Yeast, The Basics

Yeast has been around since, well since people started making bread. Really, it has. You can find talk of yeast in the bible, LEAVEN.

Did you know that yeast is a LIVING ORGANISM?

Did you also know that yeast is used in BREWING?

(I won’t talk too much on that, rather I will talk about the yeast we bake with!)

Yeast is a single celled FUNGUS! It is not like mold or mushrooms. It is microscopic. Wait, then how come I can see those little grains? Well, that is because companies, produce it in granular form for ease of the consumer. Also because it take more than 1 CELL to raise your bread. For those science people, yeast is an egg-shaped cell, and it takes 20 BILLION yeast cells to weigh ONE GRAM (1/28 of an ounce)!

Yeast works by converting sugar and starch into carbon dioxide (CO2) bubbles and alcohol. When you make bread you usually add some sugar or honey and flour, your sugar and starch for the yeast to interact with. This reaction is what causes the bread to rise. The CO2 and alcohol are trapped in the bread dough, having no where to escape to, they expand the dough (they RAISE the dough). The alcohol production in bread is VERY small. This alcohol is burned off as the bread is baked. When bread is baked, the yeast is also ‘killed’ and which is why after baking bread does not continue to rise.

In alcohols, yeast is used to convert the sugar into alcohol and in some bubbles (beer and champagne). Consuming RAW ACTIVE yeast is VERY dangerous. It will continue to grow in your intestines, and you will not be able to receive the nutrients you need. If you are a vegan (pseud-vegan like me, or a health nut), you might of heard of NUTRITIONAL YEAST. This is yeast that has been ‘deactivated’ through pasteurization. 

If you would like to do some experiments, here is a GREAT place for a number of experiments. 

Tomorrow, I will start talking about the different types of yeast! 

References:

--http://www.foodsubs.com/LeavenYeast.html
--http://www.redstaryeast.com/lessons-yeast-baking

An Experiment with Yeast

I am an engineer. A non-practicing engineer, but an engineer none the less. 

I am a Material Science Engineer, in school, I focused on metals. Magnesium was my FAVORITE.

Now I am an Engineering Homemaker.

I use those calculus skills in baking, fractions are hard!

I also know that those non-stick coatings, NO GOOD! Not for your health and not for your food. You should use stainless steal, tri-layer, or something clad (or stone!). I am also poor so my dream is to own an ALL-CLAD set for my kitchen, but I am also realistic and so I own those old classic copper bottom pots. Hard to find, but when you do find them at thrift stores, usually in good condition and dirt cheap.

But the point of this post is to tell you about an experiment. Last night when I was making bread for the week, I thought to myself, am I using the BEST yeast?

I have always used RED STAR ACTIVE DRY YEAST. 

But is it the best?

I use it because that is what my mother uses, which is probably what Grandma uses. 

There are many different types of yeast:

WET and DRY

With in DRY you have:

ACTIVE DRY and INSTANT DRY

Which is the best?

This week I am going to do a little segment on Yeast. Tell you about the different types, when to use them, and why to use that over another. Then to end the week with an experiment. Details on that experiment are to come, don't you worry!

Copy-Cat: Olive Garden Bread-sticks

I LOVE the Olive Garden!

SERIOUSLY!

Never ending salad and Breadsticks are my FAVORITE part about going there.

Forget the entree, give me that AMAZING salad dressing and some breadsticks and I am good!

Sadly, I live where the NEAREST Olive Garden is 75 MILES AWAY!!! (Translation 1 hour and 45 minutes!!!)

So when I Pintrest I found some CopyCat recipes, I was ready to try them right away.

The first I tried I was NOT IMPRESSED! 

As a self proclaimed baker, I knew something was wrong when I read the recipe and it told me to make the bread, knead, shape, and then let rise for 15 minutes before baking...

I am not one who follows directions, usually... but I did (mostly... I let them rise for an hour out of the oven not 15 minutes in the oven...)

They were ok. Very dense, and chewy! 

So I thought, I will try again but this time, use my bread baking knowledge and rise them twice!

This time they turned out pretty dang good!

Olive Garden Bread Sticks (Print)

 1 1/2 cups Warm Water (about 110 F)

 2 Tbsp Honey

 1 Tbsp Active Dry Yeast

Warm water, yeast, honey, and kosher salt. DO NOT but the salt in with the yeast you will kill it!!

 4-5 cups Bread Flour

 1 Tbsp Kosher Salt

 2 Tbsp Olive Oil (EVO)

 3 Tbsp Butter, Melted

 1/2-1 tsp garlic powder

In the bowl of a standing mixer put the honey and yeast. SLOWLY pour the hot water into the bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes.

Honey and yeast

Warm water added. After sitting for 10 minutes, if it looks the same you killed the yeast! So start over.

Add 2 cups of the flour, salt, and EVO. Mix with the dough hook attachment until all incorporated. Knead the dough in the mixer, adding the remaining flour a quarter cup at a time until it no longer sticks to the sides, but just the bottom. Continue kneading for 5 minutes.

Add 2 cups flour, salt, and EVO

Dough is still attached to the side add more flour and knead until incorporated. If it still look like this repeat.

Dough ready to knead for 5 minutes. It is just sticking to the bottom.

Cover and let rise for an hour.

Let rise in the mixer bowl for about an hour (cover with either plastic wrap or a loose weave kitchen towel). Dough should double in size.

Nicely doubled dough.

Punch down and let rest for 5-10 minutes. Put the pizza stone in the oven while you are waiting, and get your counter ready to shape the sticks.

Divide the dough in to even size portions (I weighted the dough and then divided into even pieces, it was about 2 grams per stick). Roll into cigar sized bread sticks. Place on parchment paper and let rise for 45 minutes, until about doubled in size. In the mean time pre-heat the oven and your stone at 350 F. (NEVER preheat your stone for longer than an hour!)

Shaped bread sticks ready to rise.

Before placing in oven brush with some melted butter.

Nicely risen bread sticks. Now brush with butter and bake.

Bake for 10-15 minutes (depending on how doughy you like them. I did 10 and they where perfect!) Mix the remaining melted butter with the garlic powder.

Don't these look good!

Immediately remove from oven brush with the garlic butter and ENJOY! These are best right out of the oven!

P.S. B said these are better than OG's but I think he is a little bias. 

Chocolate Peanut Butter No-Bake Goodness!

Oh this is GOOD!!!

No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Goodness!

Things to change:
-Needs more Peanut Butter! There is way more chocolate than there is peanut butter. Suggestion: Use 1-1 1/2 cups peanut butter.
-Use a larger pan!!! Seriously, 9x9 not big enough. It just looks like you are trying to shove something into a pan that is too small. I.E. It comes up over the edges, not good for presentation. Suggestion: Use the next size up, 12x8.

Side view: It just looks stuffed in there!

It was a crowd pleaser, which I am so glad! I have recently discovered I am severely allergic to MILK PROTEINS (something you would think it would have taken the doctors sooner than 7 years to figure that one out...).

Overall, I would like to give this 4 out of 5 Spoons!

Mini Breakfast Pies

These are perfect for those days when you have no time, only if you have already made!

This recipe is adapted from the South Beach Breakfast Quiches To Go

Ingredients:
1 10 oz package of Frozen Spinach
1/2 cup Onion, chopped (you can use any onion you like)
1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped (I like red because it gives it more color contrast, so you can use any you like)
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 large eggs
3 drops hot sauce

Directions:
Following the directions on the spinach package cook/thaw it in the microwave. Rinse with cold water to refresh, drain. Using a hand towel (or paper towels) wring out as much of the excess liquid as possible.

In medium mixing bowl combined all the ingredients, make sure to break up the spinach clumps.

Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray, and divide the mixture in to the 12 muffin cups. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until center when poked comes out clean.

This can be frozen, just pop them in the microwave for about 1.30.

(sorry the picture is upside down... not sure why it uploads that way...)