How To Bake Pandesal and Other Breads

My baking class usually runs from 3-4 days only unless i have a client who asks for a longer session "on site" which means i would go over to their commissary/bakery/kitchen and teach them for a minimum of 5 days and up to 10 days. The hardest part of attending and teaching a short course is that you don't get to teach everything, molding and shaping does not happen in a wink, most of these guys can barely round a dough let alone, shape a baguette and worst, do the braiding like professionals do. The limited time also means i do not have that much dough to give them, we use dough in real time, what we mix is what we get, i do not use "swap" doughs, i think it is fake and well, even just for the purpose of shaping, the time left for us to do this is still not enough. So each student will get a dough to mold into a baguette, and so on. I took pictures out of my baking book to show you how to make the simplest braid, i advise students to practice using 3 thick rope...

BAKING BREADS: Your Basic Cookie Dough

THE RECIPE: OATMEAL OR OATS                     150 GRAMS ALL PURPOSE FLOUR                   400 GRAMS BAKING SODA, SIFTED                 1 TEASPOON MARGARINE OR BUTTER              1 CUP/1 BAR REFINED SUGAR                             400 GRAMS EGGS                                                  2 PIECES VANILLA      ...

ANY LEFTOVER BREADS, DRIED BREADS AS LONG AS THEY HAVE NO MOLDS IN THEM, YOU CAN USE THESE TO MAKE YOUR HOMESTYLE PUDDING. MOIST BUT NOT DENSE, I MAKE THIS FOR MY MOTHER SINCE SHE LIKES SOFT FOODS AND SHE CANNOT CHEW ON THE CRUSTY BREADS AND COOKIES I REGULARLY BAKE. GOOD THING WE HAVE LEFTOVERS!!!! NO NUTS PLEASE!!!! A GOOD PUDDING IS MADE USING A BAIN MARIE, PLACE THE PUDDING PAN ON A LARGER BAKING PAN WITH WATER AT THE BOTTOM. STEAM BAKE FOR 40 MINUTES OR UNTIL GOLDEN BROWN. DO NOT FORGET TO GREASE THE BAKING DISH OR THE PUDDING WILL STICK A LITTLE, YOU WANT NICE CLEAN CUTS... THE PUDDING PLACED ON A SQUARE DISH, PAT SOME BUTTER OR MARGARINE ON TOP IF YOU LIKE. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO STEAM BAKE RIGHT AWAY, YOU CAN ALLOW THE RAISINS TO SOAK FOR AN HOUR TO SOFTEN THEM. ADDING RAISINS TO THE PUDDING GIVES IT A TWIST... YOU MAY ADD SOME DRIED CRANBERRIES ALSO. ADD SUGAR TO THE MIXTURE OF BREAD, MILK AND EGGS. ADJUST THE SWEETNESS. SHRED LEFTOVER BREADS AND SOAK WITH MILK AND BEATEN EGGS. TH...

THIS IS THE FINISHED PRODUCT, SWEET POTATO WHOLE WHEAT AND OATS LOAF BREAD. I DID NOT FINISH BAKING IT GOLDEN BROWN BECAUSE I PLAN TO FREEZE THE REST OF THE LOAVES, REHEAT THEM LATER OR TOAST THEM FOR SANDWICHES. THIS WAY, THE BREADS DO NOT DRY OUT. THE SHAPED LOGS. SEALING BY PINCHING THE SEAMS. FOLDING AND TUCKING THE EDGES TO CREATE A NICE LOG. SERVING THE SLICED BREAD WITH MY ONLY FAVORITE KNOWN SNACK, GRILLED CHEESE WHAT ELSE? I USE AT LEAST 3 KINDS OF CHEESES, WHATEVER I PICKED UP IN THE GROCERY AISLE. I GRILL AT LEAST 4-5 PIECES OF THESE, KEEP THEM IN THE REF AND GRAB A PIECE WHEN I AM HUNGRY. THIS IS WHAT THE DOUGH LOOKS LIKE AFTER MIXING, THE DOUGH DOES NOT STICK TO MY TINY HANDS, SEE THE FLECKS OF OATS AND WHOLE WHEAT IN THE DOUGH. I DID NOT USE ANY BENCH FLOUR, NOR DID I GREASE MY FINGERS. SLICES OF SWEET POTATO WHOLE WHEAT AND OAT LOAF. I COULD HAVE PROOFED THIS ONE FURTHER BUT IT WAS TOO COLD AND I AM IN DIRE NEED OF CARBS!!! THE LOAVES OUT OF THE OVEN, GOOD VOLUME, IF I ...

I woke up early this morning, i have to make a whole wheat bread for the weekend sabbath meal, my soup is already in the freezer, i have rice pilaf portioned out etc., But where is the bread? Kidding me right? I have a 20 quart brand new mixer and my starter is bubbling, had to feed it last night before i went to bed, no choice but to bake today. I had to return the starter bowl 3 times before i decided to finally bake, it rained early this morning and there is a police car parked near the bridge side front of our house. So i mashed to sweet potatoes, i decided not to use any sugar in the dough, added a piece of egg, and for tenderness, just 1 tablespoon of 0 trans fat crisco shortening. That's all, i am relying hopefully that the starter will provide the flavor and moisture in the dough. I will not be hurrying the dough, so the new york chill is fine for today, and i am saying just today because for the life of me i have to figure out a way not to buy a proofing cabinet and still...

Can't find one in retail pack? Why use them? See images below..... An hour and a half is all it took and i baked this batch of ube cake ring and sweet yeast loaves with cashew filling, one kilogram total. Observe how the dough rose to a great height during proofing, and inside the oven during baking (ovenspring).. A dough that has no bread improver will rise, will bake and will be edible but will not result in lofty heights and softness such as the breads seen here. Now i do not use the ones will preservatives, choose brands that use natural ingredients, anything with ate at the end of the word is suspicious, or ide etc., No kidding. *****The cinnamon sticky buns (did not even reach the top of the pan) and the whole grain baguette artisan breads are proof that using no bread improver does create problems if you are a perfectionist. If you like crusty rolls, fine then omit the bread improver, does not matter.

BAKING YEAST DOUGH BREADS forum

BAKER'S MARGARINE, IN LARGE DRUMS OF 40 KILOGRAMS OR 11 KILOGRAMS, SLATHERED ON TOP, DOES NOT MELT SO IT IS OBVIOUSLY MADE WITH TRANS FAT, AND NOT ALLOWED IN NEW YORK. Reality bites, i cannot find some of the baking ingredients i need, items that i have been using since i finished college. So it looks like i would need to order most of them over the internet. If you know of a great source for all bread making ingredients, not the bulk drum type please, but retail, please post it here. I need dried milk powder ( for baking, not for drinking )bread improver, smaller packs not 40 lbs! etc., I miss Elsa's (near san mateo bridge) and Jubilee's in cubao. Just the other day, i tried to spread the top of my dinner rolls with margarine and they melted at room temperature, this is not the same old margarine that i slather over the top of the commercial ensaimada (sold at P5.00 each at julie's)during my hands on class. Although it is healthier, the flavor is not the same and t...

BAKING YEAST DOUGH BREADS forum

I have posted some entries on my website regarding how to perfect your steamed and baked siopao buns, i remember one student from Bicol province who said it reminded him of the baked siopao buns his mother made for him. Yes, you can bake these buns if you like. You will not encounter problems with shrinking tops since the surface is exposed to more dry heat than steaming, creating a golden brown crust. Another student requested that we toast the tops, and so we did, their versions also in bicol, (he attended the class with his wife and 10 year old kid)has hard boiled eggs for filling. Which i did last week and this week again. It makes the siopao more filling, the longganisa and chorizo versions were not popular at our household so i used slices of salted eggs and hard boiled eggs instead. the biggest tip , Again, never uncover the steaming buns after steaming them. Just leave the lid or cover, let the buns cool off for a few minutes then take them to a warmer (if you want to serve th...