One thing I’ve always disliked about bread baked in a machine — the hole in the bottom of the bread.
Good news! There’s a way to get rid of the hole in your bread machine bread. There are actually two great ways to end up with a yummy loaf of home made bread without a hole in the bottom.
Remove the Bread Machine Paddle
The easiest way is to check your machine manual for the final punch-down just before the final rise. As soon as the dough has punched down and is about to start that last rise, you want to pull the paddle out. I pull the pan of dough right out of the machine, put the dough in a plate or even just hold it in my hand. Then I pull out the paddle out, put the dough back in the pan and hoist the pan back in the machine. This all takes about 30 seconds so there’s insignificant effect on the rest of the bread cycles. When it’s all done… surprise! A beautiful loaf of bread with no hole!
Finish the Bread in the Oven
A slightly less easy way (but with better results) is to pull the dough out after it’s risen and finish the baking process in the oven instead. I’ll cover this technique in my next blog post, so stay tuned!