Attention bread bakers, wwyd?

[nerdymom]

Hello all my fellow bread bakers. I have a problem. And I know someone here has some brilliant advice to share.

I started baking the family's bread when DH and I lived with my parents. My mom has an awesome kitchen and all the pans, gadgets and etc to make a baker smile. Only she doesn't really use them anymore. But that's for another thread. It was great, she had about 8 glass loaf pans (9" pyrex) and I cold make a lot of bread at once. Now we are out on our own again, and I've been baking with my equipment again. I can cope with only 1 cooling rack, 1 muffin pan, 1 cookie sheet. I am having issues with only 2 bread pans (scant 8" aluminum) though.

My favorite recipe makes 2 large or 4 small loaves. I have tried forming them into rolls and baking them, which are nice but we never seem to eat them, and they end up in the freezer, and I turn them into bread crumbs. That's a lot of bread crumbs!! Has anyone tried refrigerating loaves, or freezing dough? I don't really have any $ to go buy more pans, and my mom won't part with her good ones either. : Today I am trying free-form loaves, but I don't know how well that is going to work. They are on the second rising now. We'll see how they bake up.

[cristeen]

Freeform loaves work great if you have a stiff dough that can hold it's shape. I used to do this with sourdough bread all the time, to make baguettes or "french" loaves.

Alternately, refrigerating the dough for up to about 2 days or freezing it beyond that would also work just fine.

[nerdymom]

at what point in the rising would I freeze or refrigerate the dough?

[cristeen]

Before final rise.

Then when you pull it out, you form it, let it come to room temp and have final rise, then bake. (or thaw it, form it, final rise)

[JTA Mom]

I let my bread rise the first time, then punch down & shape (I flatten them then roll them into loaves). Then I wrap it really well in saran wrap & aluminum foil & freeze.

To back, I unwrap it frozen, pop it in the bread pan, let it thaw + rise (does it at the same time) and then bake. Just as good as fresh!

Ami

[nerdymom]

Thank you both. I will have to try that next time. My free-form loaves turned out alright, but won't make the best sandwiches.