Even though I’ve been making my own bread for some time now, I’ve never used a BOSCH mixer to knead my bread dough. I’ve seen demos and heard rave reviews, but they are pricey and I just never thought the loaf (or loaves) of bread would be worth the hefty price tag. I have been grinding my own wheat for awhile too but before purchasing a wheat grinder I did some research; as a result, I did choose the L’Equip. Since I already owned a bread maker and a Kitchen Aid buying the other half of the duo was something I considered too extravagant; however, after recently using a BOSCH mixer I can say without a doubt that it makes a superior loaf of bread than either using a bread maker or using a Kitchen Aid mixer. In short, I was wrong! My husband and kids are in love with my “new” bread!
Here’s what you get when you open the BOSCH Universal Mixer. You get the dough hook, wire whisks (used for making whipped toppings), bowl, a two-part cover, the base, directions, and a spatula. The tower looking part of the base is where the blender goes if you choose to buy that attachment. You can also purchase various other mixing paddles and a food processor attachment.
It took only a few minutes to get the mixer set up and ready to go.
I have to be honest that another reason I had not taken the plunge and purchased a BOSCH mixer is that all of the demos and all the recipes I’ve seen, call for a commercial dough enhancer. I looked up the ingredients and the price of most commercial dough enhancers and then decided that I just wasn’t willing to add extra stuff to my bread. I mean really, I’m going through the trouble of grinding my own wheat and make my own bread; I don’t want extra stuff in my bread!! That’s the whole point of making my own bread!! Oh yeah, and one other little problem is that I follow a plant-based diet, so things like milk, butter, and gelatin are out for me. But after doing a little more research I found out I could make my own dough enhancer out of plant-based (or vegan) products, and I would have peace of mind that all ingredients were natural and pronounceable.
Bread Enhancer Recipe
- 1/2 c vital wheat gluten
- 1/4 c potato starch
- 2 T pectin
- 1/4 c lecithin granules
- 2 1/4 t powdered ascorbic acid
- 1/2 T ginger
- 1/4 c powdered soy milk (or other plant-based milk)
- 2 T sprouted wheat flour or diastatic malt barley
- 1/2 + 1/4 t agar-agar powder
Place all ingredients in a blender to combine.
It’s not absolutely essential you have each of these ingredients. The important ones are the gluten, the ascorbic acid, and the sprouted wheat flour (or diastatic malt barley). Actually, any malted grain will work as long as it is diastatic, which means it has not been heated up to high enough temperatures to kill enzymes. These enzymes are also present in sprouted wheat so you can use either diastatic malt barley or sprouted wheat. Sprouted wheat is easier to find and many think it makes a better tasting bread. The enzymes in diastatic malt barley or sprouted wheat flour help break down the starch in the flour. Ascorbic acid or Vitamin C helps yeast work longer and become stronger. The gluten serves as a binder and helps make the dough more elastic. The other ingredients help texture, moisture, and appearance. Use two to three tablespoons per loaf.
One of the BOSCH mixer’s claims to fame is that it will make six loaves of bread at one time. I couldn’t wait to try this out. I’m no stranger to cooking in bulk so I had six bread pans and all the ingredients ready to go.
Whole Wheat Bread (Six loaf recipe)
- 6 c warm water
- 2/3 c coconut oil
- 2/3 c honey
- 12-16 c flour
- 1 c homemade dough enhancer
- 4 T active dry yeast
- 1/4 c powdered soy milk (or other plant-based milk)
- 2 T salt
Most recipes and demos for the BOSCH use instant yeast. However, it’s more expensive than active dry yeast, also I didn’t have any on hand. The difference in using active dry yeast to instant yeast is that the active dry yeast just needs a few extra minutes to activate.
Once you start things go pretty fast so I thought it would be a good idea to pre-measure all the ingredients out.
Add the water and yeast and let it sit to activate for a few minutes. Go ahead and use the momentary switch to stir the mixture in the machine.
Add about half of the flour.
Here’s what the dough looks like after being mixed up for a few minutes.
Add the sugar and oil. I used honey and oil but you can use other sugars and other oils if you prefer.
Add the gluten.
Add the homemade dough enhancer.
Add the salt.
Then turn the mixer on and start adding flour about a cup at a time.
After about five minutes on setting two, you’re ready to start testing your dough. Grab a piece of dough.
When your finger pulls away from the dough it should not leave any residue. That’s how you know the dough is ready to be put into pans to rise.
Oil your pans. It’s not recommended that you use additional flour because it could form a hard crust on your bread, so just use oil. Here I’m using coconut oil.
Lightly oil your counter and set the dough on the counter.
Knead it a few times to shape it.
Cut into six pieces.
Shape pieces into small loaves.
You can use a knife to make the fancy slits on the top of the bread if you like.
Remember the loaves will double in size so give them plenty of room in the pan.
You can place them into a slightly warmed oven to rise. I just stuck mine in a cold oven and let them rise.
They are ready to bake when you make an indent with your finger and the dent does not come back out, or it comes out super slow. That’s how you know the dough won’t rise anymore.
Place on a cooling rack to cool. I try and take my bread out of the pans as soon as it’s cool enough to handle so I don’t have problems with sticking.
All done! From start to finish it takes about 90 minutes (that includes the time you let the bread rise).
