How To Bake Pandesal and Other Breads

This bun is something i invented to satisfy my carb craving every once in a while. I bake breads yes, but i don't really eat that much so it surprises my students to see me lean after all that baking. Still, since this is what i do for a living and what makes me happy (yeah, i bake for others so???) i thought of baking something that i can eat and share at the same time. I used 10% whole wheat, used 1% molasses for color, 12% dark brown sugar, no margarine and since i am after flavor i used butter but at a very low 10% only. I used a sponge to increase the moisture and make this bread tender in the end, added 5% oats for more fiber and that was it. A somewhat lean dough with a slight bit of sweetness to it. Breads in Manila are at about 18-20% sweet, so this one is a good compromise. For more biting experience, meaning para mas masarap nguyain, i added nuts and dried fruits after the mixing is done. Scaled them to 60 grams each just like the Soft Buns, and rounded each off. I...

Check out my tumblr post on the Mamon mold experience and my Apple Tree update. Day after i told myself i am not buying a return ticket to New York, i decided to buy three apple trees just like that. Maybe, my guardian angel whispered to me, "not just yet" and so these apple trees will somehow make me endure the long flight from Manila to New York. Was not just the flight though, my job is the most precious thing to me at this stage, i love being with students who share the same passion as i do. That's just it. Something not even the beauty and glitter of New York cannot replace. The sticky on the Mamon issue, read about it in my blog too. Here is the Pita dough and baked breads using the same SOFT BUN formula from the previous post. Take about a hundred grams each for this size. You can make smaller Pitas starting from 50-60 grams and use your toaster oven to bake them instead of the large oven. The Pizza stone should be inside the oven during pre-heati...

Judging from the photos previously posted, you can see how much rounder with a bit of a height these buns have. The secret once again is water, nothing different from the formula from the first post, this one has less water so the dough had less tendency to flatten out. I hate to sound too technical but viscosity is the key, same way when you make jams and jellies. The more viscous, the more it flattens out. If this is the kind of bread you want, then simply reduce the water level, from about 58 to just 56 %. I personally do not make use of the eggwhites so that means i would somehow end up with 58 % still and come up with a dome and thicker pieces of Soft Buns, perfect for burgers. Yup, the burgers. When i first tried to make a flatter Bun using a slightly stiffer dough such as this one by pressing the dough down during proofing, it was hard. I had to go back to the dough maybe 3-4 times, it worked but it was tedious. It was like taking care of a baby, constantly feeding him...

When i first glanced at a Mcdo burger, i could not help noticing how flat the bun really is compared to the ones sold in bakeries. I have stopped eating fastfood burgers, for the life of me i cannot remember the last time i had one really, maybe since 2003?, or 2004? Not sure. I know how to cook, and since i am a cancer survivor and a baker as well, i made sure that none of that over 500 calorie stack or should i say heap will enter my mouth. I have experimented with all sorts of burger mixes with fails and ho hums, although the bread is a no brainer. Just add a bit of whole wheat or any ancient grains, herbs, spices and veggies you want and you are good to go. The burger though is tricky. How to make something tastes and feel like you are eating beef is something nobody has ever perfected yet. Right now, i settle for half chicken breast and half veggie/bean mix. The only upside to this is that i find every single patty inside the refrigerator, right where i left them. Nobody else...

Spanish breads and Pandesal What to do with leftover breads. Taken from my eBook, any leftover breads, crackers, donuts, cookies, and cakes can be transformed into a new beginning. Meaning, you can repurpose them and create something new. Not that you are stingy, but if you have a bakery, this is what they call stales turning into cash. What you normally would throw away can be converted into earnings and by earnings it does not have to be a whole lot if you have a small operation but quite a sum if you ran a big one. I have had students coming to me telling me they get as much as 2 sacks of stales, breads that turn hard rock dry, leftovers from returns (meaning sinosoli ng mga tindahan pag hindi nabebenta)and just plain wastage. I once worked in a bakery before and it was their policy to make the baker mark the expiration of each products, then make sure they get out of the shelves 2 days before they expire buy selling them on site to the Owner's offices and factory. I heard...

Tilapia fillet on Malunggay Bread Peanut Butter and Banana Jelly Grilled Tuna and Cheese Breakfast on a Fly www.breadmakinglessons.com

Malunngay Powder in the jar tastes less "swampy" than the dried version i brought from Manila. Oatmeal and Wheat Germ bread, just slightly warmed. My lunch yesterday and i did not feel hungry until 5 pm. I used 3/4 teaspoon of the Malunggay Powder (standard measuring teaspoon). The jar comes with its own mini teaspoon so use 3 of this. The soup is a puree of soybeans, celery, carrots and mushroom that i had stashed in the freezer for some 3 weeks now, just reheat it with the Malunggay Powder, add salt and pepper and a small pinch of paprika. Dried Malunggay my brother made for me to bring to New York, too strong a taste so use gradually and taste every now and then. I am experimenting so i think the jarred version will be more pleasing to those who are first time Malunggay eaters. Use Whether you like it or not, it will taste different so learn how to use spices sparingly like i do. I make my own blend of spices from www.spicesage.com , they ship for free when ...

View detailed article on Malunggay Sandwich Bread in my website, www.breadmakinglessons.com for ideas on how you can make Malunggay variations on breads, not just Pandesal. Not that hard, very easy to make as long as you know how to make breads. I purposely used a bit more water in the dough, (sinadya kong dagdagan ang tubig para maging mas malambot ang tinapay). If you have tried baking breads, the mixing part is the most difficult that is why i still insist on giving hands on sessions, not just demo, and more than just ONE DAY LESSONS, NOT EVEN TWO DAYS, BUT AT LEAST 3 DAYS so you will get to know the DOUGH BETTER. I prefer my sandwich breads with an open grain structure, in Tagalog, medyo buhaghag at alsado. Yung iba, gusto ng siksik, pero sa Monay ko lang gusto yung medyo siksik. Since this sandwich bread was made of a Sponge, the shelf life was for about two weeks, at 60 F. I did not find out anymore if it will last for more than that, it was sitting on my baking tabl...