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TIPS FOR USING YOUR BOSCH KITCHEN CENTER

Be sure to read all the directions with your machine and be familiar with their instructions. The warranty for the Bosch Universal and Concept 7 base is 3 years and the warranty on the accessories (blender, food processor, etc.) is 1 year.   The cookie paddles have a 5-year warranty.

THE WIRE WHIPS NEED TO BE USED CORRECTLY FOR MAKING COOKIES. (Recommendation—purchase the cookie paddles as an accessory, as it will make cookies from start to finish) You can use the wire whips or the cookie whisks to cream your fats and sugars and add some flour. But when you finish adding the rest of the flour, the chips, nuts and oatmeal, USE THE DOUGH HOOK.

On a scale of 1-12 of dough being runny (1) such as a crepe mix to a thick cookie dough (12) you can use the wire whips for a dough ranging from 1-6. You can use the cookie whisks for a dough ranging from  1-9, but still use the dough hook for a thicker dough. The cookie whisks are wonderful for pie crusts and tortilla and etc. The wire whips are great for mashing potatoes. When mixing a cake mix, use only 1 wire whip and don’t over mix. The cookie paddles are the best for making cookies, but need to be purchased separately.

BE SURE TO KEEP THE FEET OF YOUR MACHINE CLEAN AND FREE FROM FLOUR.

The recipes in Shelly's Breads cookbook are written to make 6 loaves of bread. The least the Bosch Universal and Concept 7 can make is 3 loaves, no less—just cut the recipes in half.
 

When washing your covers and the blender, I would recommend wash by hand, as the dishwasher will eventually cloud it. After making bread dough, let your dirty bowl dry, and then use a brush to clean the dough off the spur gear on the top of the center column.

A few machines get dough down the center column, and we have a dough guard that is a hard plastic disk that fits on the top of the spur gear on the top of the center column that prevents any dough from going down. Place the dough hook on top of it. Just leave on without taking off.  You can order these 10 for $2.

If you do not have any ideas for the blender, I would recommend purchasing Sue Gregg’s Breakfast ckbk—and learn how to make blender pancakes and waffles and muffins. Also, 1-2-3 Smoothies and the Smoothies and Ice Treats cookbooks are wonderful. Set for Life has some great ideas too. Don’t forget to make soups in the blender and meat spreads and bean dips.

The Bosch Universal Blender can make everything and much more than the Vita-Mix super blender. It is a 700 watt blender and runs at 1300 rpms. The Concept 7 blender is a 700 watt also, but runs at 850 rpms. Be sure to only drop ice in a running blender, and don’t put ice in first without the machine running. Also, the blender funnel is a drip funnel, so be sure to put that in correctly—hanging down.

To clean your blender after use, use 2 cups of hot water and a drop of dish washing soap, and put the blender back on the Bosch and run for 30 seconds, rise and dry.  The blender cover underside will unscrew the blender blades.
 

TIPS FOR BREAD MAKING

WATER—Use hot water tap water - 120 degrees - rather than cool to warm water, in order to facilitate a fast time of rising and baking. Don’t boil the water or microwave it, unless you can check the temperature. When the bread is finished kneading the dough will be about 105 degrees. USE YOUR BLENDER TO MEASURE THE WATER FOR MAKING BREAD.

YEAST—These recipes are written for using instant yeast such as the SAF YEAST. Instant yeast does not require proofing, but is added to the bread bowl last, on top of the flour. The other ingredients cool down the hot water, so it won’t kill the yeast. If you are not using an instant yeast  (one which does not have the outer coating that needs to be softened), but just a regular yeast, then you need to proof your yeast first. (This softens the outer coating of the yeast).

Proof your yeast in a 2 C glass measuring cup, using 1/2 C warm tap water, 1 t. yeast and 1 t. honey. Within 5-10 minutes the mixture will begin to bubble and get frothy. Pour this mixture into your bowl, subtracting 1/2 C water from your liquid measurement.

If your bread is not rising well, check your yeast to make sure it is fresh by proofing it. Purchase yeast in bulk, and put 1/2 of it in an airtight container in your freezer and 1/2 in an airtight container in your refrigerator. Always keep your yeast refrigerated, and not left in your cupboard.

Instant yeasts are made for one rising, but the Saf instant yeast can take 2-3 risings. If your bread over raises and falls before baking, then just reshape it and let it rise again. *Saf yeast has an extra year shelf life beyond the printed expiration date.
 

DOUGH ENHANCERS—Dough enhancers are used with whole grain breads only, not white breads. Dough enhancers strengthen the cell walls of the dough and make the bread lighter. It also aids in the rising process and is a natural preservative, extending the shelf life of your bread. The more dough enhancer you use, the moister your bread will stay.

You can purchase ready made dough enhancers which simplify bread making from Bosch dealers, or you can make your own. For each 12 C. of flour, add 1 (150 milligrams) Vitamin C tablet (dissolve in the warm water), or 2 T of lemon juice, and 2 T lecithin (oil or granulated) or 1/2 C soybeans milled into flour.

GLUTEN— Gluten is the protein in the wheat. You should add 1/3 C of gluten to add lightness to your bread. If your wheat is low in protein, less than 16% in red and less than 14% in white wheat, be sure to add the extra gluten. Another indicator that your bread needs gluten is if the bread is crumbly (but not due to too much flour). For crumbly bread, be sure to add 1/3 C of gluten for 6 loaves of bread. You can purchase gluten at health food stores, through coops or from Bosch dealers.

FLOUR—This is your most important ingredient for great tasting bread. Use freshly milled flour vs stale, sterile nutrient deficient flour. If you own a grain mill, always mill your flour fresh when you bake your breads. Once you crack open a wheat kernel, in 72 hours the vitamins oxidize and in 7 days the wheat germ oil can begin to turn rancid. Be sure to refrigerate your flour ASAP, because within 24 hours your flour can become contaminated, as bacteria and mold grow rapidly in the nutrient rich flour of whole wheat. After milling, you can store your flour in the refrigerator for 2 weeks or in the freezer for 2 months.

If you are using cold flour, or any flour that was not milled fresh, put the flour in a large bowl and microwave it for about a minute to warm it up. This also helps in reducing your time in bread making, by using warm flour.

Measure all your other ingredients, except for the flour when making bread. Start with 12C of flour for 6 loaves of bread, and after you have about 18 C of flour, only add by 1/2 C increments, until the dough begins to clean the sides of the bowl. BE CAREFUL NOT TO ADD TOO MUCH FLOUR!! In recipes that have raisins or dried fruit and nuts, I purposely let my dough be a little sticky on the sides (not very sticky, just slight) because after about the 4 minutes of kneading, the bread dough usually picks up the dough on the sides of the bowl.

If your dough is TOO STICKY, add more flour. If after kneading, and it is too sticky, let it rest in your bowl for 15-20 minutes. You will then be able to handle it. Grease your counter either with Crisco or a lecithin/oil combination. Grease your hands also. Be sure NOT TO DUST YOUR COUNTER WITH FLOUR.

HONEY AND OIL—warm up together either in the microwave or on the stove, til just warm. This seems to really help make silky bread.

DEVELOP YOUR GLUTEN—Fully develop your gluten during the kneading process to have a nice, light bread. The gluten is developed during the kneading process, by pulling and stretching the gluten fibers to their elastic limits without breaking them. If you UNDERDEVELOP the gluten, the gluten remains partially tangled. The dough may tear, and not stick to itself, but sticks to you. If you OVERDEVELOP the gluten, it will easily tear, and the dough will look like broken rubber bands. This can happen by kneading the dough TOO LONG.

To properly develop your gluten, these recipes call for only kneading your bread 3-5 minutes after the dough has cleaned the sides. If you use white or red spring wheats, start on speed one and when you hear the Bosch kitchen center gear down, turn to speed two. (Using the Concept 7, start on speed 2 and when it gears down, turn to speed 3) Kneading for 10 minutes even on speed one can break the gluten. The Bosch kitchen center is just too powerful of a machine (700 watts). In time, you will be able to just look at your dough and know when it is thru kneading. Your dough should be smooth, shiny, elastic and look satiny. Taking a small piece of dough and gently stretching it without tearing and being translucent—(light can shine thru), is one way to test that your gluten has been fully developed.

SPONGING— Sponging your bread will make it lighter. There are 2 different ways you can sponge it, one usually being sufficient. The first way is to put in all your liquid ingredients, and all your dry ingredients except only 12 C of flour. Mix together momentarily, and then let it sit for 15-20 minutes in your bowl. Turn your machine back on and add the rest of the flour and continue all the way through.
The second way to sponge your bread is to make it all the way through, and when you are finished, either let it just sit in your bowl, or turn it out onto your greased counter and cover with a damp cloth and let it sit for 20 minutes.

Sponging can really improve the flavor and the texture of your bread. If you have a time element that won’t allow for it, then feel free to skip this step.
 

FINISHING TOUCHES—EGG WASH—to give the crust a super shine: Brush it with one egg or egg white beaten with a little water before you put your ready-to-go bread in the oven. If you forget to do so before baking, you can still apply the egg wash 5 minutes before the bread is to come out of the oven. BUTTER—for less shine but a good deep, golden-brown color and very good flavor, brush butter on loaf just out of the oven. MILK—For a loaf that’s really delicious, brush the unbaked loaves with milk. It will make a slightly soft or tender crust with a somewhat dull shine. TOPPINGS—Brush unbaked loaves with an egg-white wash and then sprinkle with the topping of your choice—Poppy seed, caraway seed, sesame seed, basil, oregano, onion, or garlic flakes. SLASHING—For a decorative, professional look, glaze and slash the top, after dough rises, with a single edge razor blade or sharp knife. Cut about 1/4 inch into the dough.

READY FOR BAKING—After putting your bread in greased bread pans, seam side down, covered with a cloth, let it rise once, anywhere from 20-40 minutes. You can raise it in a warm oven turned off or in a 150 degree oven. If you raise the bread in a warm oven, check after 15 minutes, and if it is about ready to bake, then turn the oven up to 350 and just close the door and set your timer. Don’t take the bread out and wait for the oven to warm up, for the bread will most likely fall in the process.
You will know your bread is ready to bake once it has doubled in size or is about 1” above the bread pans. (REMEMBER THAT YOUR BREAD WILL CONTINUE TO RISE FOR THE FIRST 10 MINUTES DURING THE BAKING CYCLE.) You can also check your dough with your finger. Press the tips of two fingers lightly and quickly about 1/2 inch into the dough. If impression you made stays, the dough is doubled.

Place the baking pans several inches apart on the center oven rack—4 going in the long way and 2 in front the short way. Don’t bake bread with 2 shelves in the oven. If loaves are browning excessively, make an aluminum foil “tent” to shield them. After turning bread out of the pan, tap the bottom or side of the loaf, If it sounds hollow, the bread is done.

After taking your bread out of the oven, be sure to cool the bread on a cooling rack to prevent it from getting soggy from steam accumulating on the bottom of the pan. Take the bread out of the pans immediately. The bread has to be completely cooled one hour before bagging them in plastic bags. The bread needs to be cooled 20 minutes before slicing.

STORING—To keep your freshly baked bread at peak goodness: Keep it wrapped and stored in a bread box at room temperature. Seal it tightly and keep it in a cool, dry place. Keep it out of the refrigerator: cold temperature dries bread out and hastens staling. For longer term storage, freeze it in an airtight plastic bag or tin foil, anywhere from 2 weeks to 3 months.

TO THAW FROZEN BREAD—Thaw at room temperature in its wrappers (to retain any moisture that was lost during the freezing process). It generally takes 2-3 hours to thaw. When it is thawed you can reheat it, unwrapped, (placed back in the bread pan, and running some cold water over it) in an oven at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. You can thaw unwrapped bread in the oven rewrapped in aluminum foil at 350 degrees for 20-40 minutes. (However, the bread will dry out more this way).
 

USEFUL TOOLS- Our recommendation is to purchase 6 waffled (8” x 4”) or 4 waffled (10” x 4”), or 6 (8.5” x 4.5”) stainless steel bread pans, 3-4 stainless steel jelly roll pans, professional kitchen scissors, pizza roller, measuring cups and spoons, measuring scoops, spoonulas and a pizza gourmet set and bread bags.

USEFUL MEASUREMENTS FOR SUPPLIES
For each 50# of wheat berries, purchase
1# pkg of Saf yeast
1/2 can of dough enhancer
21 ounce can of gluten
1 gallon of honey
50 bread bags
A 50# bag of the Golden 86 wheat berries can make 45-50 loaves of bread. Approximately 1 C of wheat berries = 1.5 C of flour. 1# of wheat berries = 1# of wheat flour.

FLOUR MEASUREMENTS AND COMBINATIONS In all the bread recipes, you can actually mix and match the different types of flours if you know this: The base of your flour - 75% of the flour in the recipe— MUST be a high protein or high gluten flour— i.e. red or white spring wheat, red or white winter wheat, spelt, kamut, or triticale. My favorite combination is usually 50% red spring and 50% white spring to make the 75% of the base, and then adding extra grains for the other 25% of the flour base. You can add 25% of any other flour that is low protein or low gluten i.e. oat, barley, rice,         7-grain mix or rye. And another secret combination to know is, you can add (1/2 C per loaf or 3 C for 6 loaves) of seeds or nuts in any combination, i.e. millet, amaranth, flax, sesame or sunflower, walnuts or pecans or almonds. EXPERIMENT

 

STEP BY STEP DIRECTIONS FOR MAKING
BREAD WITH THE BOSCH KITCHEN CENTER

GRIND APPROXIMATELY 14 Cups of berries for 6 loaves of bread using either the Golden 86 or Prairie Gold or red spring wheat berries. (USE ONLY TRIPLE-CLEANED, high protein wheat 14% for white spring wheat and 16% for red spring wheat) The higher the protein, the better quality your bread will be. With the Ultra mill—there is just one setting to grind wheat perfectly with. On the Whisper Mill I usually use the coarsest setting-the 3 o’clock setting. On the Nutri mill— set it between the 12 and 1 o’clock position. If you mill your berries in a Vit-A-Mix or a mill attachment on another machine, you may need to mill your grain twice, as it is usually too coarse for breads.

Put all your liquid ingredients in first (see tips in bread making) in the large white plastic mixing bowl with the dough hook attached and add the dry ingredients. Put in 12 C of flour with the Saf yeast on top of the flour. Pulse the ingredients gently—use the M on the Universal and speed 1 on the Concept 7—to moisten the flour. Use only the outside splash ring on the Universal, but the complete bowl cover on the Concept 7. You can sponge your dough at this point for 15-20 minutes or sponge it at step 5.

Turn the Universal to speed 1 and the Concept 7 to speed 2, adding the additional flour, 1 C at a time, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. The KEY to knowing whether or not you have added enough flour is very simple—the dough should be CLEANING THE SIDES OF THE BOWL. You will notice the motor gearing down, and that means you need more power.

TURN TO SPEED 2 on the BOSCH UNIVERSAL and SPEED 3 on the CONCEPT 7, and let the bread dough knead for 4-5 minutes, or until the gluten is nicely developed (See Tips in Bread Making) BE CAREFUL NOT TO OVERKNEAD your bread dough, as it will break the gluten. If the gluten is broken i.e. the dough doesn’t want to stick together uniformly, and it looks like the dough has broken rubber bands in it, don’t throw it out, but use the dough for pizza crusts rather than bread. In these recipes we have a large amount of dough. Because on the Universal we take the covers off at this point, you may need to watch your dough to keep it all in the bowl.

SPONGE your bread dough if you didn’t sponge it in step 2 for 20 minutes either in your bowl, or on your greased counter with a camp cloth covering it. (See Tips in Bread Making) If you are really pressed for time, you can skip this.

GREASE YOUR HANDS AND COUNTER with Crisco or a liquid lecithin/oil combination. DON’T USE FLOUR TO DUST YOUR COUNTER. Slam your dough onto your counter 7 times. Next, shape it in a large round pie shape, and with a kitchen scissors, cut your bread dough into six equal parts. (You can weigh each piece if you want, but after awhile you should be able to eye it pretty well for cutting into equal pieces.) Slam each piece of dough again on the counter another 7 times, and then shape into a loaf of bread and place seam side down in 6 greased bread pans, covered with a clean cloth or tea towel. Let the loaves rise until they are doubled in size. (See Tips in Bread Making for knowing when it is ready to bake)

FINISHING TOUCHES—(See Tips for Bread Making) Bake your bread in a 350 degree oven for approximately 30-40 minutes, until the loaves are nicely browned and sound “hollow” when tapped on the bottom of the loaf.  Let the bread cool on cooling racks. After they have completely cooled, place in plastic bread bags and keep air tight. Shelf life 2-3 days in the summer and 4-6 days in the winter. Don’t refrigerate.

 

Don't miss our treasury of fabulous cookbooks for whole grain cooking & baking!   We offer a mixture of favorites and exciting new titles, full of tasty and nutritious recipes. These cookbooks will open up new worlds of whole grain tastes you, whether you're  experienced or just starting out.   See cookbooks!
 

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Mail check to: Shelly's Breads/1893 C R 16/Colon, NE  68018

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