Questions about baking with instant yeast---I'm a n00b

You want lukewarm water.

But just a tip. Your first baking experience being something as moderately difficult as a king cake is probably not the best way to launch your baking career.

Recipe is fine. This isn't the hardest thing in the world, baking wise. Note that Folse's recipe calls for instant yeast--this is a concentrated form of yeast that doesn't require "proofing" (aka soaking in water before adding to other ingredients). Instant yeast is sold in the little 3-pack sachets by Fleischman's as "rapid rise" or in jars labeled as "bread machine yeast". The granules are formulated to dissolve as the dough is mixed. Nobody proofs yeast before adding to a bread machine--they just use instant yeast and keep on truckin'.

Back to the recipe: instructions seem clear, though I'd advise to resist adding additional flour as it mixes. Wetter is better when it comes to dough. It is easy to mix the dough too dry; you want it to be at least tacky, if not a tad sticky. A too-dry dough is the usual culprit when the finished product is heavy or poorly textured.

Also, don't bother with warm water--mixing for 8-10 minutes will generate a decent amount of friction heating. Unless your tap water is absolutely freezing cold, just use it straight from the tap. The thermal death point of yeast is 140 degrees, so definitely don't use steaming hot water either.

Happy baking...yeast rocks and too many peeps are afraid of it. If the Egyptians could bake great bread without any tech, so can we.

quote:

---

Also, don't bother with warm water--mixing for 8-10 minutes will generate a decent amount of friction heating. Unless your tap water is absolutely freezing cold, just use it straight from the tap.

---

Why does no one tell you this????????

I swear I'm a yeast idiot. Do those packets expire?

quote:

---

Why does no one tell you this????????

I swear I'm a yeast idiot. Do those packets expire?

---

RE:friction heating, it's not such a big deal in a home sized mixer, but it is a big deal in a production sized batch using a commercial giant mixer. Most manufacturers provide data to help calculate the amount of friction heat generated (# of revolutions per minute at various speeds). Pro bakers take the temp of the flour and will adjust the water temp accordingly so the finished dough isn't too warm or cold, which will affect how quickly or slowly it rises. If you're trying to schedule your baking, you need to have predictability. (Note: corner-cutting commercial bakeries use dough additives to regulate the dough's activity.)

RE: yeast expiring. Yes. Yeast is alive. It does not live forever. Each little strip of packets is stamped with a date. If you keep it in the freezer, it will last well beyond the date printed. But if you've had it for a long time, toss and buy new yeast. An entire pound of yeast is less than $4 at Resto Depot; keeps in an airtight container in the freezer for a year or so.