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 my 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
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- Contest and Giveaway Rules
- Convection oven: Any adjustment needed?
- Dense or gummy crumb: What am I doing wrong?
- Flour varieties: Do I need to adjust the liquids when I use different kinds of white flour?
- Freezing the dough: Can I do it?
- Fresh-ground grains: can I use them with this method?
- Gluten-Free Frequently Asked Questions (GF FAQs)
- Gray color on my dough: Is there something wrong? Is it mold?
- High-altitude baking: How do I adjust the recipes for high-altitude?
- Incorporating dried fruit, nuts, or herbs into stored dough: How do I do it?
- Larger loaves/multiple loaves: What adjustments are needed?
- Left the dough on the counter overnight! Can I still use it?
- The scoop-and-sweep method for measuring flour by volume: How it was done when testing these recipes
- 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
- Nutrition content: How can I calculate it?
- Photographs: Can I post pictures to this website?
- Privacy Policy
- Refrigerator rise trick: The formed loaves or rolls rise overnight and are ready for the oven the next day
- Rising: My shaped loaves don’t seem to rise much before it’s time for the oven. What am I doing wrong?
- Salt: Can I decrease the amount of salt in the recipes? How do I adjust for different kinds of salt?
- Sourdough starter: Can I use it with this method?
- Steam alternatives: How do I create a steam environment for a great crust when my oven doesn’t trap steam well?
- Stone broke! What did I do wrong?
- Storing bread: What’s the best way to do it?
- Traditional recipes: How can they be converted to the ABin5 method?
- Underbaked! My loaf didn’t bake through to the center. What am I doing wrong?
- Web or other uses: Can I use your recipes on my own website, in my class, or in a publication?
- Weighing ingredients instead of using cup measures: How do you do it?
- Whole grain flours and vital wheat gluten: How do you use them?
- Whole grain flours and doughs without vital wheat gluten: How do those work?
- Yeast: Can it be decreased in the recipes?
- Health questions posted here over the years
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Is it possible to sub out some apple cider for some of the water – or all of it – in the basic recipe? I want to recreate an apple cider bread sold by a local grocery store. Thank you!
Absolutely. I’ve put all kinds of acidic juices into the dough, up to half of the water. I wouldn’t try 100% or it’s going to be too acidic
Jeff, would you happened to have tried making Turkish simit using your method? I recently watched a documentary series titled World Eats Bread with an episode highlighting bread in Turkey. After all the simit shown and described, I was hoping, hoping a recipe for it was in my copy of The New Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day and I’d just overlooked it…
It’s in Holiday and Celebration Bread in 5 Minutes a Day (2018), not the one you have. The book is hard to find these days, but I have a few copies so let me know if you’d like to purchase. Otherwise, the library? It’s on page 93.
My library doesn’t have a copy of Holiday and Celebration Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. I’ve tagged it in hopes they will consider obtaining it, but I’m ready to try simit now! Ha ha ha.
I would like to purchase a copy from you. Let me know how, please.
I’ve reached out…
Jeff I would like to order the holiday and celebration bread book. Im not sure how to order it from you though.
I’ll reach out in email.
Can you freeze bread after baking
Yes, as well as any other bread. Wrap it well to exclude air as best you can.
Have you experimented with using King Arthur’s Pizza Blend flour for your refrigerated dough method? If so, are there any adjustments, or can this blend be swapped out with one of your pizza-friendly recipes?
Thank you!
No, haven’t tried that particular flour. My guess is that it’s a relatively low protein blend compared to all purpose, so in the master recipe you’d have to slightly decrease the water. That’ll take some experimentation, maybe an eighth of a cup?
I’ve scoured through the book and can find no mention of Tuscan Pane bread. Can the master recipe be adapted to make Tuscan Pane?
I’m guessing you mean the Tuscan no-salt bread? If you leave out the salt from my Master recipe that may approximate it. Or do you mean some other Tuscan bread?
Thank you!
Why are different egg washes used on different loaves? I’ve seen whole egg, egg yolk, and egg white washes.
Thanks!
Each of those gives slightly different effects. The egg white just gives shine but doesn’t create a rich brown effect. The egg yolk is brownest, but then you have to figure out what to do with the whites! Whites! The whole egg is a middle ground. I’ve actually stopped deleting it with water as I used to because that takes away from the browning
I have been baking your breads for 10 years now. Love it!
It just occurred to me I could probably make mini boule loaves for soup/bread bowls. Duh! Do you have resting/baking times? Thanks!
It all depends on the size. Rolls, for example can all be done in 12 to 15 minutes. Resting time can be half
Have gone back to your book (bought about 17 years old). I have a little problem not answered in your FAQ. My crust is too hard. ? Can you advise. Thank you. Km
Are you using steam in the oven? Also, if you’re not doing it now, cover the loaf with plastic wrap or an overturned bowl, while it’s resting. Some people have found it dries out during the resting… Leading to a hard crust. If nothing else works, paint it with a well before it goes in the oven. Or melted butter.
Ok. It looks dry in container and when formed. I will add more water and cover. Your method is so easy to do. Thanks.
Hmmm. I wonder if you’re having some errors in measurements or something like that, and you just need more hydration in the initial mixture
My top crust comes out fine using your recipes and methods, but the bottom is on hard. Any suggestions?
Thanks, Bill
Which recipe? Have you tested your oven temp with a thermometer?
Absolutely, you can. But I’ve found that this step isn’t necessary. It will start the process a little quicker.
I love your gf artisan bread book and have been using your master recipe for 7 years. My question is do you have a Portuguese Sweetbread recipe or scone recipe?
I haven’t seen Portuguese sweet bread, but I’m guessing it’s similar though to holla or brioche. And about scones, that’s not a yeasted product. I’m guessing you can use mixture number one with a good recipe that you find elsewhere.
Hi Jeff, I’m making my first recipe of bread from The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day book. I’m using the master recipe for Brioche to make cloverleaf rolls and instead of melting 3 sticks of butter I misread and melted and incorporated 1 & 1/2 sticks of melted butter into dough. Dough looks okay but this is my first time making Brioche so what do I know. Lol. I will bake a few rolls tonight to see if they bake properly and if not, I will probably make biscuits or something. Is it possible to ìncorporate another stick and a half into dough? If so hoŵ, please?
Thank you Julia
I can’t think of a way to incorporate the butter other than melted. The whole thing back in the stand mixer, and use a little more flour to counter the extra liquid. But if the dough doesn’t look super dry, I think you can just use it as is. It won’t be as rich as brioche but it might still be good
Can I substitute almond or oat milk for milk in the “100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread with milk and honey” recipe?
It should be fine, but the hydration requirement may change, and you won’t get the tenderness that cow’s milk provides. It’ll make a good bread though.
My bread has been almost gummy after being baked, what am I doing wrong. I have made your breads for years and have never had trouble.
Well, if you succeeded before, you must have changed something. Oven? Baking vessel/baking sheet? Ingredients?
Check your oven temp with something like https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000095RC5/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B000095RC5&linkCode=as2&tag=arbrinfimiada2-20&linkId=6d81888942f207ea023ba52569c7eb2c
I have all of your books and have recently started using this method after watching Zoë’s class on Craftsy.
My preference is weighing ingredients so that’s what I’ve been doing. So far, I haven’t tried more than a couple of the basic doughs, but I’m planning on branching out.
But I’m concerned about the inconsistencies I see in the metric weights. Across recipes and books, even for the same volume of All-P flour, there are different gram weights given (presumably in the US ones as well but those aren’t as precise) in different recipes. Further, those weights differ from what the King Arthur website tells me is the correct weight for one cup.
So I’m not sure who or what to believe. And the errata pages don’t seem to address this.
This is not just true for flour but also salt and yeast and liquid too. When i reference baking sites and calculate they aren’t the same.
Even if the weights were incorrect it would be fine if they were consistently incorrect. But they aren’t. Am i going to have to recalculate every dough recipe for myself? Were the recipes tested by the weights actually in the books or were they subsequently miscalculated?
Before i make a dough with 8 eggs and a mess of butter, I would like to have a standard.
So, in summary: there are both weight measurements that don’t match the volumetric measurements given. In some cases they are off by 100 grams, or more.
Additionally, in different recipes, for the same volumetric measurement given of a particular ingredient, different gram weights are given.
Even further, the recipes from the class, purportedly from the book, have slightly different ratios for the master dough. The possibility for that one might be that the class reflects the recipe from the first edition whereas the book I have is the revised/newer version.
For everything else, especially for inconsistencies within the same book, I need some definitive guidance on how to proceed for accuracy.
Thank you
A lot to consider here, and first off, I have questions for you…
The inconsistencies are due to interest in keeping relatively “round” numbers as the final numbers in recipes. So giving a metric weight equivalent, we generally scaled the recipes up or down so the numbers were easier to deal with. All of the recipes will work as written, assuming you are using flours like the ones we tested with (U.S. standard all-purpose and other U.S. flours). When you say “all the books,” which ones do you mean, and from which years (there are 8 in the U.S., and 6 overseas)? Which recipes do you want to start with? Once I know that, I can more carefully evaluate the inconsistencies you’re seeing. Another thing to consider–we definitely changed some of the recipes over the years these books were published (2007 to 2021), as people expressed preferences. How do you intend to measure ingredients, by volume or by weight? If by weight, will you use lbs/oz, or metric (I always recommend metric). And maybe most importantly, which recipe(s) have you already baked, and how did the bread turn out?
What can I use in place of eggs in the recipes, I have an egg allergy?
People have tried “flax eggs,” where ground flaxseed is beaten with water— and that’s swapped for egg. See https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2010/06/01/gluten-free-baguettes-egg-free-and-a-king-arthur-gluten-free-flour-giveaway/
To my mind, that just doesn’t swap the flavor and texture improvement you get from eggs. As for commercial egg substitute, some readers have liked them, others not.
Hi,
Could I substitute gluten free all purpose flour bought on line to make the #1 master recipe instead of using the 4-5 different flours noted in your gluten free Artisan bread book?
Thanks
I haven’t had success with any commercial GF flour blend, which is how the custom blend, based on several flours– came to be. Seems that the commercial blends are optimized for cakes and cookies, not bread.
Good to know. Thanks for the fast reply!!
The oil or butter brushed on the crust prevents the crisping and browning that steam promotes so it’s usually not worthwhile in this situation, in most ovens. If you are not getting good browning, steam might help.
Hi there – I have been using the book and the Light While Wheat bread recipe for a year now and love it! I want to do baby led weaning and need a low salt bread due to babies kidneys not tolerating the salt – is it possible to make that recipe salt free or low salt? Thank you so much for your time.
You sure can, but a few things will be different. Number 1, the flavor; it’ll be bland, but for a baby, this is just fine. Second, it won’t brown as well, but again, that’s probably not a big deal. And it will probably lead to less dough “strength;” the bread may be kind of flat. But it works–I’ve done it. You can go all the way to zero salt.
Apparently my stove can’t heat to 450 my smoke alarm starting going off during preheat. Every time I cook that high it does that. Is it possible to cook at a lower temp?
Sure! It’ll take a longer time to bake, and you won’t quite get the crisp and brown crust we’re looking for. But check your oven temp with something like this: https://amzn.to/3Zl7Ozg I bet your oven is running hot. Or, there may be something baked onto the oven wall that’s smoking at 450F, could try scraping down anything you see in there.
I made sure I had the recommended equipment and I did use that exact temperature gauge in my oven. It was actually reading 25 degrees lower. I did look to see if something was burning, but I will give it a good clean and brave it again. I think something was coming off my stone. Thanks for your help troubleshooting. I ended up putting it in my smoker as a last ditch effort. It worked okay buts it’s not very easy to keep the heat constant. Thanks for your help.
I love your books. The recipes are magical. However, I need to eat a low carbohydrate diet and cannot give up bread. Have you developed a keto/low carb recipe?
My 100% whole grain loaves are very slightly lower in carbs, but not significantly, and certainly not at the keto level. Peter Reinhart has something like this, see https://amzn.to/3tNYxPX . Probably also not at the keto level, but I know he’s experimented with nut flours and legume flours (which I haven’t done significantly). Maybe check it out of the library first?
Is there a recipe in the book that I may substitute Oat flour?
Do you mean in the GF recipes? And oats instead of which flour?
Hi Jeff,
I was wondering about switching out the oat flour in gf master mix 2? I am also highly allergic to oats as well as wheat.
The book mentions swapping sorghum for oat or amaranth. Can I swap oat for either of these?
Thank you,
Amber
Unfortunately, the only switches that I can vouch for are the ones on page 61… you can try your own experiments with the swap you suggest, but I think it’s a long shot.
I’ll reach out …
Can any of your recipes be adapted to make Stecca? I searched the website and see no mention of it. I’ve read it is similar to focaccia but the Stecca I buy at a local market while visiting family ( Swamp Rabbit Grocery in Greenville SC) may have a few similar characteristics, like you definitely taste the olive oil and there is flaky salt on top but it’s more of a pointed end baguette that holds it shape a little better than what I imagine focaccia dough shaped like a baguette would be like. I found another no-knead bread version of Stecca online but I much prefer your method so I can have it fresh when I want it and it seems best eaten the same day. Thanks for your help!
Seems to me that the olive oil dough (maybe with 2T sugar or honey), shaped as a flattened baguette and baked at 450 or even 475F… is going to create the effect you’re looking for. Final thickness after shaping 3/4-inch? 30 minute rest? (Skinny things tolerate a short rest, but you may prefer the more open crumb at 60m).
Fun!
Apologies for the duplication of my question but I can no longer find my original post with Jeff’s response. Can “00” flour be used in place of AP flour in the Master recipe and if so, what adjustments should I start with? I have Molino Grassi Italian 00 Organic flour (soft wheat). The protein content isn’t listed on the package and I’m not sure how to calculate it. Nutritional facts show 3g protein in 30g flour. Thanks for your help!
Because of rounding error (posted numbers are to the nearest whole gram), this doesn’t mean much). My guess is that you’re going to have to decrease the water slightly–esp since it’s said to be “soft” flour. Try two tablespoons less for starters, increase as needed so it looks like my usual does in the videos.
I am having so much fun trying out your recipes! I’ve realized I do NOT like 100% WW and am trying out the WWW 50/50 next. But I wondered, can I add eggs to that dough (flatbread or loaf) to increase nutrients for my children? In the New artisan book I think there’s a loaf with eggs and sugar and oil- can I also use that as a flatbread on the stovetop? Also, do you think it’s possible to change the hydration of a small (lemon size) chunk of dough overnight by adding water to the dough in a separate container, to get it into the consistency of crumpets and add baking powder?
As I read your note, the answer to all the questions was “yes,” until I got to the last one, when the answer is clearly “I just don’t know!” It’s liable to work, and you’re just risking a lemon-sized piece of dough, so why not?
I have a large oven and would like to bake multiple loaves simultaneously. Shoul I increase the steam by the number of loaves I wish to bake?
Hmm. If you’re getting a great crust for one loaf, you won’t need to increase just because you have many loaves in the oven. Some of this depends on how well your oven seals in steam; all ovens vent it out to some extent. Gas ovens vent the most, and have the hardest time generating a great “steamed” crust. If you do increase, you probably don’t have to increase proportionally, and overdoing it might leave you with a high-moisture situation during the entire baking time, which you don’t actually want.
Thanks!
Hi there! I’m not getting a good oven spring with my bread. 🙁 it’s delicious but it’s too flat. Am I over proofing? What makes it spring in the oven? Do I need more water? Help!
Which of my recipes are you using?
If you are responding to me, just the master recipe! I’m trying it now with a shorter resting time after shaping. I was doing over 1.5 hours, not keeping an eye on the clock.
Or could it be that my slashing is not deep enough? The slices are just too small, I need more height on the boule. I am doing a very generous sized dough ball
I don’t think either of these are the explanation. Can you tell me what brand of flour are you using, and how are you measuring flour and water? Lower-protein flour will do this, or faulty measuring. If using volumes rather than weights, be sure you’re using my method for scooping the flour (see video at https://artisanbreadinfive.com/scoopandsweep). Finally, which recipe are you using, from which book and page number?
Do you have a recipe for low carb bread that tastes good?
My whole wheat recipes taste great, and they’re slightly lower in carbs than white-flour breads. But breads made from the wheat grain can’t really be described as low-carbohydrate. If you really want breads made without high-carb grains, check out Peter Reinhold’s book on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3QB6u8S
I’ve been baking your basic bread recipe for a number of years. For some reason, the corn meal on the peel method is not working for me, in transferring the dough to the stone, for baking. I’ve tried additionally dusting the bottom with flour, but it still sticks. Any suggestions? Thank you!
Hmmm. Either your dough is too wet, or you aren’t using enough cornmeal. How are you measuring your flour and water? For which of my recipes? If all else fails, switch to parchment paper.
I have a question about the gluten-free sticky caramel rolls. Would it be possible to make them in advance the night before (step 1-5) and bake them the next morning (step 6-7)?
Definitely, that should work, but let them warm up the next morning. An hour is better than 20 minutes…
I use Cambro containers; for rising and storage should the lid just be placed on the container and not “secured?”
Just leave one small section of it un-snapped. Also see https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2008/01/18/zoes-bucket-collection-and-the-dough-that-lives-within/ The easiest solution is just to leave your current container open a crack. Or… just punch a pinhole or small nail-hole in the plastic lid.
Hi,
Tried out the master recipe from your gluten free book (still waiting for it to cool enough to try it!) but it looks and smells great I did have one question though:
When I did the initial rise, in room temperature, the dough expanded tremendously. However after refrigerating it over night, when I revisited it to bake today, the dough had shrunken considerably in size. It was a similar size to what I started with initially. Is this normal?
Yes, that’s typical. With this method. You’ll find there’s decent oven spring… You’ll know in a little bit
The first summer I had the first book, I did “Julie and Julia” and made almost every recipe in the book. I love all the books and spread the word as much as I can.
TWO questions:
1. I really want the holiday breads book that is out of print. I live in Canada. Any possibility of ordering one?
2. I’m trying out your sourdough, as my son in law has been told that is the only bread he may eat. Followed the rules, and all is going well. Now, I would like to be able to add in dried fruit and nuts. Any chance of you posting any recipes like that on the website? e.g. dried cranberries and walnuts, two items his dr. is recommending he eat more of. I guess I can try just putting some in to a regular loaf, but I sense there should be more finesse in flavour.
Yes I have a few of the holiday books that I can sell, they have have a few cosmetic defects in the cover, which doesn’t affect readability. The problem is the shipping cost for Canada, would you like me to look into that? In addition to the shipping cost, it will be $36 USD. About the fruits and nuts, you can definitely add those in. Just follow the directions you see in the books you have, though I suppose I should ask which ones you have?
I would be willing to pay shipping to Canada if it is reasonable, so yes, please, if you can check into that. Cosmetic defects don’t matter, and I would really love to have the book.
Books that I have are: Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, Healthy Bread in Five…, Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five…, and The Best of Artisan Bread in Five… (worth the price just for the Crisp Cheesy Bread Sticks), and it is this one that I found the sourdough recipe in.
Thanks for the response, and sorry it took me so long to find it.
Let me look into that and get back to you. Thanks for trying all these breads, so fun!
Hello~
I have been following your recipes for years and in the last few years have been making sourdough bread which is addressed in one of your books and I have been following those instructions for keeping a sourdough culture. I recall reading that any of your recipes could be followed using the sourdough method and I’m very interested in making a sourdough version of your Chocolate Chocolate Chip Bread but I really don’t know where to begin. Could you help me to follow that recipe using a sourdough starter?
Hmmm.
I haven’t see breads like this done with sourdough. Chocolate, plus the flavor of naturally-occurring yeast sour don’t usually go together for most recipe-testers and tasters. If you want to try it, it’ll be an experiment. Start with very active sourdough culture (it should pass the “flotation test” (not in the book), which is here on the website in the troubleshooting tips at https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2020/04/20/easy-sourdough-starter-with-new-troubleshooting-tips/ (see tip number 8 in particular). You can try to incorporate a white-flour culture, then adjust the moisture… it may be complicated, and my concern is that with all the additional stuff weighing down the dough (eg., chips, oil…), it’s going to be tough to prevent over-denseness. Which chocolate bread recipe are you using, from one of my books, or from the website (what link)?
That makes so much sense, thank you. The recipe I am referring to is from one of the older books (and I don’t exactly know which one, maybe the original?) Sorry I don’t own any but I’ve checked them all out from the library! But I will definitely do more research! I appreciate all your books and website! Thank you again!
Hi. I’ve just mixed up my first batch of gluten free flatbread and pizza dough. I’d like to cook a pizza in a cast iron skillet rather than on a stone. Any suggestions?
Yes, it works the same way, retaining heat and crisping the crust. The sides of the pan make it a little harder to manipulate the pizza, which you can mitigate against by not making the pie too large. If the pan is well-seasoned, you can probably preheat it dry, otherwise oil it.
Hi, I have bought a copy of your Gluten Free Artisan Bread today and would ideally love to make wholemeal and egg free (vegan) loaf. I am happy to try the first flour mix, which you say works without eggs, but I cannot use potato flour. I love potatoes, but they cripple me with joint and bone pain, so it’s not an option. Is it possible to increase the tapioca? Or add arrowroot? Or, maybe I would be better to make the wholegrain flour mix and try using flax and gram flour to make an egg replacement? I’m not sure how useful flax eggs are when there’s already psyllium in the mix. Gram is for the protein of the eggs.
Also, I’m wondering why you use equal amounts of psyllium to xanthin gum in Flour mix 1, and double the psyllium husk in the wholegrain flour in Mix 2?
Mary: Unfortunately, these recipes are fairly temperamental to changes in the starches/flours used. The substitutions that worked, which I was confident of, are on page 61. There may be other substitutions that work, but I couldn’t find them. In particular, I don’t think you’ll be pleased if you just doubled the tapioca as you suggest in Mixture #1– I think it’ll be gummy, plus the flavor… will be too much like tapioca pudding. Some readers have swapped in arrowroot with success (but all depends on what they meant by “success”–I just don’t know). In any case, you’re wanting a wholemeal loaf, so focusing on Mixture #1 won’t give you that. If you go with Mixture #2, the problem with wholemeal is that it can be very heavy, and the eggs lighten it up, so this is a quandary. For 100% wholemeal, I wasn’t successful without eggs. For the recipe on page 99, which is 50% wholemeal, you don’t need eggs, so maybe that’s where you should start, experimenting with a swap for potato in Mixture #1. If it turns out too heavy, consider switching to flatbreads (see Chapter 8, and just use the 50% whole-grain recipe in place of the recipe on page 172). Best bet will be pita made this way, on page 199. If you have success, would love to hear about it. Also, about the discrepancy you mentioned, this is related to certain recipes that call for more– that’s explained in those particular recipes. If the recipe you’re working on doesn’t include that, use the smaller amount/ Thanks, Jeff
Hi Jeff, I have a copy of “The Best of Artisan Bread” book and I make the American-Style Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread recipe a lot. Your instructions say it is easier to handle after refrigeration, but can I use less water to make it more manageable to shape after 1st rise? If so, how much less? Thank you so much
You can decrease the water, but you probably won’t be able to store the dough for more than 24 hours, and that’s the basis of my method. Start by decreasing the water about 10% and see what you think
This may sound like a “not so smart” question….
Can you just keep adding to the dough bucket in the fridge? Or do you use it all, wash, and repeat?
Thanks!
You can keep adding to the bucket. Technically not with dairy or egg enriched dough, according to FDA.
I thought that I followed the recipe but my crust is hard. Is it supposed to be hard or did I do something wrong?
Which recipe are you using, from which of my books / page number?
Actually, I tried it again and it was perfect.
All of the videos you refer to are gone. For example there’s no link to the video mentioned in https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2010/03/29/my-favorite-rye-isnt-in-our-books-heres-how-to-slash-it-careful-its-sticky/
Is it my browser, or have you removed them?
Thanks!
It’s right there– it’s not a link, it’s a “screen”, a box that looks like a youtube window with a “play” icon in the center.
Hi! When making basic recipe, I halve and store in small rectangular container. To make the first loaf, I dust a bit of flour and use bench scraper to “cut” in half and scoop out. This loaf always looks nice. The remaining dough spreads out and often develops a harder edge where it was cut along with some clumped excess flour. When i scoop out the remainder, that edge tends to be rolled into the wetter bottom of the dough. It isn’t enough to absorb so sometimes get a “line” in the bread. If dough is older, the top also gets leathery, with similar effect. What to do with this harder edge of dough? Should I keep that bit on outside and dust and cloak that bit, roll into the wet dough? Second loaf almost always doesn’t look as nice either.
First question: how are you measuring your flour, by volume (with the scoop-and-sweep” method, at https://artisanbreadinfive.com/scoopandsweep), or by weight? And are you transferring the dough to smaller containers as you use it up (minimizing the air-space in the container)? And what brand of flour are you using?
Hi Jeff, am measuring by weight. Flour is Gold Medal unbleached. But, I haven’t transferred into smaller container. Is that the key?
Also, in incorporating “old” dough into new would 2 cups dough be about the size of a half of a pound loaf? Orange sized? Grapefruit?
Thanks for your help!
With the old dough re-use thing– try an orange-sized piece for starters and see what you think. And about the leathery top-surface, yes, the small container transfer may help. You should also be able to snap down a plastic lid after about 48 hours. This will cut down on the drying airflow, but don’t do this if you’re using glass containers with a screwtop, which can actually shatter and explode from gas build-up.
Hi Jeff,
Update: snapping lid closed after 48 hrs did the trick, it’s funny how our brains read but don’t process information since that’s always been the instructions. Adding orange sized piece gave good results, 2nd time added larger, still good — seems to matter how sour -old dough is also. Have you found a limit on old to new ratio? Have you experimented how many times you can continually add mature dough to new dough? And maybe most importantly, how do you know when you’ve gone too far?
Thanks!
I don’t like to go beyond about a cup of old stuff in a new batch, but I don’t see any problem with doing this indefinitely for non-dairy, non-egg doughs. Too far? If you don’t like the flavor, that’s really what I go by.
Hi, Jeff!
I want to start using Fresh Milled whole wheat berries to make my flour. I will combine Hard White Wheat with a bit of Kamut. I was wondering if your master recipe would work with this type of flour and what adjustments i would have to make. If it wont work with the master recipe, do you any of the other recipes in your new Artisan Bread in 5 minutes book that would work? I will mill the berries to a fine, soft flour….
Thank you!!!
It should work, but because home-ground flour comes from non-standardized wheat berries (ie., variable moisture levels and fineness-of-ground), I can’t guess as to what the liquid requirement will be. Plus, Kamut is low in gluten, so that’s another wild card (gluten absorbs water). You’re going to have to experiment, and be tolerant of needing to use this dough for flatbread, mostly.
Lol. Ok, thank you. I will start experimenting.
I meant to say, I am just buying your book “The New Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day: Revised and Updated with New Recipes Hardcover – November 1, 2016”, and I’d like to know if there is/are recipes for whole wheat croissants?
Thank you!
Well, they aren’t technically true croissants, but that book does have crescent rolls that are partially whole wheat. But true croissants are made from dough that is “laminated” with butter– which these are not.
Thank you! Still looking forward to the book! About 10 yrs ago, Croissant Time in Ft Lauderdale sold whole wheat croissants. They were excellent. It was wonderful! Then they stopped. Not enough people seem to care about benefits of whole grains. ‘Course the butter will kill you
Too wet dough? I just made a batch of your master recipe from NABin5. I thought the dough was going to be great to work with as I mixed it, let it rise, then removed from the fridge a few days later. However, the dough seems “loose” (slack?) to the point that it is “jiggly”once shaped (pizza & calzone). I used Great Value AP flour and cannot find the protein content. This dough could barely be rolled out even with lots of flour dusting it/the rolling pin. Again, it almost had a “jiggly” quality throughout the whole process. I was not even going to attempt shaping this for bread. It rose well once in the oven. Do I need to add 1/8-1/4 cup more flour (I weigh in grams) if I am using this flour if the dough is this “loose”? My current dough is not wet enough to be “soupy” if that helps. Also, with this current batch, it felt like it came out of the container fine. However, it was sticky enough that a cup of flour dumped under/over it would not have kept this dough from sticking to the rolling pin/my hands/parchment paper *laughs*.
Notes: Completely blind here, so bare with me in my very tactile references. I can clarify if they do not make sense. I have worked with your doughs before (master recipe, olive oil dough, and the enriched doughs for cinnamon raisin bread and cinnamon rolls?-all from NABin5). I want to say that I used King Arthur bread & AP flour the last time that I worked with your doughs, and I remember the texture definitely being far less “loose” but not stiff either (between “play-doh” and “jiggly”). The dough would actually hold a shape after the cloaking was done and did not have this “jiggly” quality.
Thank you in advance for whatever assistance you might be able to provide. additionally, I very much appreciate the quality of your books being descriptive enough that I can work with the recipes without vision! Originally, I worked through a few of them when i had vision. After losing my vision overnight, I had a goal to learn to bake (pies, puff pastry, etc.). I remembered that I had your book and wanted to explore more of the recipes along my blind baking journey (bad pun, I know….had to *grins*. Thank you both again, truly.
My best guess is that this particular flour has a lower protein content than my testing-flour, and adding a bit more flour will help (or you could slightly decrease the water). KAF flours have significantly more protein then supermarket brands. Also, your flour-measurement may be off– if using cup-measures, be sure you’re doing my “scoop-and-sweep” method, with video at https://artisanbreadinfive.com/scoopandsweep . Or weigh the ingredients, which is more accurate.
Hi,
What is an exact recipe for gluten free sourdough starter?
Thank you!
I’m afraid I don’t have one for gluten-free, but you can see my wheat-based one by typing sourdough starter into the Search Bar above. I’m not sure it’ll translate…
Hi. I have The new artisan bread book… c2013 and I have started looking now at the gluten free section. The master recipe on pg 268 says potato flour, not starch… and on the website for the #1 mix it says potato starch don’t substitute potato flour. Which version is accurate or are they completely different re cipes. Potato flour seems very hard to source in NZ except in very small packets at horrendous price. Thanks.
I’m away from the books at the moment, so I need to check back and get back to you here in a day or so.
Ah, got it. The website is addressing the recipe from the full Gluten-Free book, which had a different dough formula. You could try testing this with the potato flour… maybe on a small batch so you don’t waste much if it doesn’t work. If it rises poorly or is soupy, it’ll still probably work well as GF flatbreads. An alternative would be to use mixture #1 as an all-purpose GF flour and follow the directions at https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2014/11/03/master-recipe-from-gluten-free-abin5/. If you do use the version on page 268 of NABi5, be sure to check the page below in case you have an early edition of the book that contained a major typo– an omission of a key ingredient (sorghum flour):
https://artisanbreadinfive.com/2013/10/01/corrections-to-first-printing-of-the-new-artisan-bread-in-five-minutes-a-day-2013/