People always ask if the huge 8 quart Assistent mixer can handle small dough batches. I took some quick video of my DLX Assistent kneading a pizza dough with only 294 grams of flour (about 2 cups). This is about a 55% hydration dough.
The beginning of the video shows a very inconsistent dough ball, but during kneading, it will smooth out nicely and become nice and elastic, as it should.
People always ask how the Bosch Universal mixer handles small batches of dough and whether the dough divider (also called the small-batch attachment) is necessary.
My opinion is that the mixer and small batches get along just fine and that the divider is unneeded. You can make up your own mind by watching my Universal knead a batch of challah dough that uses only 338 grams of flour:
I’ve finally found a bread recipe I like. I thought I’d share.
I’ve always been intrigued by the thought of baking my own bread. I’ve tried multiple recipes and techniques multiple times, without finding something that I would be willing to eat on a regular basis.
I took a bread-baking class at the University of Tennessee Culinary Institute that featured the basis of this recipe. I’ve tweaked it and resized it and make it in my Bosch Universal mixer rather than by hand.
In class we had access to a high-gluten flour which I cannot find in any grocery store, so I have changed my recipe to use vital wheat gluten with regular bread flour. This produces a product that is close enough to the original for me.
You can make a slightly leaner dough by eliminating the butter. Or you can add a bit more butter, honey and water and come up with a softer dough more suitable for cinnamon rolls.
Substituting 1/3 whole wheat flour for an equal amount of bread flour works wonderfully also.
| 1 loaf | 2 loaves | |
| 24 oz | 48 oz | |
| Honey | 38 grams | 76 grams |
| Salt, Kosher | 6 grams | 12 grams |
| Bread Flour | 338 grams | 676 grams |
| Vital Wheat Gluten | 21 grams | 42 grams |
| Instant Yeast | 10 grams | 20 grams |
| Water | 112 grams | 224 grams |
| Eggs | 2 | 4 |
| Unsalted butter, melted | 49 grams | 98 grams |
I throw all the ingredients into my Bosch Universal (or Bosch Compact, or DLX Assistent) and, after everything has come together, allow the dough to knead for about 8 minutes or so.
I then lightly oil the dough and cover it and allow it to proof (raise or ferment) until it has about doubled in size. I will then punch it down and roll it into a tight log the length of my loaf pan. It then gets loosely covered and allowed to proof again until it is about an inch to inch and a half above the rim of the pan.
Then I bake it for 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Remove from the pan immediately and allow to cool an an elevated cooling rack.
After 20 minutes, you should have a nicely browned loaf that will sound hollow when thumped on the bottom. For rich doughs like this you would be looking for a temperature somewhere around 180 degrees Fahrenheit. Keeping it below the traditionally-quoted temperature of 195-200 degrees will prevent the bread from being too dry.
My challah loaves as they come out of the pan:
The following two pictures show braided challah that I did in class at the UT Culinary Institute:
2 sticks butter
1 cup water
4 tablespoons cocoa
1 square bittersweet chocolate
2 tablespoons rum
2 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs
13” x 9” pan (or two 9” round cake pans)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In saucepan, melt together, butter, water, cocoa chocolate and rum. Allow to cool slightly.
Sift together all dry ingredients and fold into the chocolate mixture.
Stir in vanilla, sour cream and eggs. Pour into pan and bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes.
Cool and frost with your choice of chocolate frostings.
12 C flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1.5 tablespoon baking powder
4 C butter
4 C sugar
4 eggs
4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoon either lemon, orange or almond extracts
1 teaspoon salt
Preheat oven to 350° degrees F. Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, vanilla and other extracts.
Sift, then mix dry ingredients and add to butter mixture. Mix well.
Chill for 1 to 2 hours. Roll to 1/4″ thickness and cut into desired shapes. Bake 8 to 10 min.
Cool.
Can be decorated with colored sugars before baking or iced with royal icing afterwards. Use your imagination decorating these.
To freeze: divide dough into approximately 4 rounds and wrap tightly in waxed paper then over wrap in moisture/vapor proof. You can freeze the rounds on a tray then vacuum seal the frozen rounds
Submitted by Miss Vi & the Duckies
4 cups butter
(use the pulse feature to start mixing)
Sugar mixed with butter:
Butter and sugar after 3 minutes of creaming:
Getting ready to change to the dough hook to mix in the flour:
Adding 12 cups flour using splash ring:
Finished dough:
