Low Carb Diabetic Diet

“I don’t have a dough mixer. Can i mix the dough by hand? Shoud it feel sticky?”

Answer:

It is not necessary to use an electric mixer when maing bread, although i like to use it because it saves time and effort. Hand-kneading the dough gives equally good results and I know many chefs who prefre to do it that way when making small amounts of bread, as they enjoy the yeasty smell of the dough as well as the good exercise from the kneading.

When kneading bread dough by hand, mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl, then pour in warm liquid. Using one hand to hold the bowl, mix with a scooping and turning motion to form a lump or soft, smooth and elsetic dought. It should not be sticky. Place the lump of dough on a smooth work surface dusted with a little flour to prevenet sticking when kneading.

More low carb bread recipe here.

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“I have made white and wholemeal breads using ordinary dry yeast. Then I tried using instant yeast, but the bread came out dry and the top crust was very uneven and rough. Why did this happen?”

Answer:

Yeast seems so mysterious because it is a living organism. It requires moisture gentle warmth and sugar to activate its growth. As ti grows, it produces carbon dioxide which makes the bread rise.

Yeast is avaiable in 3 forms:

1. Fresh

2. Dried / Granular

3. Powdered easy-blend / instant yeast

Fresh yeast should be firm and moist and light cream-colored. If it is crumbly and dark brown, it is stale and will not activate. To use it, dissolve the required amount into a little lukewarm liquid and mix into the dough. The amount of fresh yeast to use for 450 – 500 g flour is 30 g.

Dried yeast has to be reconstituted with warm water and sugar. Stir the yeast, sugar and lukewarm water together until the yeast dissolves. Leave to stand for 15 minutes until a frothy head appears. The yeast mixture if then ready for use. One word of caution, though. Dried yeast, like fresh yeast, does become stale. Check its expiry date and if it does not produce a frothy head, do not use it. For every 450 g flour, you’ll need 2 teaspoon dried yeast.

Easy blend-yeast or instant yeast is my favorite, simple because it is the easiest to use. It can mixed directly into the flour with the water added separately. No waiting time is required for the yeast to activate.

If your bread is crumbly and dry, then the loaf had been baked for too long or the oven temperature is too high. Also, too much flour may have been used in the dough.

Good luck. Get more low carb bread here.

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Bread-making is no longer the tedious chore it once was. As long as you have a mixer with a dough hook or a robust food processor with a dough blade, you can whip up a badge of dough in 20 minutes.

There’s nothing like the delicious aroma of freshly baked bread, One of the greatest joys of making bread at home is being able to savor warm crusty bread spread with butter and jam.

The basic ingredients are easy to find. Flour suitable for making bread is labeled under various names — strong flour, bread flour or high-protein flour. Strong white flour generally contains 72-73 % of the whole grain; buy unbleached if you want to avoid chemical whtener. Wholewheat flour is darker and contains the whole grain. It is the healthiest flour as it contains all the vitamins and oils from the fibre (bran). Wholewheat bread has slightly chewy and nutty flavor and is heavier than white bread.

Instant, easy-blend yeast is simple to use as it can be mixed directly with the flour; thus speeding up the process of prooding. Always use lukewarm liquid to mix the dough, as too hot a liquid can kill the yeast, this preventing the dough form rising.

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Which varety of bananas should i use to achieve a speckled effect in banana cake?

Many types of bananas cab be used: the imprtant thing is for them to be ver yripe. Making banana cake is a good way of using up overripe bananas. If you want a highly speckled effect, use pisang rastali.

I love banana cake, but a log of past failured have discouraged me from making it again. It comes out looking good on the outside, but it is too wet inside. Where am I going wrong?

I would suggest using 2 well-ripened medium0sized pisang rastali; pisang emas are too gooey for cakes. Make sure the oven is properly pregheated to the correct temperature. Before remving the cake from the oven., test with a wooden skewer; if the cake is properly cooked the skewer will come out clean when inserted in the centre of the cake.

Good luck!

Here’s a recipe on Banana Cake.

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Wide Choice To Pan Out Baking Needs

You want to take up baking and you are wondering hot to start. Of course you will need some equipment; an oven, measuring spoons and cups, a scale, and some baking pans. The wide range of baking pans available can be confusing; knowing what they are and how they are used should make the selection easier.

As general rule, invest in the best quality pans you can afford, as they will five better results and last much longer. Aluminium baking pans which conduct heat well are among the best all-round pans for everyday baking. They are easily available and can take hard scrubbing. Good quality nonstick pans are marvelous for certain cakes, muffins and breads, but take care not to scratch them.

1. Round and square aluminium tins of between 18cm and 25 cm are essential
for basic cake-baking. Two of each type are necessary for sandwich or layer
cakes.

2. Springform cake pans, i.e. nonstick pans with a removable
base or side which unclip for easy unmolding, are used for cheesecakes or sponge
cakes with a jelly or mousse topping. Choose sturdy ones or they will warp and
the batter will leak out during baking.

3. Pie or flan tins, available in stainless steel, nonstick material or porcelain, come in round, square and oval shapes. They are used for sweet and savory pies. The metal ones with a removable base and fluted sloping sides are best. Useful sizes are between 18 and 25 cm.

4. Patty tins, which consist of a cluster of small cake tins, are useful for muffins, cupcakes ad small pies. Choose the nonstick variety with a dozen sections.

5. Lamington tins are shallow rectangular pans; typical size is 27 ½ x 17 ½ x 3 cm. They have slightly sloping sides and are made of tinned steel or aluminium. They are ideal for sliced or tray cakes and brownies.

6. Chiffon cake pans, also known as ring pans or tube pans, are deep pans with sloping sides and a  ring in the centre. They are used for chiffon and angel food cakes. Aluminium ones are good enough.

7. Mangue cake pans are round , deep pans with sides that slope slightly. They are usually made of aluminium and are used to make the special French sponge cake.

8. Kugelhopf molds or pans are deep ring molds with  heavy patterning. A nonstick variety is available. Kegulhopf is a popular Austrian raisin cake.

9. Savarin tins are shallow ring molds with smooth rounded bases. They are made from tinned steel or aluminium and come in various sizes. Savarin molds can be used for cakes, meat loaves, mousses and jellies.

10. Bread tins come in a great variety of sizes. A nonstick pan which holds a 2 lb loaf is the most useful type. Its dimensions are approximately 22 x 12 x 7 cm. Other sizes are useful for tea breads and loaf cakes.

11. Biscuits or cookie trays should not fir the oven exactly. There should be a gap of at least 5 cm between the tray and the oven walls. They trays should be only 1 cm deep (deeper tins prevent even browning). Choose thick aluminium trays so that they will not warp.

As a start, I would recommend buying:

• One square aluminium cake baking tin
• One round aluminium cake baking tin
• One springform cake pan
• Two or three cookie trays

If you want to bake pies, muffins, cupcakes and bread, add a pie tin, a patty tin
and a bread tin.

Try a low carb cake recipes from here today.

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Someone asked while we were having our routine cooking class: “What is the best way of removing an avocado seed? I always end up making a mess of the soft flesh?”

Well, this is my answer to that, ” Cut the avocado in half lengthwise with a sharp knife. Twist the two halves in opposite directiioins to separate them. Then plunge the tip of the knife into the avocado seed, twist and lift out the seed.”

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