Baking Bread

dough

A flour mixture stiff enough to knead or roll

brioche

A highly enriched French bread, whose high egg and butter content give it a rich and tender crumb.

yeast

A living, simple plant organism in the fungus family. It exists naturally in air and soil and requires air, moisture and sugar or starch to grow and reproduce.

baguette

A long, narrow loaf of French bread

loaf

A shaped mass of baked bread.

baker's yeast

A special strain of yeast, a leavening agent—it will convert sugars and starches into alcohol and carbon dioxide, thus making a baked product light.

bread

A staple food prepared from a dough of flour and water, usually by baking.

proof

Allowing bread dough to rise or yeast to activate. The final rise of bread dough after shaping the loaves and before baking.

bread

Baked foods produced from dough made of fl our, water, salt and other optional ingredients, and leavened by yeast or other leavening agents.

sift

To move flour or sugar through a sieve (sifter) to incorporate air and insure accurate measurement.

knead

To work dough into a uniform mixture.

grease

Rub oil, shortening, butter or fat over surface of cooking utensil or on a food.

crust

The dense surface layer of a loaf of bread.

crumb

The interior of baked goods—not the crust

fermentation

The leavening process in which yeast and bacteria in the dough convert carbohydrates to carbon dioxide gas and alcohol, creating the airy texture of bread and developing flavor in the bread.

bake

To cook by dry heat in an oven.

glaze

To cover with a thin and shiny surface; apply a glaze to; such as, egg wash or milk.

gluten

a protein found in wheat, rye, oats, and barley; elastic protein of wheat flour that gives cohesiveness to dough