Love to try new flavours but not sure where to start when adding them to your loaf?
Adding new flavours to a basic dough that you’ve already mastered is the simplest way to create new breads without having to learn lots of new recipes.
In today’s video, I show you at least five different ways to add more flavours to your bread. From sweet cinnamon rolls, to roasted nuts and seeds, cheese, herbs, spices and more – here’s how to move on from baking a basic loaf to creating a range of flavoured breads.
Watch the video below or read on to find out more.
Flatten out your dough into a rectangle approximately 30cm by 40cm and 1 – 2cm thick. Sprinkle the dough with cinnamon, brown sugar and butter. Roll the dough back up and slice the roll into buns. Lay the buns out to prove before baking.
Alternatively, grate the cheese directly into the flour before mixing and kneading your final dough. You could also add spices such as paprika, or some mustard powder.
Use spices and herbs to complement other flavours
A whole range of herbs and spices can be added with the flour and kneaded into your dough. These will often complement other flavours, so have fun experimenting.
If you love a seeded loaf, you’re not alone – it was my most popular bread when I baked and sold bread locally. Choose a mix of your favourite seeds and soak them, ideally overnight but for at least an hour before adding them to your dough. Soaking will simply make your seeds softer in the final loaf. You could try this seeded loaf recipe.
Nuts also make a great addition. Try roasting them before chopping them up and adding them once you’ve completed the first rise of your dough.
Using fresh ingredients to flavour your dough
Fresh vegetables such as peppers and cherry tomatoes work really well in bread dough. But don’t add them in raw – they’ll add too much moisture to your dough.
Instead, roast them in the oven to both increase their flavour and dry them out. Then mash them or blitz them in a food processor to create a paste that you can add to your dough. Try this recipe as a start.
So will you be using any of these flavour suggestions in your next loaf? Or making up your own combination? Let me know in the comments what you’re planning to bake.
Want to learn more about baking your own great bread at home?
Tired of turning out loaves that resemble bricks and instead want to know the secrets to light, fluffy bread? Want to see the steps I take to bake great bread in my home kitchen?
If you’re new to bread baking or just want to sharpen your skills, you can learn to bake great bread on my new online bread making course, launching soon.
If you're looking to ramp up the taste of your favorite bread recipe, we recommend adding a bit of fat. A fat like butter, olive oil or coconut oil in small quantities will help your bread achieve a higher rise and it will also boost its flavor by tenfold.
Add ins can include diced or pureed fruits or vegetables, nuts, chocolate, and spices. Molasses, honey, and other sweeteners can be substituted for the sugar. Cornmeal, whole wheat, or gluten-free flours can be exchanged for the white flour.
Sugar acts as a tenderizer by absorbing water and inhibiting flour gluten development and by incorporating air into shortening during the creaming process. It caramelizes under heat, providing quick breads with a pleasing color and aroma.
Some of the most common bread mix-ins are dried fruits like cranberries, apricots, raisins, and currants. Since these mix-ins are dried, they naturally absorb water.
Flavor enhancers can be natural, such as herbs and spices, or artificial, such as synthetic flavorings. Another type of food additive that is used to improve the taste of food is sweeteners. These are substances that are added to food to provide a sweet taste, without adding calories or increasing blood sugar levels.
What it does. Bread Booster improves dough as kneading is easier, dough proofs and rises higher with bread rising higher as it bakes resulting in a moist, fluffy texture. Your bread will stay fresh longer (anti-stale).
Ingredients like monosodium glutamate (MSG), soy sauce, and yeast extracts amplify umami sensations. Sweet Enhancers: Substances like sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, and artificial sweeteners heighten the perception of sweetness, making foods more palatable.
Sweeteners such as malt and honey are used to add flavor to bread dough. Malt, which is available in powder and liquid form, can be added to almost any bread.
Once reactivated, yeast begins feeding on the sugars in flour, and releases the carbon dioxide that makes bread rise (although at a much slower rate than baking powder or soda). Yeast also adds many of the distinctive flavors and aromas we associate with bread.
Fresh vegetables such as peppers and cherry tomatoes work really well in bread dough. But don't add them in raw – they'll add too much moisture to your dough. Instead, roast them in the oven to both increase their flavour and dry them out.
Our resident bread expert Barney Desmazery's top tip is to add extras after proving. 'Any nuts, seeds, small or chopped dried fruits, olives, fresh thyme or rosemary can be added without changing the dough. For the best distribution, scatter the ingredients into the dough at the 'knocking back' stage.
Almost all quick breads have the same basic ingredients: flour, leavening, eggs, fat (butter, margarine, shortening, or oil), and liquid such as milk. Ingredients beyond these basic constituents are added for variations in flavor and texture.
It's tough to say what is causing the bread to be bland. Letting it sit overnight, usually helps in that department, but also an addition of salt. As you add salt though, you will probably want to add yeast as well, not much mind you, but a little extra of each could be beneficial.
Spices and other ingredients such as pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, fennel and cardamom, give bread added flavour and character. Wheat flour is available in many varieties and is the flour most used in Sweden. It has a high protein and gluten content, providing fluffier bread.
Introduction: My name is Margart Wisoky, I am a gorgeous, shiny, successful, beautiful, adventurous, excited, pleasant person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
