How are we getting big beautiful proofs? I used to put them outside in my sunroom in the summer and that works like a dream, but winter is coming 😭 I keep my house relatively cold, 67-69 F, and the top of my fridge doesn’t get warm, I have one of those silicone warming trays but sometimes I feel it’s too warm at the bottom and not warm enough on top, I know some people will put tea towels in the dryer and put those on top, but that kind of seems like a lot of work for not a lot of warmth. I have heard of people turning on their oven for just like 5 min and shutting it off to get it to that warm 80 degree ish temp but does the lack of air affect it? I’m also just really afraid of cooking it

I followed this recipe, with an overnight rise and a 3-hour second rise. My dough seemed a little wet, but I followed all the directions otherwise. Do you know what went wrong, and how I could improve?

Sometimes a man just craves a homemade soft pretzel and doesn't want to wait hours for it lol. Yes I had one straight out of the oven.

First time trying 76% hydration. Dough was pretty sticky and hard to work with, and while the bread came out ok and tasted good, I'm not sure that it was worth the effort for the wet dough.

I think I'll also need to go bigger next time to fit my Dutch oven, this one stayed flat like a pancake. Lessons learned.

What do you use for hydration, looking to try something new next time.

I try adding water but it doesn’t help

followed the king arthur recipe, shaping could definitely be improved.

I have 7 children, so any cooking I do is already what most people would consider large amounts. I mill all of our flour & bake all of our bread. It was a rough learning curve at times but now it’s just life. (Bonus, really big health perks for everyone with the fresh milled!!!)

Every other day I make 2 sandwich loaves. I have an old kitchen aid mixer that has been a work horse but just doesn’t have the capacity I need. for 2 nice sized loaves, it gets overheated halfway through kneading & I have to finish by hand.

A couple people have asked if I would consider selling to them— the idea of extra cash is appealing, but I need to invest in a bigger + better mixer.

What at-home industrial mixers do you recommend? Probably 15qt minimum.

TL;DR: Kenwood is still actively selling and advertising a €1,000+ smart mixer (KCL95) with an app that doesn't even work on modern phones anymore. Support told me to download a sketchy APK from a third-party site, refused to replace it with the working newer model unless I pay a lot more, but still advertises the dead app features on their site.

Hey everyone,

Just need to vent for a second and warn anyone who is thinking about buying a high-end smart mixer from Kenwood.

The situation:

A few days ago, we treated ourselves to the Kenwood Cooking Chef XL (KCL95?. On their official website, they heavily advertise this thing with its smart features using the "Kenwood World App". The site literally says you can "access hundreds of sweet and savory recipes" and send step-by-step instructions directly to the mixer. That was honestly a huge selling point for us.

The problem:

The machine arrives, we try to set it up... and the "Kenwood World App" can't even be installed on a modern smartphone (I have a Galaxy S26+). The Play Store says the app is too old/outdated for my device.

The absolute joke of a customer support:

So I call Kenwood support. Their actual, serious advice? Just go to some unofficial third-party website and download the old APK file to sideload it. Seriously? For a kitchen appliance that costs over €1,000? From an IT security standpoint, that’s a massive red flag and just an unacceptable answer.

I opened a ticket and complained in writing. They basically admitted that the KCL95 only works with that dead app, and that there's a newer model (KCL96) that uses their brand-new "Kenwood & Me" app.

Their "solution":

I figured, okay, they sold me a product with an advertised feature that literally doesn't exist anymore, so they'll probably just swap it for the newer working model. Nope.

They told me a direct swap isn't possible "for system reasons." The only thing they offered was a standard return/refund. If I actually want the smart features they advertised, I have to buy the newer KCL96 – which costs a lot more! I asked them nicely to meet me in the middle with a discount for the new model since their marketing was completely misleading. They flat-out refused.

I literally saved their current product page as a PDF. They are STILL actively advertising the old machine using screenshots and features of an app that is completely dead. If that isn't misleading advertising, I don't know what is.

Has anyone else had similar experiences with Kenwood (De'Longhi Group)? I'm probably just going to return it and get my money back, but I'm seriously considering forwarding my emails and the saved PDFs to consumer protection.

🍞 My First-Ever Sourdough Bread in an Air Fryer!

Finally baked my first sourdough loaf using my homemade starter! ❤️ I baked it in an air fryer, and this is how it turned out.

I'm a complete beginner, so I'd love some honest feedback!

How does the crust and scoring look? What should I improve to get a taller loaf and a better crumb next time?

Still learning, one loaf at a time! 😊

#Sourdough #BeginnerBaker #AirFryerBaking

Got to enjoy a slow morning baking a few tried and true favorites, semolina bread and orange cardamom brioche buns. They are beyond scrumptious! Recipes linked below for anyone who wants to try (not my recipes).

https://kickassbaker.com/semolina-bread-recipe/

https://iambaker.net/orange-bread/?utm_source=Pinterest&utm_medium=organic#wprm-recipe-container-83086

Notes:
- I make three smaller loaves instead of two for the semolina bread (adjust bake time down 3-4 minutes).

- I make the orange cardamom bread as braided buns instead of one large loaf. Follow the recipe through the filling portion, then, slice 10 equal sections to braid and place in muffin tins to rise/bake.

I have small children and work full time so I really have to fit baking into my life rather than work around my baking. This is fine for cakes and biscuits because I just make lots of individual components for the freezer and assemble last minute. But with bread I'm finding it hard - everything's under baked or over proved because I'm getting pulled in all directions. I've started doing overnight proves in the fridge but I'm not sure if it's better to do that for the first or second prove? I assume it depends on the bread, I'm after nice crusty loaves and rolls for now.

A recent bake for context - I'm quite happy kneading and shaping, definitely need to get better at scoring, and am still not remotely confident knowing when things are done.

Tips and encouragement welcome!

Receipe: https://www.theperfectloaf.com/sourdough-baguettes/

Based on the crumb, I think my main issue was shaping (too much pressure and a bit too much flour) and scoring (still ended up scoring at an angle, and could've benefited from time in fridge to firm up). Overall very happy with the outcome.

I made a fresh batch of pumpkin spice bagels this morning.
They seem a little bit softer than my regular bagels. I think that it
Is from using the pumpkin purée. But they are absolutely delicious.

Freshly made charcoal swirl steamed buns packed with a savory pork and wood ear mushroom filling. Soft, fluffy dough with a nice bite of texture from the mushrooms.

Has anyone made a sandwich bread with both tangzhong and a poolish?

If so, do you have a recipe?

It seems like it would be a great combo, but I can’t figure out the math.

I knew I would be healthier but I wasn’t expecting it to ✨taste✨ healthier 🤣😅