
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, January 11, 1995                   TAG: 9501120016
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: ALMENA HUGHES FOOD EDITOR
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

ANY WAY YOU SLICE IT

There's nothing like the aroma of fresh-baked bread to help ward off winter's chill. Now, with the advent of bread machines, fast-rising yeasts and convenience products, everyone from novice to master baker, from time-pressed to leisurely loaf maker can enjoy delicious homemade breads.

The fruity breakfast buns were good enough to garner the $10,000 grand prize in Quaker Oat's 1994 "Bake It Better With Oats" recipe contest. The oatmeal carrot cake bread represents the trend toward lower-fat eating.

Quaker Oats home economists say that fat's primary role in baking is to add tenderness. In most recipes, they say, the vegetable oil, margarine or butter can be reduced by as much as one-third. Lowfat or nonfat yogurt, canned pumpkin, apple butter, apple sauce or another pureed fruit or vegetable can usually be substituted for the fat that's taken out.

Lower-fat baking requires careful measuring and a gentle hand when mixing. Stir dry ingredients in their containers, then lightly spoon into standardized measuring cups until overflowing. With the flat side of a knife or spatula, level ingredient even with the top of the cup.

Before mixing, thoroughly combine all of the dry ingredients in one bowl and the liquid ingredients in another. Add the liquids to the dry and stir just until evenly moistened; a few lumps should remain in the batter. Finally, be careful not to overbake. Preheat the oven and check for doneness after the minimum baking time. A wooden pick should have a few moist crumbs clinging to it.

Bread machines basically do the baking for you. Vegetables add fiber, nutrients and a lot of interest to basic machine recipes, but because vegetables' moisture content varies so much, you'll need to pay special attention to the liquid content. The dough will initially look dry, but by the end of the kneading cycle it should make a soft, round, slightly tacky ball. If needed, more liquid may be added at this stage, one tablespoon at a time, to achieve the desired consistency.

For a real change of pace, try a chocolatey bread that's rich enough for a dessert, or spread some jelly on this rich peanut butter bread that's approved by one member of a taste panel of kids because, "It doesn't stick to the roof of my mouth."

To get more bread recipes and baking tips, write for the free "Quaker Oats Lower-Fat Baking Recipes," The Quaker Oats Company, P.O. Box 049003, Chicago, Ill. 60604-9003; call (800) 843-8114 to order Anne Lindsay's "Lighthearted Everyday Cooking" ($16.95); for Fleischmann's recipe book, allow 8 weeks for delivery and send $2.95 to Bread Machine Favorites, P.O. Box 5953, Dept. B, Stacy, Minn. 55078-5953; call Fleischmann's hotline with your baking questions at (800) 777-4959, or reach Red Star Yeast's hotline at (800) 445-4746 #4.

Recipes for:

OATMEAL CARROT CAKE BREAD

CHEESE SPREAD

ZUCCHINI BREAD

PEPPER, SWEET-CORN BREAD

CHEESY BROCCOLI/CAULIFLOWER BREAD

BAKED POTATO BREAD

WHOLE WHEAT CARROT BREAD

HERB BREAD (TRADITIONAL METHOD)

BUTTERMILK HERB QUICK BREAD

PEANUT BUTTER BREAD

CHOCOLATE CINNAMON BREAD

CHOCOLATE GLAZE

by CNB