Baking with King Arthur

I'm going to spend some time exploring my King Arthur Flour cookbooks. I have two:





There are loads of both sweet and savory baked goods to choose from.

I have asked Mr. Suburban to join me and we welcome everyone here from novice to pro to bake with us. You do not need a K.A. cookbook to participate. There are recipes at kingarthurbaking.com as well as many YouTube videos. If posting photos is an issue for you please feel free to just paint a picture with words or send me a PM and I can assist.

Starting simple and kicking things off with Whole Corn and Green Chile Muffins from the Whole Grain Baking book. I made these last Wednesday to serve as a side to an entree salad.

Ingredients:
Whole Yellow Cornmeal
Whole Wheat Flour
All-Purpose Flour
Sugar
Baking Powder
Salt
Chili Powder or Cayenne Pepper (I used Smoked Cayenne)
Egg
Milk
Corn Oil
Frozen Corn Kernels
Canned Diced Green Chiles
Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Instead of the called for frozen corn kernels, I used 2 cobs, microwaved and sliced off the cob.




Reserve 2 tablespoons of chiles for topping.


Also top with additional cheese. I don't usually use paper liners but opted to here due to the cheese.







I'm pleased with these. Nice rise, color, and texture. They are definitely "healthier" tasting than a traditional white flour/higher sugar content corn muffin. There were just 2 tablespoons of sugar for the batch of 12. The flavor of the fresh corn was the star.

Great idea - I'll definitely be participating! I hope to make one of the blueberry muffin recipes from the website soon.

- zorkmead

Like this idea! I recently found out the company is employee-owned, which inclines me even more toward them, and so I ordered a bunch of breadmaking supplies for a summer project of improving my bread game. Today we're having this for lunch; will report back! And I'll order the cookbook.
https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipe ... ich-recipe

(The video for how to make the bread is helpful.)

Yay - Zorkmead & AnnaK. The more the merrier! Looking forward to baking “with” you!

I don't have a ton of experience with baking whole wheat bread. I've had more failures with it than successes but I also haven't put much effort/time into it. I was intrigued by the recipe for Hummus Bread in the Whole Grain Baking book.

I made their recipe for hummus on Saturday and did the bread today. I wasn't thrilled with how the dough felt. It never got to the point where it felt soft, despite ample kneading. Maybe I should have kept going, probably. It did rise properly though.


Shaped after 1st rising.


Pulled out of oven at internal temp of 190 degrees. It's a pretty ugly shape and that's on me.


A bit dense, but sliced well.


Audrey and I shared a snack of buttered toast. The flavor is great. The sesame from the tahini and seeds really shines through. Even though I consider it a bit of a fail, there's something about homemade bread that's so comforting, "perfect" or not.

LynnB wrote:I don't have a ton of experience with baking whole wheat bread. I've had more failures with it than successes but I also haven't put much effort/time into it. I was intrigued by the recipe for Hummus Bread in the Whole Grain Baking book . . .

Well, at least the muffins were more of a success for you. Though, as you posted, it's hard to bake a loaf of bread at home that doesn't scratch some primordial itch. So, I'm guessing it was still worth the time and ingredients you spent on it. I'm also guessing that ultimately, the recipe works or it wouldn't be in the book . . . or is that too much too assume?

I remember there being a KA whole wheat bread recipe from well over 30 years ago. I saw it in the catalog and I baked it successfully many times over the years. I may have transcribed it or tore the page out and put it in my folder. If I can dig it up, I may share it here and give it a whirl. I can't remember what it was called but I can still remember the face of the KA staffer whose recipe it was, as her picture appeared right next to it.

One of the best things I've ever baked is KA's Cinnamon Crisp Coffee Cake, which was their Recipe of the Year a while back. Given the level of success I had with that one over many attempts, I'm really looking forward to getting into this with y'all.

=R=

Hi,

I tried to find the hummus bread online, but it is not out there. I wanted to check the composition of the bread and why you pulled at 190 degrees. I am sure it is stated in the instructions, though 190 may be early.

When I make banana or other quick breads, I do aim for 190 degrees.

When I make sandwich bread, I aim for 205-209. If you go any higher, then you may end up with a dry product.

I checked the Thermoworks recommended temperatures:
Bread: Rich Dough 190-200°F (88-93°C)
Bread: Lean Dough 200-210°F (93-99°C)

One of the more useful tidbits picked up was the temperature custard sets: 175 degrees. It is not on this chart, but I found it when I baked a stuffed pumpkin for dinner sometime ago. When I did not know this important number, I once had a stuffed pumpkin who spilled its guts.

Thanks for taking us along on your journey.

Regards,
Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:I checked the Thermoworks recommended temperatures:
Bread: Rich Dough 190-200°F (88-93°C)
Bread: Lean Dough 200-210°F (93-99°C)

I did not know the temperature recommendation was different for rich vs lean doughs - that's interesting! I've just been using 190.

Also - I never would have imagined putting hummus in bread - it sounds delicious!

I baked blueberry muffins for Sunday morning breakfast. I've made these before and they are our current favorite blueberry muffins. A few changes - I was a little short of blueberries for this batch (someone in my house snacked on some before I got to them), and I topped them with 'Sugar in the Raw' instead of the sugar topping described in the recipe.

This recipe was easy to put together by hand which was great because it allowed me to visit with people hanging out in my kitchen without shouting over a mixer

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipe ... ins-recipe




No pictures of the inside - but these muffins tend a little bit more toward a cakey texture then some.

And for those muffins, 190 is a perfect target temperature.

Cathy2

I have had great success with KA Pizza Flour.
KA recommends at least a 12 hour rise or more, so I either make the dough the day before or in the morning of the bake.
Dough is very stretchy but I don’t twirl.
I can get a very nice relatively thin cracker crisp crust.
Not as thin a Well’s Pizza crust but my wife says she prefers my crust!
Nice wife!!!!
Tips, I use a large baking sheet liberally awash in Olive Oil so the crust literally fries in the oil. Crust absorbs the oil and is not oily when done.
Olive oil in the dough, and all the ingredients ready to go as soon as the dough is rolled out. Assemble the pizza as fast as possible and into the oven to avoid liquid being adsorbed into the crust.
Fry your mushrooms before hand to get rid of the excess water.
Gas convection oven at 500F and if needed, a few minutes under the top gas broiler at 2000F for the top to be just slightly burnt in places.
WE generally don’t use sausage but I tend to fry beforehand if using.
I worked a summer just out of High School as a pizza maker at Frank & Pats Pizza in Menasha Wisconsin. Also learned how to make Italian Beef from very lean beef cuts.
-Richard

Nothing to do with this thread.

I have seen this 190 used many times here. When I google it, I also see 190.

I make the same bread, almost every week. It is a high hydration bread ( about 68% hydration ). 190 is not close to cooked for my bread. 200-204 is cooked.

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,

I tried to find the hummus bread online, but it is not out there. I wanted to check the composition of the bread and why you pulled at 190 degrees. I am sure it is stated in the instructions, though 190 may be early.

When I make banana or other quick breads, I do aim for 190 degrees.

When I make sandwich bread, I aim for 205-209. If you go any higher, then you may end up with a dry product.

I checked the Thermoworks recommended temperatures:
Bread: Rich Dough 190-200°F (88-93°C)
Bread: Lean Dough 200-210°F (93-99°C)

One of the more useful tidbits picked up was the temperature custard sets: 175 degrees. It is not on this chart, but I found it when I baked a stuffed pumpkin for dinner sometime ago. When I did not know this important number, I once had a stuffed pumpkin who spilled its guts.

Thanks for taking us along on your journey.

Regards,
Cathy2

Yep, the recipe specifically said to pull it out at 190. I liked the flavor enough to try this one again. Next time I will both knead and bake longer. Thanks for your insights!

zorkmead wrote:

Cathy2 wrote:I checked the Thermoworks recommended temperatures:
Bread: Rich Dough 190-200°F (88-93°C)
Bread: Lean Dough 200-210°F (93-99°C)

I did not know the temperature recommendation was different for rich vs lean doughs - that's interesting! I've just been using 190.

Also - I never would have imagined putting hummus in bread - it sounds delicious!

I baked blueberry muffins for Sunday morning breakfast. I've made these before and they are our current favorite blueberry muffins. A few changes - I was a little short of blueberries for this batch (someone in my house snacked on some before I got to them), and I topped them with 'Sugar in the Raw' instead of the sugar topping described in the recipe.

This recipe was easy to put together by hand which was great because it allowed me to visit with people hanging out in my kitchen without shouting over a mixer

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipe ... ins-recipe




No pictures of the inside - but these muffins tend a little bit more toward a cakey texture then some.

Those look great! Audrey has been asking for some sweet muffins so that is likely next on my list when we return from an upcoming vacation.

Finally got around to making Audrey's requested breakfast/snack muffins today.

I decided to try a variation of their basic "All-Star Muffins." Went with the kid-friendly Cherry Chocolate Chip. Other options include:
Apple Cinnamon
Apricot, Cherry, Cranberry, Date, Raisin
Apple, Banana, Nectarine, Peach, Plum
Blueberry, Raspberry, Blackberry
Carrot, Ginger, Raisin
Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip
Toffee Chocolate Chip
Apricot Almond
Banana Coconut
Date Nut
Maple Walnut
Waldorf

I found this to be a solid basic muffin recipe. Nicely moist, sweet but not too sweet. If I had been using ripe stone fruit or particularly sweet berries I would likely reduce the sugar a tad but that's just personal preference.


Cherry Chocolate Chip All-Star Muffins
These are made with dried cherries, not fresh.


Someone (Audrey) couldn't wait to try one before it cooled, hence the melty chocolate.

Planning to try another yeasted bread next but haven't decided on a specific recipe yet.

Those muffins look great, Lynn. Joining you here shortly!

=R=

LynnB wrote:. . .Went with the kid-friendly Cherry Chocolate Chip . . .

Hey -- grown-ups love chocolate chips, too!

These are the Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies on page 248 of the KA Baker's Companion, with a slight modification. Because I had no corn syrup on hand, I used a mix of dark brown and granulated sugars . . .


KA Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies, Page 248
They still came out pretty darned chewy, and delicious. I used Guittard 46% chips for these.

=R=

I tried this focaccia recipe as the base for Caprese sandwiches:

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipe ... cia-recipe

Changes - I didn't deflate the dough after the first rise. I also stretched the dough into a 9 x 13 inch pan instead of into a 14 inch round like the recipe described. I oiled the pan with 1 Tbs oil and topped the dough with 1 Tbs oil and some black pepper, flaky salt and mushroom powder before baking.

Thoughts - It was OK - I didn't like it better then the focaccia bread I've made before (which I don't love either to be honest). The texture was good, but the flavor seemed lacking to me.

Out of the oven:


My sandwich:


For breakfast the next day:


I'm thinking I'll try some sort of Zucchini baked good from the website over the weekend - we shall see!

Ronnie - Chewy Chocolate Chip cookies are king in this household. Those look good!

Zorkmead - I would enjoy that sandwich. I do like a bit more rise on my focaccia though and am partial to rosemary/sea salt as toppings. Interestingly, there is a focaccia recipe in the All-Purpose Baking Cookbook that is completely different from the one you used online. It contains potato flour and nonfat dried milk. I may give that a try sometime...

Today I took a stab at Swedish Limpa (All-Purpose Baking Cookbook).

Ingredients:
Bread Flour
Whole Wheat Flour
Pumpernickel
Dark Corn Syrup
Yeast
Caraway Seed
Fennel Seed
Aniseed
Orange Oil or Zest - I used zest.
Salt
Nonfat Dry Milk
Water
Butter or Vegetable Oil - I used oil.

Makes 1 round loaf.


After mixing and kneading. This is a very wet dough.


After rising 1 hour. Recipe notes that the dough will be puffy, but won't double in bulk.


Shaped into a slightly flattened ball and placed on a parchment-lined sheet pan.


After rising for 90 minutes.

The recipe instructed removal from oven at 190 degrees. With the advice I received in this thread I waited until 200 and was glad I did.



It is a very aromatic and tasty loaf. I plan to use it for both toast and sandwiches.

LynnB wrote:Zorkmead - I would enjoy that sandwich. I do like a bit more rise on my focaccia though and am partial to rosemary/sea salt as toppings. Interestingly, there is a focaccia recipe in the All-Purpose Baking Cookbook that is completely different from the one you used online. It contains potato flour and nonfat dried milk. I may give that a try sometime...

It sounds like we have similar taste in Focaccia - I also like a little more rise. I bet the recipe you mention above would also have more flavor because of the potato flour.

Until I read your post above I thought Pumpernickel was a style of bread made with Rye flour - I did not know that KA sold Pumpernickel flour to use as an ingredient - very interesting. . .

As mentioned - I baked with some zucchini over the weekend. I started with the recipe on the website for whole wheat zucchini chocolate chip bread:

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipe ... ead-recipe

Changes: I didn't have the Golden Whole Wheat flour mentioned in the recipe, but what I do have is a LOT of whole wheat flour that I'm trying to use, so I substituted 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all purpose white flour for the Golden Whole Wheat. I also baked muffins (for about 24 minutes) instead of a single loaf and topped the muffins with coarse sugar. I opted to use molasses instead of honey and left out the nuts.

Out of the oven:


The inside:


They are moist and tasty - I baked them on Saturday and there are only two left. I'm calling these a HUGE success. There is one very 'discerning' member of my household who ate at least FIVE of these in 24 hours. This never happens ever - even with other sweets, so that feels like a big WIN!

- zorkmead

zorkmead wrote:As mentioned - I baked with some zucchini over the weekend. I started with the recipe on the website for whole wheat zucchini chocolate chip bread:

https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipe ... ead-recipe

Changes: I didn't have the Golden Whole Wheat flour mentioned in the recipe, but what I do have is a LOT of whole wheat flour that I'm trying to use, so I substituted 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 all purpose white flour for the Golden Whole Wheat. I also baked muffins (for about 24 minutes) instead of a single loaf and topped the muffins with coarse sugar. I opted to use molasses instead of honey and left out the nuts.

They are moist and tasty - I baked them on Saturday and there are only two left. I'm calling these a HUGE success. There is one very 'discerning' member of my household who ate at least FIVE of these in 24 hours. This never happens ever - even with other sweets, so that feels like a big WIN!

Well, they look great and that is indeed a huge win. Nice!

=R=

zorkmead wrote:Until I read your post above I thought Pumpernickel was a style of bread made with Rye flour - I did not know that KA sold Pumpernickel flour to use as an ingredient - very interesting...

I buy pumpernickel flour in bulk at the Mennonite store. It's very coarsely ground dark rye. Actually turning it into typical pumpernickel bread requires an ingredient to give the blackish color.

tjr wrote:

zorkmead wrote:Until I read your post above I thought Pumpernickel was a style of bread made with Rye flour - I did not know that KA sold Pumpernickel flour to use as an ingredient - very interesting...

I buy pumpernickel flour in bulk at the Mennonite store. It's very coarsely ground dark rye. Actually turning it into typical pumpernickel bread requires an ingredient to give the blackish color.

Hi,
I’ve used granulated instant coffee.

Went back to a tried and true. Technically, it *is* a KA recipe (from their youtube channel) but I've been making it since before this thread started. It was KA's Recipe of the Year for 2023 . . .


Cinnamon-Crisp Coffee Cake - our 2023 Recipe of the Year!

No matter, we were in the mood for it and I had some locally grown blueberries that I converted into some preserves, so off we went . . .


Cinnamon Crisp Coffee Cake
Minus the cocoa powder called for in the original recipe. Add toasted/ground pecans and blueberry preserves. Wasn't sure about that divot in the middle but I suspected it might mean that the cake was slightly underbaked. However, no time to immediately check. We had to leave while the cake was still warm. A few hours later, we came back and the cake was ready for slicing and sampling . . .


Interior - Coffee Cake -- Evening
Happily the cake was baked through. It appears that the divot was caused by a slightly heavy blob of blueberry preserves in the filling that sunk during baking. Either way, it tasted great. This is a foolproof recipe (even for a n00b like me).

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote: It appears that the divot was caused by a slightly heavy blob of blueberry preserves in the filling that sunk during baking.

Yay for blobs of blueberry preserves!!

I baked the ANZAC biscuits from the website:
https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/recipe ... its-recipe

I followed the recipe ingredients exactly EXCEPT for using instant oats (purchased by accident by someone who will remain nameless) instead of old fashioned. I believe that old fashioned oats would give the cookies a great texture - but I'm not complaining about these at all.

Mixing:

Baked:

The close up:


I used my tsp measuring spoon to drop the dough on the cookie sheets and got about 4 dozen 2.5 inch cookies (pretty close to what the recipe says - a sign of good recipe writing for sure).

The first two trays I pulled out at about 13 minutes thinking they looked done enough - I really wanted a crispy cookie though so I left the last two trays in for 15 minutes. The second batch taste caramelly and crunch very nicely. The first batch has just a bit of chew at their center.

These are super fast and simple. I think I will try something a bit more complex in a week or so when (hopefully) my schedule settles down a bit.

- zorkmead

Evil Ronnie wrote:

tjr wrote:

zorkmead wrote:Until I read your post above I thought Pumpernickel was a style of bread made with Rye flour - I did not know that KA sold Pumpernickel flour to use as an ingredient - very interesting...

I buy pumpernickel flour in bulk at the Mennonite store. It's very coarsely ground dark rye. Actually turning it into typical pumpernickel bread requires an ingredient to give the blackish color.

Hi,
I’ve used granulated instant coffee.

This is very cool - I have a goal to use up some of the specialty flours I have hanging around, but when I do - I think I may have to check out some pumpernickel flour and bake a loaf!

- zorkmead

I did a quick bake this morning - Herbed Cream Cheese Biscuits from the All-Purpose Baking Cookbook.

Ingredients:
all-purpose flour
baking powder
salt
black pepper
chopped fresh chives
dried thyme
grated sharp cheddar cheese
butter
cream cheese
milk

The recipe called for cutting the biscuits with a 2" round cutter. I wanted to use these for breakfast sandwiches so I went larger.


Finished:


These were so easy and had great flavor and flakiness. Worked wonderfully for egg and egg/Canadian bacon sandwiches. Sorry, too busy eating for pics of those...

LynnB wrote:I did a quick bake this morning - Herbed Cream Cheese Biscuits from the All-Purpose Baking Cookbook.

Ingredients:
all-purpose flour
baking powder
salt
black pepper
chopped fresh chives
dried thyme
grated sharp cheddar cheese
butter
cream cheese
milk

The recipe called for cutting the biscuits with a 2" round cutter. I wanted to use these for breakfast sandwiches so I went larger.


Finished:


These were so easy and had great flavor and flakiness. Worked wonderfully for egg and egg/Canadian bacon sandwiches. Sorry, too busy eating for pics of those...

Hi Lynn,
I taught myself to make biscuit back in the late ‘90’s in order to try and impress a lady friend. After 25 years, I’m doing ok.
White Lily flour is essential for me.
I laminate the dough, giving it four turns.
I like to bake them touching for tenderness on the sides.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/sn9gd8xA7nR4HHtX/?

Your biscuits look wonderful! Happy baking

Evil Ronnie wrote:

LynnB wrote:I did a quick bake this morning - Herbed Cream Cheese Biscuits from the All-Purpose Baking Cookbook.

Ingredients:
all-purpose flour
baking powder
salt
black pepper
chopped fresh chives
dried thyme
grated sharp cheddar cheese
butter
cream cheese
milk

The recipe called for cutting the biscuits with a 2" round cutter. I wanted to use these for breakfast sandwiches so I went larger.


Finished:


These were so easy and had great flavor and flakiness. Worked wonderfully for egg and egg/Canadian bacon sandwiches. Sorry, too busy eating for pics of those...

Hi Lynn,
I taught myself to make biscuit back in the late ‘90’s in order to try and impress a lady friend. After 25 years, I’m doing ok.
White Lily flour is essential for me.
I laminate the dough, giving it four turns.
I like to bake them touching for tenderness on the sides.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/sn9gd8xA7nR4HHtX/?

Your biscuits look wonderful! Happy baking

Thanks! Yours look amazing. What about the White Lily flour makes it essential for you?

LynnB wrote:

Evil Ronnie wrote:

LynnB wrote:I did a quick bake this morning - Herbed Cream Cheese Biscuits from the All-Purpose Baking Cookbook.

Ingredients:
all-purpose flour
baking powder
salt
black pepper
chopped fresh chives
dried thyme
grated sharp cheddar cheese
butter
cream cheese
milk

The recipe called for cutting the biscuits with a 2" round cutter. I wanted to use these for breakfast sandwiches so I went larger.


Finished:


These were so easy and had great flavor and flakiness. Worked wonderfully for egg and egg/Canadian bacon sandwiches. Sorry, too busy eating for pics of those...

Hi Lynn,
I taught myself to make biscuit back in the late ‘90’s in order to try and impress a lady friend. After 25 years, I’m doing ok.
White Lily flour is essential for me.
I laminate the dough, giving it four turns.
I like to bake them touching for tenderness on the sides.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/sn9gd8xA7nR4HHtX/?

Your biscuits look wonderful! Happy baking

Thanks! Yours look amazing. What about the White Lily flour makes it essential for you?

You’ll have lighter, more crumbly biscuit with White Lily… closer to pastry flour in gluten content. Woodman’s in Buffalo Grove carries it. I have 25 lbs in my pantry, the plain, not self rising.

I’m nuts, so I use three cheeses:
Sharp yellow cheddar
Extra sharp white cheddar
Pecorino Romano for a touch of sharpness.
And a touch of cider vinegar to help the rise.

https://www.facebook.com/share/PWYtVXbEfFy8Xznt/?

Evil, what recipe do you use? The White Lily website https://www.whitelily.com/recipes/ has many approaches to biscuits, some with self rising flour, some with regular flour + leavening. And of course there are many more.

When we lived in the South, there were many similar low-protein flours (Hudson Cream, Sunflour, Southern Biscuit) but White Lily was generally regarded as the best. My favorite for biscuits was the hard-to-find Self Rising Unbleached. King Arthur makes a similar product with 8.5% protein, haven't tried it, haven't seen it in a store for that matter.

And going back to the pumpernickel thing, I've tried dark cocoa and molasses for color too. And commercial bakers use caramel color, available at some spice stores. Interesting that all these "dark" ingredients, coffee, cocoa, blackstrap molasses have some similarities in flavor.