Homemade bread - without a breadmachine!

[cupcakes]

I have recently started baking my own bread using a dough hook on my food mixer. Have had some success but most of the time it tends to turn out a bit heavy. Does anyone have any good tips?
I tend to make 2 loaves at a time (one to freeze) from 1kg flour and one sachet of yeast. I mix it together (plus salt, 2tbs oil and 600ml warm water) then leave in airing cupboard for one hour then mix again with hook for 5 mins then another hour in tins in hot place. Cook for 10 mins on 220 degrees then 30 on 200.
Any variations on this greatly appreciated!

bit of sugar to get yeast activated? bread machine takes an extra hour and a half to do a recipe without sugar, no idea what it does but maybe it's an extra knead? machine recipe is roughly 1tbspn sugar to 500g flour.

what kind of bread is it? wholemeal bread does tend to turn out quite heavy... so try doing 2/3 wholemeal 1/3 white to make it a little lighter

Ah. I read that you add the sugar to get a crusty top (I did this once and it was quite good). Didn't realise it made such a difference to the overall cooking.
Do you find some brands of flour better than others?
Do you think I'm using enough yeast?

I have been using wholemeal (am trying to be healthy hence trying to avoid the sugar option!). The best one I've used so far had grains in and this was lovely (but too expensive to justify using all the time).

yes, plenty of yeast... just follow the directions on the pack!

how long do you knead it for the first time?

Not as long, just till it's all incorporated really. One or two minutes maybe.

The recipes I've seen seem to vary on the amount of yeast. Would you use one sachet per loaf? (they're fairly small loaves).

ok, well just had a ook at the recipe i use which says knead for 10 mins by hand OR 5 mins in mixer... so maybe try kneading for a bit longer to start with.

the packet of yeast you have hsould tell you how much to use

i tend to use the pots of yeast... but if i do sachets i do one sachet per 1.5lb of bread... that makes one loaf

Ok. Next time will double the yeast!!

This is my Mum's recipe for bread - she made it for years...
4lb flour (can be half wholemeal)
4tsp salt
2 desert sp yeast
3 cups warm water
1 cup milk
dissolve and stand the yeast and water for 10 mins
Mix and knead for 10 mins
put in warm spot (Mum always used one of our electric blankets). When double, punch down and allow to double again. Put in tins / trays for breadrolls and in a warm spot. Allow to rise and cook.

This is the recipe I use to make bread

700g Waitrose Very Strong Canadian White Flour for Bread and Pasta Making
7g sachet from a 56g pack McDougalls Fast Action Dried Yeast
1½ tsp sea salt

Instructions
Lightly grease a 900g loaf tin with a little soft butter. Place the flour, yeast and salt in the mixer bowl and combine thoroughly. Make a well in the middle and pour in 425ml lukewarm water. Gradually work the flour into the liquid then knead with the dough hook for 5-10 minutes
Then I leave it in the bowl to rise for an hour before knocking it back with the dough hook for a couple of minutes. Then put it in the bread tin & leave to rise for as long as it takes for the oven to heat up. It will rise the rest of the way whilst cooking. Heat the oven to 220°C, gas mark 7.

Bake in the centre of the oven for 35 minutes until the loaf is golden brown. To test if it is cooked, using oven gloves, tip the loaf out of the tin and tap the underside with your knuckles. It should sound hollow like a drum. If it sounds heavy then return the loaf to the oven and bake for 5 minutes more, then test again. Transfer the loaf to a wire rack and leave to cool completely. Store somewhere cool and dry and eat within 5 days, or wrap and freeze for up to a month.

As you can tell it is adapted from a Waitrose recipe & I usually substitute a third of the flour for wholemeal or granary. It has quite a hard crust. I usually use Doves Farm Yeast, and stoneground flour from Little Salkeld Mill when I can get it.

The dough should feel just like skin when pinched, if it does not, more kneading required!!

I sometimes make bread in my Kitchen Aid, it doesn't always turn out brilliantly, but IMO your dough needs more mixing first time round and second time I wouldn't put it back in the mixer, I would knock it back by hand on a floured worktop. Definately use more yeast, I use Jamie Oliver's bread recipe, for a kilo of flour he uses 30g of yeast.

Thanks for all your advice! I made some more bread yeasterday (before I saw these messages) and doubled the yeast and used a third white flour, two thirds wholemeal. It rose (rised?) very well and tastes fab but has a very large air recess at the top. When I took them out of the oven I could hear them hissing a bit and although the tops didn't crumble it must have sunk down inside. Am I taking them out too soon or is it something else I'm doing wrong? (it only has 10 mins at 220 then 30 mins at 200)
I got my initial recipe from the KitchenAid cookbook I got free when I got my mixer.