And how to fix them to achieve fresh-baked perfection.
Cara Cormack
Baking bread is more popular than ever.
Even my previously carb-phobic boyfriend has taken up a nightly session with the oven.
Photo:Cara Cormack
(I’m not complaining about being served warm cinnamon rolls during my evening Netflix binge.)
After all, the promise of set-it-and-forget-itfresh, crusty loavesis pretty appealing to even the non-bakers among us.
However, not checking on your bread along the way may cause you to miss some critical errors.
Don’t worry about opening the bread machine mid-cooking cycle.
If it’s cold or drafty, your dough might take longer to proof properly.
And yes, it is another example of when to check on your loaf during the baking process.
Figuring out when the final rise is about to happen requires a little calculation.
Most bread machines will tell you in the manual how many minutes each stage takes.
Not Weighing Your Flour
Exact measurements are extremely important when making bread.
Ever followed a bread machine recipe to a T and ended up with a disappointing loaf?
You might have inadvertently used the wrong amounts of flour.
Weighing your flour, rather than using cups, will help provide much more precise measurements.
Weighing your flour will prevent the need for constant adjustment, checking, and trial and error.
