Bread flour...limited to bread and rolls?

[fortyfeetunder]

Well I ended up with a 50lb bag of bread flour from Costco. A relative wanted to split the bag but declined. So I am with a big bag of flour.

I am going to use as much of it this weekend. So am I just limited to making bread and rolls? I am going to make a cinnamon craisin roll in a Christmas tree mold...maybe has to be a couple, for the folks at work....

[NMDemDist2]

1. Bread flour vs All purpose flour

Bread flour is a high-gluten flour that has very small amounts of malted barley flour and vitamin C or potassium bromate added. The barley flour helps the yeast work, and the other additive increases the elasticity of the gluten and its ability to retain gas as the dough rises and bakes. Bread flour is called for in many bread and pizza crust recipes where you want the loftiness or chewiness that the extra gluten provides. It is especially useful as a component in rye, barley and other mixed-grain breads, where the added lift of the bread flour is necessary to boost the other grains.

All-purpose flour is made from a blend of high- and low-gluten wheats, and has a bit less protein than bread flour — 11% or 12% vs. 13% or 14%. You can always substitute all-purpose flour for bread flour, although your results may not be as glorious as you had hoped. There are many recipes, however, where the use of bread flour in place of all-purpose will produce a tough, chewy, disappointing result. Cakes, for instance, are often made with all-purpose flour, but would not be nearly as good made with bread flour. http://www.ochef.com/97.htm

Should be fine tho for gravies and smudging meats and even cookies.

[Stinky The Clown]

2. Here's a website that has a great deal of info useful for both

pro and home bakers. Their flours are great, but the information on the web site is invaluable.

[Stinky The Clown]

4. Oooops .... here's the link

http://www.kingarthurflour.com/cgibin/start/ahome/main.html

I forgot to put it in my original post ..... oooopsie poo!

[ironflange]

3. Go ahead and use it!

I understand that what we call all-purpose flour here in Canada is what you call bread flour in the States. So, since we use it for all purposes, so can you.

[mopinko]

5. get some cake flour

which is extra low gluten, and toss it in whenever toughness is an issue. a cup to a pound would soften it up pretty well. i have cookies that might be better with a tough flour, but others that would be a big mistake. bread flour here is not THAT hard anyway, tho.

[baby_bear]

6. start making pizza dough

Bread flour is great for it. You can also use it in non-yeast cornbread that calls for cornmeal and flour.

b_b