Bread Recipes - Yeast, French, White & More | Taste of Home (2024)

FAQs

What's the difference between French bread and white bread? ›

Besides the obvious fact that French bread is typically longer and thinner than regular loaves, it tends to be less sweet and has a crispier crust. French bread is usually also made with very simple ingredients instead of sandwich bread, which can have many different additives.

There are two things which make French bread so amazing. 1) Flavor: Mixing the yeast with a little flour and water ahead of time gives a big flavor boost. This is called a poolish or preferment. Slow and cool yeast development is the secret to good flavor.

If you're looking to ramp up the taste of your favorite bread recipe, we recommend adding a bit of fat. A fat like butter, olive oil or coconut oil in small quantities will help your bread achieve a higher rise and it will also boost its flavor by tenfold.

Milk powder.

Instant milk powder makes bread dough super soft and fluffy and also helps to give it a good rise. It also contributes to the dough staying nice and soft after baking for a little longer than a recipe that does not use milk powder.

Are baguettes healthier than bread? Baguettes are similar in nutritional value to traditional white bread. Both baguettes and white bread are high in calories and carbohydrates while remaining low in fat content. Baguettes tend to contain more protein and sodium than white bread.

In terms of nutritional value (vitamins, glycemic index, calories), there is little difference between tradition and white baguette.

Secret #1: The Right Flour

The French typically use Type 55 flour for their baguettes, which has a lower protein content than All-Purpose flour (usually 11.5% protein). I know that's not found in your standard supermarket, but you can buy it online from King Arthur Flour.

Simple answer? Time. The longer you let the dough ferment, up to a certain limit, the more flavor it develops as the yeast and enzymes it releases break down complex carbohydrates in the flour.

What's the secret to a proper crusty baguette? The long fermentation helps develop the dough and produce a nice crispy, crusty crust. Adding steam to the oven by adding water or ice to a preheated baking tray or pan will help develop that crust.

You can also add herbs and seasonings such as garlic, rosemary, dill, chopped onion, jalapeño, shredded cheese, chopped nuts, dried cranberries, etc. My no yeast bread is the quick bread alternative here—you can add flavors to that loaf, too! Baker's Tip: Avoid adding too much flour to the dough as you work with it.

Can you put too much yeast in bread? ›

This can affect the bread by adding a "yeasty" taste if you put too much into the dough. General amounts of yeast are around 1 - 2 % of the flour, by weight. Too much yeast could cause the dough to go flat by releasing gas before the flour is ready to expand.

The spongy texture and moist flavor that oil creates can be a boon to certain recipes. Not to mention oil is cheaper and easier to work with. Butter will always provide superior flavor and that melt-in-your-mouth texture. In many recipes, combining the two gives the best of both worlds.

There's something magical about the bread you get at your local bakeries - they're always sooo soft and fluffy. Many of these breads, especially packaged ones, are made with a ton of chemical additives such as calcium propionate, amylase, and chlorine dioxide which help keep them soft, light, and fluffy for days.

Does Rising Bread Affect Its Texture? For a fluffy bread texture, the key is to let the bread rise long enough.

“Look for 100% whole grain or sprouted grain breads with minimal ingredients,” says Stefani Sassos, M.S., R.D.N., Nutrition Lab Director at the Good Housekeeping Institute. Whole grain bread is more nutrient-dense and may keep your blood sugar steady, while white bread has the opposite effect.

Basic: Use this all-purpose setting for most breads. French: For lighter breads that use fine flour and will have a crispy exterior. Gluten-Free: Since it's made with different flours, this setting is useful to get the best texture.

The French therefore, are eating baguette which is low in fructans, which may reduce indigestible fibres that they consume; lower in gluten, which may prevent the dormant genes for coeliac disease from being expressed or the symptoms associated with non-coeliac gluten sensitivity; and low in phytates which prevent ...

There are three main kinds of bread in the world those that rise highest so are baked in pans, breads with a medium volume like rye and French breads, and those that hardly rise at all called flatbreads.