Bread Baking..not Rising?

[Alz]

Hi, I know there are tonnes of questions about brea, bread makers etc on here but after my last inqiry about bread I bought Gluten-Free Baking Classics and it is absolutely fantastic - my cakes and stuff turn out delicious!

What my question is, I don't have a lot of time to cook breads in the oven and have been trying to adapt the sandwich bread and Italian french bread recipe to be used in my breadmaker (panasonic). I tried both the Italian french bread and the sandwich bread both on gluten free and normal settings and although it comes out really tasty (even my husband cannot tell its gluten free) it just doesn't rise well. It rises about an inch - 2 inches at most. Ive tried using different yeasts but that doesn't make a difference.

Does anyone have any ideas what else I can try, I'm 24 and have had no experience with baking in my life so troubleshooting isn't easy!

thanks

[mindwiped]

Hi, I know there are tonnes of questions about brea, bread makers etc on here but after my last inqiry about bread I bought Gluten-Free Baking Classics and it is absolutely fantastic - my cakes and stuff turn out delicious!

What my question is, I don't have a lot of time to cook breads in the oven and have been trying to adapt the sandwich bread and Italian french bread recipe to be used in my breadmaker (panasonic). I tried both the Italian french bread and the sandwich bread both on gluten free and normal settings and although it comes out really tasty (even my husband cannot tell its gluten free) it just doesn't rise well. It rises about an inch - 2 inches at most. Ive tried using different yeasts but that doesn't make a difference.

Does anyone have any ideas what else I can try, I'm 24 and have had no experience with baking in my life so troubleshooting isn't easy!

thanks

Try this: Open Original Shared Link

I havn't tried it yet, but it's got a lot of really good reviews!

[JNBunnie1]

Hi, I know there are tonnes of questions about brea, bread makers etc on here but after my last inqiry about bread I bought Gluten-Free Baking Classics and it is absolutely fantastic - my cakes and stuff turn out delicious!

What my question is, I don't have a lot of time to cook breads in the oven and have been trying to adapt the sandwich bread and Italian french bread recipe to be used in my breadmaker (panasonic). I tried both the Italian french bread and the sandwich bread both on gluten free and normal settings and although it comes out really tasty (even my husband cannot tell its gluten free) it just doesn't rise well. It rises about an inch - 2 inches at most. Ive tried using different yeasts but that doesn't make a difference.

Does anyone have any ideas what else I can try, I'm 24 and have had no experience with baking in my life so troubleshooting isn't easy!

thanks

What we do, instead of using a machine-timed cycle, is to do just a dough cycle first, so it just stirs and then sits, and then switch it to bake for the period of time we designate. This works best for us.

[RiceGuy]

If you can post the recipe you're using, I'm sure you'll get some helpful suggestions. Some things I know (for oven-baked bread) are that the dough rises best if kept in a warm place, covered. Some have good results by warming the oven to 200

[casnco]

Ignore the yeast bit. The more you put in, the more knackered the inside of your bread will be. While yes, it rises quicker, the damaging effect is that it screws with the structure, causing it to deflate after. Plus, you get nice big holes in your bread. Dont put it in an oven either. That's stupid, and moronic, it'll nuke the yeast. Stick it in a wooden cupboard (continental bakers do this) the wood is moist naturally, it's cool and dark, and that should let it dry prove without skinning over (thats what causes it to look cracked and not so pretty) and should take around 45mins. Sugar does speed it up, salt slows it down. Water effects the rise, and the consistancy of the dough. If you're making it too hard, it wont rise so much. Too soft, it wont hold it's structure. Ideal way to test bread is properly proved is to touch it. If it leaves a fingermark, it's fully proved. if not, well go away and wait.

Traditionally, you allow a dough to ferment (leave in a bowl, basically) for around 40mins. It should have doubled in size. Then you knock it back (get the air out) Then let it rise again. Then cut it, mold it, rest it, mold again, set to prove.

Kay? Awesome.

Hmmm, I don't know about increaseing the yeast. I have thought about it but have never done it. And sugar or honey does help the yeast rise. I put my loves in the microwave to rise. I don't turn the microwave on, I just use it as a draft free environment. However, I have never used a recipie that calls for a rise, knock back and a second rise. I have tried to do that like you would with gluten bread and had a disasterous result. Someone on this board told me gluten free breads did not require that process. I forget why. But I have never done it again and my bread almost always rises. I have also found that quick rise yeast is easier to get a good rise on. The regular yeast just doesn't work as well for me.

Good luck! Once you get it you will really enjoy the baking process.

Debbie

[RiceGuy]

Ignore the yeast bit. The more you put in, the more knackered the inside of your bread will be. While yes, it rises quicker, the damaging effect is that it screws with the structure, causing it to deflate after. Plus, you get nice big holes in your bread.

There was at least one long thread discussing this at length, with many experiments which showed that extra yeast rose the dough faster, but nobody reported it messing up the structure that way. In fact, gluten-free breads generally don't get large holes. That's one of the more notable differences between wheat bread and gluten-free bread. Smaller holes leads to denser bread, which gluten-free breads are well-known for. The gluten in wheat allows the dough to stretch more.

Dont put it in an oven either. That's stupid, and moronic, it'll nuke the yeast. Stick it in a wooden cupboard (continental bakers do this) the wood is moist naturally, it's cool and dark, and that should let it dry prove without skinning over (thats what causes it to look cracked and not so pretty) and should take around 45mins.

Again, much discussion on this board says otherwise. A warm place helps any yeast bread rise, gluten-free or not. Besides, we're talking about an oven which is warm, not hot, and off, not on, nor is it a microwave.

Traditionally, you allow a dough to ferment (leave in a bowl, basically) for around 40mins. It should have doubled in size. Then you knock it back (get the air out) Then let it rise again. Then cut it, mold it, rest it, mold again, set to prove.

Double-rising doesn't apply to gluten-free breads.

Here's one thread I am referring to, which is a good read for anyone trying to make gluten-free breads:

Open Original Shared Link

[Alz]

If you can post the recipe you're using, I'm sure you'll get some helpful suggestions. Some things I know (for oven-baked bread) are that the dough rises best if kept in a warm place, covered. Some have good results by warming the oven to 200

[purple]

Are you using cold milk or did you warm it?

[Alz]

Are you using cold milk or did you warm it?

I tried it both ways!

[RiceGuy]

I've never used a bread machine, but if I was having this happen, the first thing I'd try is to mix the sugar into the warm milk, then add the yeast to it. Set aside while you go about the rest. I'm thinking it might give the yeast a head start. At least ten minutes should help. It should bubble up plenty, but if it doesn't, the yeast is dead.

Other things to try might be increasing the amount of yeast, use water or extra milk in place of the oil, or use a little extra liquid for a softer dough.

Keep in mind however, that gluten-free bread are generally more dense, so the loaf isn't likely to be all light and fluffy like the wheat-based white loaves at the supermarket. Just how close it should get varies somewhat with the recipe. Too much expansion will make the structure too weak, and it might not hold together well enough to use (depending on what you want to do with it). For example, imagine trying to spread peanut butter on angel food cake. I can usually get really nice cake textures, but breads are different in that we usually like them to hold together for spreads, toasting, etc.

[JNBunnie1]

I've never used a bread machine, but if I was having this happen, the first thing I'd try is to mix the sugar into the warm milk, then add the yeast to it. Set aside while you go about the rest. I'm thinking it might give the yeast a head start. At least ten minutes should help. It should bubble up plenty, but if it doesn't, the yeast is dead.

Other things to try might be increasing the amount of yeast, use water or extra milk in place of the oil, or use a little extra liquid for a softer dough.

Keep in mind however, that gluten-free bread are generally more dense, so the loaf isn't likely to be all light and fluffy like the wheat-based white loaves at the supermarket. Just how close it should get varies somewhat with the recipe. Too much expansion will make the structure too weak, and it might not hold together well enough to use (depending on what you want to do with it). For example, imagine trying to spread peanut butter on angel food cake. I can usually get really nice cake textures, but breads are different in that we usually like them to hold together for spreads, toasting, etc.

These are very good tips, there's a couple more things you can do. When you've done mixing just the flours, not the other dry stuff, take out 1/4 cup and put in a 1/4 cup of flax meal. It becomes gummmy and helps hold the air bubbles in the bread, pretty much all sandwich bread benefits from this. I would also try using water instead of the milk, and make sure it's warm. Also, I use a whole little packet of yeast for my bread not sure how many ounces that is, and you might want to try baking 5 or 10 minutes longer than it says to. And leave it in the bread machine for 15 minutes after it's done baking, and then take it out and turn it upside down on something to try and help keep the puff. Hope this helps!

[purple]

I just read on gluten-free mommy not to let the salt come in contact with the yeast b/c salt will kill it. Maybe you could put it in the bread machine first. My gluten bread directions say to put the salt in with the water and butter before you add the flour etc. She also says cold eggs will kill the yeast. She has 25 tips if you want to read them.

Open Original Shared Link

Her pepperoni pizza looks so amazing!

[Alz]

awesome, thanks for all of the tips, Ill give them a try and see how it goes.

I had no idea where to start so I really appreciate all of the advice!