FAQs

FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

I’ve enjoyed answering reader questions on our blog since 2007.  Click on any of the questions below– these are the ones that seem to be on a lot of bakers’ minds.  If you’re having a problem with one of the recipes, breeze through these FAQs first. If you can’t find an answer there, click on any “Comments” field adjoining a “post” here on the website (doesn’t have to be related to the content underneath). Tell me which book you’re working from, and which recipe and page number, and ask your question. I’ll answer, right under your question (or maybe a few below), within a day or so. Please understand that I can’t write back directly to you–there’ve been tens of thousands of questions here on the site, and I want other readers to benefit from the conversation. 

And please understand that my publisher would disown me if I put all our full-detail recipes here on the website or in the comment responses. This site is mainly a way of reaching out to readers, and supporting them as they work on recipes that appear in the published books.

If the list of FAQs below doesn’t get you the answer you need, try the Search Bar. On the Home Page, it’s right over the picture of the bread. In narrower displays, it sometimes appears right underneath the orange BreadIn5 logo. Type in the bread style, ingredient, or technique that you’re interested in, and the search engine will show you all the similar posts I’ve ever done on it, with recipes and answers to many questions.    –Jeff

  1. BreadIn5.com is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, BreadIn5 LLC earns an affiliate commission.
  2. Comments policies: I posted a comment to this site but it hasn’t appeared. What happened? Can I put up links to other sites?
  3. Contest and Giveaway Rules
  4. Convection oven: Any adjustment needed?
  5. Dense or gummy crumb: What am I doing wrong?
  6. Flour varieties: Do I need to adjust the liquids when I use different kinds of white flour?
  7. Freezing the dough: Can I do it?
  8. Fresh-ground grains: can I use them with this method?
  9. Gluten-Free Frequently Asked Questions (GF FAQs)
  10. Gray color on my dough: Is there something wrong? Is it mold?
  11. High-altitude baking: How do I adjust the recipes for high-altitude?
  12. Incorporating dried fruit, nuts, or herbs into stored dough: How do I do it?
  13. Larger loaves/multiple loaves: What adjustments are needed?
  14. Left the dough on the counter overnight! Can I still use it?
  15. The scoop-and-sweep method for measuring flour by volume: How it was done when testing these recipes
  16. Missing instructions and missing recipes: Some of the web-based recipes don’t have everything I need to make the bread, and others are missing from the website altogether
  17. Nutrition content: How can I calculate it?
  18. Photographs: Can I post pictures to this website?
  19. Privacy Policy
  20. Refrigerator rise trick: The formed loaves or rolls rise overnight and are ready for the oven the next day
  21. Rising: My shaped loaves don’t seem to rise much before it’s time for the oven.  What am I doing wrong?
  22. Salt: Can I decrease the amount of salt in the recipes?  How do I adjust for different kinds of salt?
  23. Sourdough starter: Can I use it with this method?
  24. Steam alternatives: How do I create a steam environment for a great crust when my oven doesn’t trap steam well?
  25. Stone broke! What did I do wrong?
  26. Storing bread: What’s the best way to do it?
  27. Traditional recipes: How can they be converted to the ABin5 method?
  28. Underbaked! My loaf didn’t bake through to the center.  What am I doing wrong?
  29. Web or other uses: Can I use your recipes on my own website, in my class, or in a publication?
  30. Weighing ingredients instead of using cup measures: How do you do it?
  31. Whole grain flours and vital wheat gluten: How do you use them?
  32. Whole grain flours and doughs without vital wheat gluten: How do those work?
  33. Yeast: Can it be decreased in the recipes?
  34. Health questions posted here over the years

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3,917 thoughts to “FAQs”

  1. Love your book! So many ideas and I want to try them all! But I would of loved a straight-forward list of recipes/pg.numbers, maybe even with a matrix of GF, enriched, etc. Do you have anything like that?

    1. Eva: Don’t have that, sorry. The first book has the weakest index, I think that’s the problem. “Healthy” and “Pizza” have much better indexes.

  2. I have now graduated to your HBin5 book and I want to try the Anadama Corn Bread. I just need to know if the molasses used in your recipe is fancy or blackstrap?
    Love your books. Thanks for all the hard work you have put into them as it makes our lives so much easier!

    1. Jen: I’m use non-blackstrap right now, but it’s not crucial. Blackstrap apparently has a better nutritional profile–we talked about it in HBin5.

  3. Hi, I just started reading through ABin5. I don’t have a stone but I do have a baguette baking pan. I was wondering how your recipe would work with one. What do you think?

  4. Love your books! Just got Pizza in 5. Would like to use either whole wheat flour or white whole wheat flour in the Sweet Brioche Dough and Chocolate Dough recipes in your Pizza in 5 book. Would like to use at least half if not all flour in white whole wheat or whole wheat flour. Is it possible and what if any adjustments to recipe?
    Thanks for your help and your books!

  5. I’ve been trying to make the Soft American-style White Bread on page 204 of Artesan Bread in 5 minutes a day and have been having a bit of a hard time. My bread pan is wider than what you recommend-you have a 9x4x3 pan while mine are 9x5x3. So I need to put in more dough if I want to have the dough fill the pan half full­. I made two loaves instead of three, but there was more than half a pan of dough. They rose nicely, but once in the oven they both sunk down a bit. I didn’t bake them any longer, as they had the ‘hollow’ sound they are supposed to make when done, and they were getting pretty brown as well. Any ideas? Thanks. Your book is great, my daughter bought it in November and she sold me on it….By the way, here in Canada we have hard wheat, and our all-purpose flour has more gluten in it than most American all-purpose flours, it’s more like your bread flour. Would that have an impact on the result?

    1. Jacqueline: We don’t subscribe to the “hollow-thump” school so it’s not in our books– it can be deceptive with wet dough (can sound hollow even though under-baked). Bottom line: it’s tough to make wet dough breads in such a large pan, especially when you want it 3/4-full. You can try a longer resting time, increase that by 30% or so, see if that helps. And bake for longer (though that won’t help the collapse problem you’re having).

      Finally, the higher-protein Canadian flour is an issue– see https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2008/02/10/qa-flour-and-water but that’s not going to help with this over-big pan. Try the smaller one and see if that helps.

      1. Thanks for the answer! I just found it (looked all over for two or three days and gave up, and wrote again…) Hope I can find that size pan, I bought new loaf pans just to make this recipe!! (My daughter said I had to have non-stick pans, I bought Wilton’s pans and for sure the bread slides out, no problem). We were down in NY on the weekend and I bought a small bag of Gold Medal unbleached flour, but I’m trying to work the problems out before trying it! Kind of far to get flour…. ;-))

  6. I want to make your Artisan bread (and form it into sandwich bread) using whole wheat flour. I’ve read your FAQs on the subject; I just want to know if there are any other tips for only using WW flour? It’s King Arthur brand, in case that makes any difference.

    Thank you!

  7. My question is for a recipe in the first bread book, the italian semolina bread recipe. I have found hodgson mill semolina pasta flour in my local grocery store. Is that the same as durum flour and can I use that for the durum flour? Thank you.

    All the recipes I have made are awesome…thanks for a great bread making method and recipes…

    1. Nicole: It is unlikely to be the same, bet it’s low protein, whereas durum is quite high. But it might work, experiment with it– maybe use a lower proportion of semolina? May have to experiment with the hydration too. Let us know how it goes.

  8. Hi! I wrote the other day, but I guess my comment got lost, I can’t even find it. I have been trying to make the American Soft White Bread in Artisan Bread in 5 minutes, and am having a few problems. I don’t have a pan that is 9x4x3, mine is 9x5x3, so one-third of the recipe does not fill the pan over half full. Should I be making two or three? The last loaves turned out not so bad, I left them rise a bit longer and baked them a bit longer as well. How high is this bread supposed to rise? It barely gets higher than the side of the pan, at most an inch higher, is this normal?
    Thanks!

  9. I tried the olive oil variation of the master recipe (page 61) of Pizza in Five. The resulting dough was very dry and crumbly. I did add about 1/4 cup of additional water but was afraid to add more.

    My dough rose perfectly but was still very dry and the pizza crust heavy.

    Any ideas or tips as to what happened? I used the same flour I used previously.

    Gaye

    1. Gaye: What flour type, and brand, did you use? Did you measure by volume or by weight?

      You can still add more water…

      1. 6 1/2 cups of flour was Gold Medal unbleached and the remaining 1 cup was, I believe, Eagle Mills unbleached from Costco. The latter had been packaged for long term storage in a Mylar bag with an oxygen absorber. Could that small amount make a difference?

        I used the the scoop and measure method.

        Perhaps I should simply, in a case like this, add more water until it looks right?

  10. I’ve been baking both ‘master recipes’ from your books — the white (AB5) and the whole wheat (HB5). The loaves of whole wheat never rise as much as the white… they tend to be much more flat (like – inch and a half in height – though still incredibly yummy!). They spread on the parchment instead of staying compact and springing up in the oven. Is there a way to get a nice fat boule of whole wheat?

    1. Allison: Not sure why it’s happening, but experiment with just a little more flour for a stiffer dough. And check out our “gluten-cloaking” video on that dough, on YouTube.com/breadin5

      1. I’ve viewed the YouTube video – one thing I notice is that I never need a pair of scissors to get a chuck of dough separated – the dough is airy enough where it just separates. Perhaps I need less yeast? More vital wheat gluten?
        It’s been said on many posts b4 – but it’s AWESOME that you are so involved to answer all these questions for us!

  11. Allison: We haven’t found much value in increasing the VWG. We have low yeast versions of the recipes, and some prefer them, but I don’t think it’s the reason for your experience (check out https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2007/12/19/low-yeast-version-of-our-master-recipe). More likely? Are you using a heavier, coarser-ground whole wheat like Hodgson Mills or Bob’s Red Star, or any “stone-ground.” They give lower-rising, denser results. Switch to a typical commercial whole wheat like Gold Medal and that should improve.

    But don’t expect as much loft with our WW as with our white– it’s just a different animal.

  12. My breads taste very good. However my dough is not stretchy like yours is on the video. I don’t need to cut it. It tears away very easy.

    This seems to be true with all my doughs not just one. I am using fresh flour. My yeast isn’t old. My dough does the initial rise. I do live in the south where it is humid at or below sea level.

    What am I doing wrong?

    1. Hi Angela,

      Which book are you using? The whole grain breads in HBin5 have a bit less stretch than those made with all white flour.

      What kind of flour are you using?

      Is your refrigerator particularly cold? This can make the dough a bit “brittle” and when it warms up it regains its stretch.

      Does your dough seem drier than what you see in our videos?

      Thanks, Zoë

      1. Hi Zoe,

        I mostly use HB5, but its the same PFB5 and the basic recipe with a friend who has AB5.

        I use Gold Medal brand – unbleached – whole wheat, white whole wheat, and all purpose.

        Maybe my fridge is too cold. What temp do you recommend?

        My dough does not seam dry. In fact sometimes in the container it seams to ‘sweat’ – excess condensation I think. My container has a vented lid.

        Thanks,

        Angela

      2. Hi Angela,

        Try leaving the bucket of dough on the counter for about 10 to 15 minutes before you pull a piece out. If it has more stretch, then it was just a matter of being too cold. This is not a bad thing, but the dough will take a bit longer to rise before you bake it.

        Thanks, Zoë

  13. Hi there. I have both Artisan and Healthy Bread books and love them. I have a half-eaten loaf of whole wheat olive oil sitting on my counter and another loaf’s worth of dough in the fridge.

    Question for you about enriched doughs for vegans. Basically, is there anything that I can use to replace the eggs (tofu, non-dairy yogurt, anything) that will give me a similar texture? I am trying to make the Apples and Honey Whole Grain Challah (Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a DAy, page 262), and just don’t know where to begin.

      1. Hi Zoë,

        Thank you for getting back to me. I have the egg replacers and flax seed, and they work well for binding, but I was looking for something that gives the bread that rich, moist quality.

        I think I’ll try blended tofu and see how that does.

        Thank you again for your quick response and the suggestions.

        Best regards,
        Eileen

      2. Hi Eileen,

        You can try using one of the egg substitutes and perhaps use almond milk for about half of the liquid in the dough. That would give a richness to the dough.

        Thanks, Zoë

  14. I make bread all the time out of your ABin5 book, I love it and all the recipes. I know that you intend your bread dough to last for up to two weeks in the fridge. But for me, after 3-4 days, the dough gets very wet and limp (and turns uniformly gray, though I’ve read elsewhere on your site that this is not a problem), and the resulting loaves don’t rise (not even oven spring). So I can never really save my dough more than a few days. What is going wrong?

    1. Hi Danielle,

      Do you leave the cover loose enough for some of the gas from the yeast to escape? This often helps. Not too much to dry out the dough, just a tiny crack or you can poke a very small hole in the lid.

      Are you using the dough during those few days? If you leave the dough, unused for a few days it can start to separate. One way to prevent this is to just sprinkle it with just a teaspoon or so of fresh flour, which feeds the yeast and keeps it lively. This happens naturally if you are using the dough and dusting it with flour to pull a piece out. But, if the dough goes unused for a while no new flour is added.

      Thanks, Zoë

  15. I am so glad I subscribed to this. Others problems rarely happen to me..I make and bake weekly…but once in awhile I do encounter issues like when my schedule changes like leaving bread alone for too long. So now I know what to do for that! You are so patient with all the questions! Thanks for doing this for all of us!!

  16. I recently made Pesto and Pine Nut bread my way. I used 1/2 all purpose KA flour and 1/2 white whole wheat. I really like that combination when I’m using ‘flavorings’ in my bread that I want to taste. I used jar pesto. I baked 3 loafs then I used the last of the dough to make a philly steak pizza (with sauce, shaved steak, onions and provalone) it was very good! Even a 14 yr old boy liked it!

  17. Thanks for getting me started making my own baguettes! I’ve been making consistently good loaves for over a year now and everyone loves the bread. I’m wondering, however, if you have any tips to making the inside a bit lighter and fluffier. Willing to put in some extra work.
    I’ve seen a few articles suggesting that stored/fermented dough be mixed with fresh dough on baking day and was wondering if you’ve tried anything like this.

  18. I LOVE your book, and use it often.

    I am interested in how to adapt the recipe for baking the bread in a solar oven at high altitude. Any ideas?

    1. Hi Madelyn,

      That is quite an idea! I have never used a solar oven, so you will have to tell me a bit about it. How hot can they get?

      Thanks and I hope this works, I’d love to know how it goes! Zoë

      1. Thanks for the quick reply, Zoe! I know that people have been using solar ovens for a long time, and they’re gaining in popularity in 3rd world places. Apparently, in Darfur refugee camps, women are using them to cut down on times when they need to leave camp to gather wood, which helps prevent them from being attacked, and the non-hands-on use of the solar oven gives them more time to garden. I’m sure the very first bread was baked under the sun! 🙂

        Temperature is the tricky thing. Solar ovens vary a lot, depending on the conditions. You might get 150F one day, and 250F the next. Moisture stays in the oven, too, and tends to lower the temperature, I understand. Also, my research suggests that bread doesn’t really brown in solar ovens; it bakes, but stays pale. Leaving the oven cracked helps to brown bread a little.

        The more I think about it, the less likely I think one would even need to put in the water for steaming, but I’m just not sure. I could probably ruin a LOT of dough trying to crack this mystery! 🙂 (I screwed up a loaf of bread from your recipes once… I used black salt, which turned it a weird gray, and I did something else wrong, resulting in this weird cracked insanity. My BF and I are goths. We ate it anyway, while watching The Addams Family, laughing the whole time that it was the perfect bread for such a movie!)

        Back to the solar oven… I was wondering if anyone might have a table of cooking times based on temperatures like: 150F 6 hours, 175F 5.5 hours, etc. Cooking times are usually in the several-hours range for solar ovens. They really do work, at least when it’s sunny. But they’re tricky.

        If anyone has ANY ideas, please let me know. Otherwise, I may just start experimenting. I can’t possibly make anything more wrong than the Addams Family Bread!

      2. Hi Madelyn,

        You won’t need to add steam, because it sounds like it is going to be more like baking in a closed pot, which creates its own steam. You may want to stick to flatbreads for the first go. Think about doing naan or something like that. You can bake it until it feels set. Obviously the timing will depend on how hot the sun is that day. When it is done just slather a bit of butter and it will be awesome!

        I heard a story about these ovens on NPR this weekend and had the same thought about trying to use them for bread. I hope you will stay in touch and let me know what you come up with.

        Cheers, Zoë

  19. Just sent a kid off to college and was wondering if you had any suggestions from your book on any bread item (savory or sweet)that I could make and send in a care package.
    Thanks,
    Shelley

    1. Hi Shelley,

      You want to stay away from anything made with just white all-purpose flour, they tend to get stale the fastest. Anything with some whole grains and a bit of sweetener tend to last longer. Challah is a great option and you can bake it in a loaf or into many other forms.

      You can also set them up with a toaster-oven or crockpot and teach them to bake themselves! 😉

      Cheers, Zoë

  20. Hi, first of all, LOVE THE BOOK! After my first try, I’ve now made my second batch of free form loaf from Artisan bread in five minutes, my dough is very wet I can hardly handle it, and sticks on my fingers, so it spreads and becomes a flat round shape after resting, I’ve already added more flour this time, but this dough is still too wet, can I work more flour into the already refrigerated dough, if I add flour in, would I have to take it out of the fridge to let it ferment or it will be fine leaving it inside the fridge??

    Thanks!!

  21. Hi there,

    A few days ago I mixed my first batch of dough using the master recipe from Artisan breab in 5 mins a day. I noticed after removing my first piece I didn’t need to use a nice because the dough just broke off. I read earlier that this may be because the dough is probably too cold. What I notice as well is that I’m not able to shape a smooth loaf during the gluten cloak step, the ball is stilly slightly rough on the outside. Could this also be a side effect of cold dough. I also mixed up my flour types and used bleached flour instead of unbleached.

    Thanks for your time and I love the book.

    Nikki

    1. Hi Nikki,

      Yes, this could be a result of cold dough or a dough that is slightly too dry. What brand of flour are you using?

      Thanks, Zoë

      1. Hi Nikki,

        This flour should not be a high protein flour, so it should behave just fine. I would let the dough sit out for 10 to 15 minutes and see if you get more stretch. Have you watched the videos on shaping the dough? If you pull the dough too hard, it will eventually tear, even if it is the right temperature, so a gentle hand is best. This is a different approach from traditional bread methods. Here is a video that may help: https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2010/03/08/new-video-shaping-the-ball-from-a-very-wet-dough

        Thanks, Zoë

  22. Question: I just got six grain flakes from KA. I want to make bread with 3.5 cups all purpose and 3.5 cups white whole wheat, .25 cup VWG and add 6g flakes. I am not sure how much of this dry ingredient to add, do I add less flour and how to adjust the water for a 4 loaf batch.

    Next week I’m going to do the same thing with KA Cracked Wheat. Same question for that one ahead of time!

    Thanks!

      1. I should have thought of that! I like to add some olive oil to most of my bread. Just about 1/2 cup and 1/2 cup less water. I’ve made enough bread now the AB5 way to know what the consistency and texture should be so I sometimes have to play with it a little. Humid summer days vs. cold dry winter days makes a difference! I LOVE THIS BREAD!!!!!

  23. I made the bread. It was very good!!!
    3 cups all purpose flour
    3 cups white whole wheat
    1 cup (rounded) KA Six grain flakes
    1/2 cup honey
    1/2 cup light olive oil
    3 cups water
    VWG,yeast cracked wheat for top

  24. I have been making this bread off and on for a couple of years. The past couple of batches have frustrated me in that the bread seems to puff at the bottom and crack. It looks like a ball instead of flat on the bottom. I am flouring and slicing before I put it in the oven for the steam to escape…..The bread tastes great but doesn’t look too nice and I like to give it as a gift to new neighbors.

    1. Hi Debbie,

      Try letting the loaf rest an extra 20 to 30 minutes before you bake it and be sure to slash it with 1/2-inch deep cuts. This usually takes care of this issue.

      Let me know if that works. Thanks, Zoë

  25. I would like to find a baking stone made for a baguette. When I know I don’t want to let a regular loaf cool and spend time fighting through slicing it, I throw in a baguette. Are they available?

    1. Hi Nina,

      You can use a baguette pan, which works nicely and doesn’t require a stone. Or, you can use a rectangular stone and lay it diagonally on the stone, which is what I do.

      Thanks, Zoë

  26. I just bought a new peel (acacia wood), which is a step up from my bamboo and nice to bring right to the table for pizza. It says it should be seasoned with oil. I know cutting boards should be seasoned, but I am afraid that the oil will make it harder to slide dough bread and pizza off onto the hot stone.

    So… Should I season the peel or not?

    Thanks for you great books – I have all three 🙂

    1. Hi Mary,

      That is a great question. I have many wood peels and have never seasoned them. They tend to get seasoned as I use them. I tend to agree that putting oil on it will make the dough stick.

      Thanks, Zoë

  27. I’ve tried several of your breads from ABin5 and have had good luck. My only quibble is that I’d like a little more of a rye flavor in the various rye breads. Can I increase the rye flour and decrease the all-purpose flour proportionately to tweak the flavor profile?

    Love your book and have been having so much fun making my own bread!

    1. Hi Penny,

      The issue you will run into is that rye doesn’t have much gluten, which means the bread will end up being too dense if you increase the rye and decrease the AP. If you have our second book, Healthy Bread in Five Minutes, you will be familiar with vital wheat gluten, which can help you get that structure back in the loaf and give a nice result.

      Thanks, Zoë

  28. I recently installed a new steam oven. Have you had any experience in working with a steam oven and your recipes? Is there any advice you have for adjustment to cooking with a steam oven?

    Thanks,
    Jean

    1. Jean: Neither of us have one, but they will replace all the steam-creation techniques we talk about in the books. Steam’s essential for lean-dough, crisp-crusted breads. Just skip the water tray, sprayer, or closed-container (whichever one you’re doing). Then use the steam injection. Can you do it just for the beginning of the bake cycle?

  29. When I feel like not-so-healthy bread in 5 minutes a day I use very fine white rice flour instead of the brown rice flour. It comes out just fine, but I can’t help wondering if some of the other ingredients can be reduced since the bread is not as course. Maybe it doesn’t need as much tapioca flour? I really don’t know how to adjust since I really don’t know the what role each ingredient is playing in the bread. Can you shed some light and maybe you have some suggestions based on your experience using some of these flours?

      1. P: Unfortunately, we found that the proportion of the various flours was the key to getting a great result with GF. So that means that any changes are at your own risk. But it sounds like you found a nice balance with the change you did, so why mess with it?

        There was a LOT of trial and error with these recipes…

      2. OK! I’ll take it. “If it aint’s broke, don’t fix it!” Thanks so much for taking all that time of trial and error to offer us a great tasting gf bread. It is really awesome bread.

  30. Hello! I have been using the master pizza dough recipe and am completely obsessed with it (it rivals Punch ;). I do, though, use a pizza screen instead of the stone method. Anyways, I am wondering about rolling the dough out. I am seeming to take quite awhile when rolling it out, often resorting to hand stretching because it seizes up pretty quick. Is this normal, or is there something wrong with how I am preparing the dough? I want to be able to make many pizzas quickly for parties but it takes me about 5-8 minutes to get the dough rolled out as thin as recommended. Thanks a bunch!

  31. I just received your book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day that I ordered and am very intrigued to begin baking. I was wondering though……If I was to bake more than one loaf at a time (say, for a bake sale) would I need to adjust the baking time in the oven? Also…..when you say ‘food-grade’ container, how do I know if a container, say like Rubbermaid is food grade?

    1. Ruthi: You may need to increase baking time a little, maybe 10% to 15% more. If it’s sold in the U.S. for food storage, it’s food grade.

  32. I used your book a lot in the States before moving to France. I can get bread on every corner now but still want to have fun making it myself with your method. All of the flours I have used here give the bread an “off” flavor. It’s not the yeast, I’m using the same yeast from the US. Any recommendations on “type #” of flour or even brand?

    1. Ross: So surprised to hear this, I baked in England and the flours were great. We’ve never baked in France so I can’t direct you.

  33. I just had your book shipped down to El Salvador where I live. Unfortunately, they do not have unbleached flour here and we can not mail foods into the country. Is there a way to “convert” our bleached all-purpose flour into something that will work (e.g. by combining a whole wheat or bread flour with the bleached flour in some proportion)?

    1. Joseph: Main variable with be differences in the flour, not so much that it’s bleached. Bottom line– with some bleached flours, the protein’s a little lower, and so you need to decrease the water a little so the final dough’s the consistency of what you see in our videos. 1/8 cup? It may not need it at all.

  34. Just tried Master Recipe in HBin5. Why the 60 min rest & 30 min preheat when ABin5 has 40 min rest & 20 min preheat. The whole process takes so much longer & awful lot of oven time at 450– afraid I’ll burn out my oven element.
    Also, I liked mixing water, yeast & salt in my storage bin first and then add flours whisked together w/ VWG as I think it mixes easier & doesn’t leave so much flour on the bottom & sides to try and scrape up. Also, there is some of the previous batch left in the bin, the water cleans it off the bottom & sides before mixing in the flour.
    Also, I noticed HBin5 takes 7-1/2 C flour instead of 6-1/2 as in ABin5 for each batch but still makes 4 one-lb loaves.

    1. Rose: The longer preheat works better with some ovens, you don’t absolutely have to do it. Whole gr loaves tend to be denser, hence the longer resting/rising time. If you’re not finding that, you can stick with the shorter rest. If you want to put water in first, you have to just whisk the VWG into the flour before adding to the water– so it doesn’t clump.

      Truth be told, our first book’s recipe doesn’t quite produce 4.0 pounds of dough– more like 3.6…

  35. After having great results with Bread in 5, I’ve now purchased Pizza in 5 and I’m thrilled with the results. I like the 00 flour recipe and the recipe using the cake flour to approximate the 00 flour since the 00 can be hard to find. The pizza recipe doesn’t call for the dough to rest…what would be the effect on the cooked crust if the dough was to rest either before or after it was shaped into the pizza crust? Thank you. Bruce S

    1. Bruce: If you rest before stretching, that’s fine– it actually speeds the process of getting it really thin (we talk about that in the pizza book, in the section about hand shaping-no rolling pin). But I think it would stick to the board if you rest afterward, may also dry out.

  36. Hi Jeff and Zoe,

    Please forgive me if this question was asked before. I couldn’t find an answer in my searching.

    I’d like to start making sticky buns for hostess gifts. People in the South just love them!
    My brown sugar mixture boiled over when I made it in a 9″ cake pan last time, and caught fire. (Now I know to put a baking sheet underneath!)

    I was suspicous that a 9″ foil pan would hold even less than a 9″ cake pan. I poured water into an 8″ Wilton cake pan and it filled up my 9″ foil pan completely.

    I am planning to use one pound of challah dough per pan, but I figure that I must cut back on the stuff on the bottom of the pan–butter, sugar, cinnamon, maybe nuts.
    Do you have any suggestions as how to cut back on the amounts, and still make a tasty sticky bun? I tried to KAF version that cuts out the butter (using a regular cake pan), but then the sugar crystalizes. The butter really helps it stay gooey.

    Jeff, I told my doctor that I’d bring him one to taste test!

    BTW, I won Blue Ribbons for my Red Roasted Pepper Bread and Norwegian Sweet Bread at the Appalachian Fair! A lot of those entrants have been baking a long time, so this is a real honor.

    Thanks so much!

    Judy in NE Tenn.

    1. Judy: I think this is going to be a situation where you just have to experiment. From what you say, you just need to use a little less dough in the pan. 10% less? 25%? It’s a judgement call on whether you’d also need to cut down on the toppings, nuts, etc.

  37. Hi,
    I’m trying to find the post from maybe 2 years ago (?) that showed step by step photographs of how to make the GF Boule that was slightly different than how the book suggests making it. An example is mixing the water, honey and oil together before adding it to the dry ingredients.
    Is this ringing a bell for anyone? And if so, is it still a method you recommend?
    Thank you,
    Beth

      1. Thank you, Jeff! That was exactly what I was looking for! I must have not looked closely enough yesterday. 🙂
        Is this a method you still recommend? Or is mixing it together as stated in the book preferred?
        Beth

      2. Beth: Truthfully, it just doesn’t matter in this case. If you’re finding you prefer one over the other, go with it.

  38. HI! This go around, I decided to double The Master Recipe. I have the large King Arthur storage container and well…after only one hour the dough is “rising” right over the edges! It’s really kind of neat/funny to watch it grow before our eyes but, will it be an issue if at this point I transfer the dough into an even larger bowl? It still has an hour of rising time before I put it in the fridge.

  39. Hey guys! I see you have a free demo tomorrow. I could just cry because I am taking an exam tomorrow and would love to see you guys. Zoe is doing a class on my Birthday but I am afraid its a little too much for me- How often do you guys have the free demo events- like once a year? Thanks!

    1. Rachel: This is our third appearance at the Minneapolis BreadFest, and as long as they keep having it, and keep asking us back, we will keep doing it! Otherwise check out our YouTube channel, YouTube.com/BreadIn5

  40. Wanting to get started with your books and wondering if I need a stand mixer to make a majority of homemade breads or if I can get started without one? Thanks – the breads look so delicious!

  41. I have found that the bread I bake on the first day, without putting the dough in the fridge, comes out better than the bread I make the next day. The 2nd day bread is sort of gummy.

    Any idea what I am missing?

    1. Betsy: Which recipe, from which book (and page number) are you using, then I can get started helping you. Also, have you been through our FAQs tab (above), especially the “Dense Crumb…” link?

  42. Many Europeans save their potato cooking water to use in making bread. The water can be stored for a few days in the fridge. Have you tried this technique with any of your recipes?

    1. Haven’t tried it, but we do use potatoes in some of the loaves– it’s in the books, don’t think we’ve done one of those recipes here on the web…

  43. Your basic artisian boule from AB5: How can I get the bread itself to taste VERY garlicy?
    Would another bread recipe w/oil work better?

    1. Hi Genevieve,

      We have several recipes in the books that use roasted garlic, but you can also use raw to flavor the dough. You can add it to the master recipe or to the olive oil dough. Both will be wonderful!

      Thanks, Zoë

      1. Thank you for taking the time to answer!!! I just love making your bread…..I need to try a few more of the recipes in the book!!!

  44. I just tried your recipe for Soft American Style White Bread (p 204 Artisan Bread in 5) and it produces some of the best sandwiches I have ever eaten. I use your recipe (designedfor three 1.5 pound loaves) to produce two 9″ loaves using my standard 9″ x 3″ x 4″ inch loaf pans. In case you are interested in price/loaf and calories/slice, here are the results: 1 loaf is 1882 calories and costs $1.05 (Oct. 2012). Each loaf will produce about 18 slices at 110 calories per slice. I did not factor in the cost of heating my oven. Sandwich bread in my grocery store costs about $3.65/loaf and my family uses two loaves per week. Based on my calculations, i can save about $5.00 per week or $260 per year by making my own bread. And lets not forget that it smells great in the oven and tastes so much better.

  45. Hi there.
    Just found about you, the site and the book which I’m considering buying. I want to try the master recipe but I always use fresh yeast and not granulated. How much of it should I use (in grams)? Also, to be on the more accurate side, is there a way to get the exact amounts in grams of the master recipe?
    Strongly considering buying the book and spreading the word about it, but I need to test it prior to that.
    Thanks you
    Gingi.

      1. Thanks, but I don’t see in the link you provided whet I’m looking for – which are exact amounts – in grams or lbs.
        I’m a professional bakes and that is how we back – by grams. If you can somehow link me to that info re your master mix, I’d be thankful. cups/spoons measurements are irrelevant since they can vary from product to product re density, hydration, etc.

      2. Hi Gingi,

        For our full-yeast version of the dough you will need about 28 grams of fresh yeast. This may take longer to rise than some of the commercial dry yeasts. The temperature of the water will also make a difference in how long the dough takes to rise.

        Our book is also available in a British edition https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2011/01/06/five-minute-bread-british-version-of-our-1st-book-on-sale-today-in-the-u-k-one-of-the-top-50-ways-to-feel-good-this-year which is all done in grams. Someday we hope to do the same with the American edition.

        Thanks, Zoë

  46. I have made a loaf of Sweet Potato and Spelt bread from HBin5 that is much too wet (I have since found the recipe correction to the water amt on this site). To fix, I have added a 1/4 cup more AP flour to the remaining dough and am ready to let it ferment again before baking another loaf–does it matter if I let it referment at room temp, or in the fridge?

    Thanks!
    Ursula

    1. Hi Ursula,

      Did the dough look better when you added the extra flour? It doesn’t matter if you let it rest at room temperature or in the refrigerator.

      Thanks, Zoë

      1. Hi Zoe,

        The dough looked the same to me–the second loaf with the additional 1/4 c flour was less gummy and rose a little higher than the first loaf, but it was still too wet (I think I must have put in too much sweet potato–maybe too finely grated. I weighed my flour, loaves weigh 1 lb, warmed the 2nd loaf up to room temp, oven temp exactly 450…). So I went ahead and added a 1/2 c of flour to the remaining dough and we’ll see what happens when I bake the third loaf tomorrow! The dough still looks pretty wet but I’m nervous about adding more flour than that.
        In the meantime I’ve been toasting slices of the first two loaves and enjoying them–so I’m really looking forward to when I get the texture right.

      2. Hi Ursula,

        Let me know how it goes. I find that some potatoes let off more liquid than others, and so you may end up needing more flour. Thank you for keeping me informed on your progress!

        Cheers, Zoë

      3. Hi Zoe,

        These are definitely very soggy potatoes! lol Amazingly, the third loaf came out gooier (sp?) than the first one did. I’ve added another 1/2 c of flour to the remaining dough and that will probably be my last bake with this batch. Should I add more yeast or anything, considering I have added so much extra flour?
        I probably should have tried the master recipe for my first foray into this method of breadmaking so I would have had a better idea of what the dough should look like, so that is what I’m going to try next–I am determined to get the hang of this! It will revolutionize my life, I know it.

        Thanks Zoe,
        Ursula

      4. Hi Ursula,

        I would try the master recipe and see how that goes. It will give you a sense of what the dough should look like and feel like. There are much more detailed instructions in the Master recipe, so when you go to make other doughs in the book you have all the information to make the process go smoothly. If you are not baking by weight, then be sure to use the scoop and sweep method of measuring the flour. If you spoon the flour into the cup the dough will be much too wet.

        Thanks and let me know if you have an easier time of the Master recipe. Zoë

      5. Hi Zoe,

        I had a much easier time with the master recipe. The loaf rose beautifully with a crispy crust and a perfect texture inside. I certainly should have worked with this recipe first as I would have realized that my sweet potato spelt dough was far too wet right from the beginning. As it turns out, with all the extra flour the last two loaves from that batch turned out really well, too!
        I feel confident enough now to try the beet buns for when my mother visits this week!

        I am so impressed with this method and am looking forward to trying out all that I can. Thank you so much Zoe for your help and for taking the time to respond.

        Cheers,
        Ursula

      6. Hi Ursula,

        I am thrilled to hear it! Thanks so much for being persistent and giving our method a try!

        Enjoy the bread with your mom! Zoë

  47. I would like to try the quinoa bread recipe, but my quinoa says to rinse first before using. How do I do this and add it to the dry ingredients? Does the water need to be adjusted to avoid excess liquid?

    Page 132 Heathy Bread in 5 Minutes a Day

    Thanks so much for your amazing recipes!

    1. Hi Leanne,

      In that case, you should add it to the water, after you’ve rinsed it. You should try to drain it well, but it will still retain water, so I’d decrease the water by about 1/4 cup.

      Please let me know how it goes.

      Thanks, Zoë

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