This is a rewrite of an earlier post that Got No Response. You’ve all helped me so much in the past, that I could put together an idiot’s guide to the Kitchen, especially DragonBones and Icon who sent me a bread slicing guide after almost one year of searching. To all of you, thank you.
Now I really can’t believe that I can’t find a set of dry measuring cups. I’ve always had trouble getting my bread to rise and I couldn’t figure out why. I just came across a chapter on measuring in “Bread Machine for Dummies” that practically scolded me for the way I was measuring flour. Pour it in and shaking it level.
Instead it told me to use a spoon to scoop loose flour (not packed) into a dry measuring cup until it overflows, then level off the top with a knife. No packing, no shaking. The bread rose to perfection three times so far. The structure was great, it stayed together while slicing and there were not holes or air pockets.
I’ve changed my yeast, I’ve changed the bread machine, and the loaf still came out stubby. I changed my measuring technique and it made such a difference.
I almost can’t believe it. I used the one cup measuring cup that came with my machine. I need the nested set to deal with my fractions of a cup. This is a link to a set on Amazon, but I should be able to find this here. http://www.amazon.com/Preserve-Dry-Measuring-Cups-Green/dp/B001R4BOE4/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1328587991&sr=8-7
Now for you Europeans… I know you use weights instead of volume when it comes to flour. According to Bread Machine for Dummies, the weight of flour can change with the weather and humidity enough to effect the recipe.