grill there are two basics that need to be controlled to produce perfect bread. The temperature and time are all important. Now some modern high-end grills come with a built in thermometer which makes it a lot easier to gauge the temperature. If your grill doesn't come with a thermometer then don't panic, with experience it is possible to judge the temperature of your grill, through looking at the flames from your fuel. Cooking outside does come with its own set of variables, temperature fluctuations as well as how hard the wind is blowing will impact on your grill.

It is of course pointless getting the temperature right if you then totally forget about how long you are going to bake for. A bread loaf is likely to take anywhere between 20 and 30 minutes to bake to perfection, this time will vary depending on the temperature of your grill as well as the size of the loaf. Smaller items, like rolls and buns, will take less time to bake, probably in the region of 15 to 20 minutes, although this again will depend on grill temperature.

A kitchen timer will allow you to keep an eye on how baking is going without continually lifting the lid of the grill. Occasional viewing of your baking is permitted but do it too often and it will impact upon the finish of the bake.

It is possible to use the Dutch oven directly, as long as you remember to ensure that it is well-oiled before being used. Most bakers though prefer to use the Dutch oven as a holder for a baking pan with the dough on the pan.

We were recently advised of a success story from a baker in the Sequoia Mountains in California. Using an Irish Potato Bread mix, this baker used the aforementioned method of baking her Potato Bread on a pan within the Dutch oven.

Following the instructions on the pre-packaged mixture, the dough was moulded into a circular loaf. This moulded dough was then positioned on a greased nine-inch metal pie pan.

The pie pan was then placed into the Dutch oven, which had a diameter of a foot. The Dutch oven was then covered and placed on to ten coal briquettes. Onto the lid of the Dutch oven were position a further fourteen briquettes. With heat surrounding the oven, the bread was left to cook for three-quarters of an hour, with the lid being turned at regular intervals.

The Californian baker was quoted as saying, 'I was surprised and delighted to find that the bread was perfect. The crust was brown on top and it was a real treat . . . a great success.

The Dutch oven is not the biggest piece of kitchen equipment but you should be able to comfortable bake rolls or a small loaf in it. It is advisable to use your bread making machine mix or recipes for single loaves to ensure that you make the ideal size loaves. Do not be tempted to try and put two loaves into your Dutch oven. The chances are that in cramming in two loaves there will not be enough circulation of hot air to ensure even rising. Without circulation you are most likely to end up with two lopsided loaves rather than the one perfect one you are after.

When using your Dutch oven it is vital that the pan inside it is raised from the bottom of the oven. This is easily achieved with the use of some small stones, and will ensure that the base of the read is not burnt. Equally important is to ensure that there is enough room for the bread to rise within the oven without hitting the lid and thus preventing that perfect rise.

The Dutch oven is of course not just for making loaves and rolls, using exactly the same technique it is possible to create those desserts and pastries that everyone is after. The Dutch oven is an excellent piece of equipment to make pasties and sweet rolls, as long as you remember to make use of the raised pan technique.

There are any number of reasons why people make their own bread. It may be a case of money, home baking can be more economical, saving money off of your weekly shopping bill. Some people bake because a home back whole wheat loaf is healthier than the store brought equivalent. Other people will bake just because they like to make a snack or desert for their family. A loaf of pumpkin or banana load normally goes down well with the whole family.

If we return to the whole wheat loaf, then there are obvious health benefits. The Vitamins associated with the home baked whole wheat loaf are often said reduce heart disease. Many people also feel that a slice of whole wheat bread is as good as taking a vitamin supplement.

The term wheat is often used in connection with the baking of bread. Wheat is one of the worlds largest and important grain crop. Wheat is especially valued because of the nutrition it contains. Using the whole of the wheat provides a wide range of B-Vitamins, whilst the wheat germ contains large amounts of Vitamin E.

When using the whole wheat it is vital that milling occurs as soon as possible after harvesting occurs. If there is a delay, then the beneficial vitamins can disperse due to oxidization. This is one of the reason why store brought bread is worthless health-wise. The production process for store bread removes the vitamins that are naturally within the wheat. An estimated 90% of all vitamins and some 30 nutrients are lost within three days of milling.

Families will often see health benefits as soon as they start making their own bread. Home baking using whole wheat is often seen as remedy for sinus conditions, and associated cold symptoms. There are also additional reports of other health benefits, with individuals stating that they have seen warts and acne disappearing, as well as a reduction in cholesterol levels.

Most people now know about the benefits of making sure our diets include more fiber, the use of whole wheat will provide this fiber, although it is important to remember to drink more water as fiber intake increases.