Paul Hollywood: live webchat, Thursday 14 February, 9.30am

[RachelMumsnet]

We're just coming down from the thrill of last night's webchat with Yotam Ottolenghi and are now gearing ourselves up for tomorrow morning when Paul Hollywood will join us at Mumsnet HQ for webchat at 9.30am.

Paul Hollywood is Britain's favourite master baker and best known for his appearance with Mary Berry on Great British Bake Off. His latest book is all about bread - how to make it and how to use it. Not only does Paul teach you exactly how to make a variety of breads, but for each one there is a spin-off recipe that shows you how to make a fantastic meal of it.

Join Paul for brunch tomorrow between 9.30 and 10.30 am. If you're unable to make that time, do post a question to this thread in advance.

How did you make enough dough to get an Aston Martin? Is that the car of choice for a good baker?

@JBrd

Thanks for the advice on spelt flour!

You mention baking tins - mine are ancient, and I'm suspencting that they contribute to the more recent baking failures, so I want to treat myself to new ones. Any particular ones you can recommend? What about silicone moulds for bread baking, any good?

I don't like using silicone moulds myself as i would encourage you to take your bread making out of the tins (unless as in previous post you're baking with spelt flour). Use conventional tins any tin will do as long as it's been seasoned. TO season a loaf, rub with lard lightly, place in a hot oven and turn the oven off. Leave the tin in there to cool.

@NigellaPleaseComeDineWithMe

How did you make enough dough to get an Aston Martin? Is that the car of choice for a good baker?

Without question.

Phew

Thank you. I have demanded my husband makes me an 8 plaited loaf as a symbol of his undying devotion but I'm still waiting.

@LittleAbruzzenBear

Hi Paul. Bread-making is something that I have only recently discovered. I have only made what I would describe as a French style rustic loaf so far as I don't have a bread machine. Would I be able to move on to other styles of bread if only making by hand, or should I invest in a machine? I would like to make all the bread for my family of four whilst my DCs are young.

I'd do it all by hand. Practice makes perfect.

@DameMargotFountain

do you ever buy a mass produced, shop-bought loaf, just so you can sit back and say 'mine is SOOOOO much better than that'?

I do buy sliced bread but not too criticise it but to use it in a great bacon butty.

One quick 'extra' question - my dh has just, amazingly, given me one of the lovely mixers you use on the bake off, for valentine's day. What is the FIRST thing I should bake using it?

Hi Paul
Was it your Aston Martin at the Good Food Show with the cake related plate ? V suitable if so , made my 10yo want to bake to get a cool car. He now watches Top Gear and GBBO on loop thanks to that !

@Bobolbach

Hi Paul. Would you please tell my DH that I need a red Kitchen Aid. He will listen to you.

Thanks. You're great by the way.

DH, please invest in a new kitchen aid for your wife immediately. OR else.

Paul do you have a kitchenaid? If so, which colour??

Hi Paul,

We're huge fans of GBBO in this house, the only cookery programme my husband has ever watched!

Is it better for bread to rise somewhere too warm or too cold? I live in an old farmhouse in which we have a wonderful aga. If I put bread to rise near it, then it seems to rise very quickly (too quickly maybe?) but the rest of the house is pretty cold and it takes forever. I'd love to get better at bread as agas can make delicious bread I'm told!

Thank you

@TheDeadlyDonkey

Hello :) I've recently started making bread. I've used fresh and dried yeast (separately) but have limited success with both, despite following recipes, and the bread comes out delicious but brick like! What am I doing wrong?

Thank you!

The technical challenges are difficult to pick but we have deliberately chosen to up the ante on these particular challenges as the bakers are getting better and better every year.

Am still going through your book and a few of Marys as well as half a dozen other books!!, plus throw in a few experiments too.....DS' would be if they ever saw me and I actually spoke to you in person.

Thats a great bake and no soggy bottoms are the catch phrases here.

How do you pick out the technical challenges and do you think the standard is getting higher each series so the challenges can become at a more professional level, putting it out of each of the common man (or woman) - much as Master Chef has become psuedo prefessional with crazy challenges?? (is that 2 questions in one??)

@LucyLight

hi - i've been making bread for the last year or so (and your recipe for danish pastries is delicious) - just started making sourdough and it seems to be heavier than my other 'yeast' breads - what could I be doing wrong? Any tips. It is edible- just a bit heavy. BTW- I have an Aga which came with the house if that makes any difference.

leave it to rise for a long period of time. that's the secret. Sour dough is a different animal and takes time and patience to create a good loaf.

I think you answered by original question before I re-posted - naughty me...

PS your bacon rolls also rock in this house

Sorry that technical answer of Paul's was to go with the question from NigellaPleaseComeDineWithMe

@LilyBolero

One quick 'extra' question - my dh has just, amazingly, given me one of the lovely mixers you use on the bake off, for valentine's day. What is the FIRST thing I should bake using it?

keep it simple. do a white loaf.

Hi Paul, what's it like supplying bread for Harrods? Are they fussy customers? How did you get that opportunity?

@thestylethatdecadesforgot

Hi Paul,

Really enjoy GBBO, thank you, especially the masterclass episodes.

Could you give me some foolproof tips for kneading please? I use good quality flour and yeast but apart from a no-knead recipe I use, all my loaves come out very very dense and I think under baked (though that could be from cutting the loaf open to have a look after a couple of minutes), so I'm guessing it's the kneading at fault.

I try to mix white flour with wholemeal or malted flours and it seems to make such heavy dough, I can't seem to knead it enough. I have a kitchen aid, could I leave it rattling around in there for 10mins with the dough hook?

Ps, sorry this is so long, but I have tried that throwing the dough around thing you doubt my dough is really not elastic enough.

Thank you if you have time to answer my Q!

You're not kneading long enough and you need more water in the mixture. But it sounds also that you're not proving it for long enough. The dough should spring back when gently pressed with your finger without leaving an indentation. Watch the show for examples of how to knead or there are great step by step pictures/explanations in both How to Bake and Paul Hollywood's Bread that are easy to follow.

Someone (@coxxy) on Twitter just asked how to know when bread is properly baked.

One of the key things to look for is a hollow sound when it comes out of the oven when tapping the bottom. But normal rule is based on a 500g loaf if it has sugar in it, it will take 25 minutes to bake at 210 degrees c. If it doesn't have sugar in, 30-35 minutes at the same temperature.

@mrsvilliers

Hello! I love the GBBO, the challenges in series 1 seemed do-able but now they seem to have got a lot harder and make me nervous...

My question is about cakes. I want to make a thomas the tank engine cake for my 2 year old's birthday using sugar paste icing. I was going to do a chocolate cake but the trial recipe I used (Edd Kimber's!) is delicious but clearly too delicate. Is there another chocolate cake recipe you could suggest or am I doomed to Madeira cake?

Thank you!

There's a great chocolate cake recipe in How to Bake which uses ground almonds instead of flour and tastes delicious. Topped with chocolate ganache which is equal amounts of Bournville dark chocolate and cream.

You wonderful man you. I'm off to DEMAND a kichen aid with your response as back up.
Marvellous!
Just off to ice my finger buns, so this feels all very apt.
Love your book.
Think I may name the mixer after you!

@Tallgiraffe

Hi Paul,

We're huge fans of GBBO in this house, the only cookery programme my husband has ever watched!

Is it better for bread to rise somewhere too warm or too cold? I live in an old farmhouse in which we have a wonderful aga. If I put bread to rise near it, then it seems to rise very quickly (too quickly maybe?) but the rest of the house is pretty cold and it takes forever. I'd love to get better at bread as agas can make delicious bread I'm told!

Thank you

You want an ambient temperature of around 18-22 degrees c. However if slightly cooler this is not a problem. It just takes longer to prove and therefore gives the bread more flavour. The rule of thumb is the longer a bread takes to rise, the better it is. Slow food rules.

@NulliusInBlurba

We live in mainland Europe, where there is no tradition of self-raising flour. You buy plain flour and add raising ingredients yourself. If I'm using a British recipe that calls for SR flour, how much raising agent should I add to made it equivalent? I've been informally told 25 g of baking powder for 500 g of plain flour. Would you add bicarb as well?

I loved the recent Red Nose GBBO - the slebs were brill, and it really increased my confidence to see them making a hash of some things, but then rescuing them at the last minute and producing some really edible bakes. It inspired me to do a custard tart this evening. I screwed up the rolling out of the pastry but then just flattened it down with my fingers like, IIRC, Claudia Winkelmann, and it actually worked OK. I bet the 'real' competitors never do anything like that!

Between 40-50g of baking powder per kilo of plain flour. I play with this amount depending on what I'm baking.

@ivykaty44

Hello

Where did your blue eyes come from? They are rather striking

My grandad