View Single Post
  #8 (permalink)   Report Post  
Vox Humana
 
Posts: n/a
Default


> wrote in message
ups.com...
> I was told to get the right ratio of flour to water it is best to
> weigh the flour instead of using measuring cups The problem is, that I
> have never found a chart showing how much a cup of each of the various
> types of flours weighs. So, I also use the feel method. BobbiJo
>


If you look at the nutrition label on a product you can often find the
weight of a cup or tablespoon of ingredients. For instance, most AP flour
says "one serving = 30 grams or 1/4 cup." From that, you can calculate that
one cup of that flour is 120 grams. Another comprehensive source for
ingredient weight per unit is the USDA database:
http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/

If you have any books by Rose Levy Beranbaum (The Cake Bible, The Bread
Bible, The Pie and Pastry Bible) there are good charts that give the weight
for a cup of many ingredients including various types of flour (AP flour,
sifted cake flour, whole wheat flour, etc.)

I make all of my bread in the food processor or the stand mixer. I
generally put the bowl on a scale and add the flour. I have done this so
often that I can "eyeball" the proper amount of flour in the food processor.
I add all the other ingredients, including instant yeast and pulse to mix.
With the motor running, I slowly add the liquid until a ball forms that
rotates around the bowl. After about a minute of kneading, I slowly drip in
liquid until the mass becomes a bit sticky and ALMOST grabs the bowl. At
that point I remove the dough, round it up, and put it in an oiled bowl to
rise.

The amount of liquid depends on the type of flour I decide to use. For AP
flour, 500 grams of flour might take a cup of liquid. For high-gluten bread
flour from Costco, it might take over 1 1/2 cups. I think what matters is
that the dough is right, not how much liquid was used. For people use to
baking and expect to deal with precise measurements this can be
counterintuitive. We all are told that baking requires strict measurements.
Generally I agree, but I think that home bread baking is an exception.