Most French breads do not have milk or eggs and some don't have oils either.
Check them out.

Dan

"Maximillian" > wrote in message
news
> I am about to undertake breadbaking. I am a pretty good cook
> otherwise, but this will be new to me. There is a bakery near my
> mother's home and when I go for my annual visit I get addicted to
> their bread, and I want to try to reproduce their recipe at home.
>
> The difference in their breads (and, I have observed, most commercial
> breads) is that almost every recipe I have come across on the web
> contains oil or milk or eggs or all three, and their breads contain
> none of these. My wife is lactose intolerant, and in my cooking I try
> to maintain a low-fat regimen, so I would like to make my bread like
> they do.
>
> Here are the ingredients lists for breads from Stone Mill Bread &
> Flour Company.
>
> Sesame Sunflower. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seeds, yeast, salt, egg whites
> (brushed on top for browning)
>
> Bronze Honey Wheat. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
>
> Cranberry Pecan. Unbleached white flour, water, honey, cranberries,
> pecans, yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
>
> You can see that no oil or milk is used and only the whites of eggs
> (most likely reconstituted powdered egg whites, which I use).
>
> Obviously, they have a basic whole wheat recipe and a basic white
> flour recipe from which they can vary added ingredients. I want to
> start by making a basic whole wheat bread. So the question is do any
> of you have tried and true basic recipes and maybe some tips for
> baking bread without milk or eggs? (It seems to me that the milk/eggs
> either add some quality or reduce the amount of work involved,
> otherwise why include them since bread can be made without them).
>
> Thanks for your responses.
>
>

"Maximillian" > wrote in message
news
> I am about to undertake breadbaking. I am a pretty good cook
> otherwise, but this will be new to me. There is a bakery near my
> mother's home and when I go for my annual visit I get addicted to
> their bread, and I want to try to reproduce their recipe at home.
>
> The difference in their breads (and, I have observed, most commercial
> breads) is that almost every recipe I have come across on the web
> contains oil or milk or eggs or all three, and their breads contain
> none of these.

The only ingredients you need to make bread are flour, yeast, salt, and
water.

On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 10:50:36 GMT, Maximillian >
wrote:

>I am about to undertake breadbaking. I am a pretty good cook
>otherwise, but this will be new to me. There is a bakery near my
>mother's home and when I go for my annual visit I get addicted to
>their bread, and I want to try to reproduce their recipe at home.
>
>The difference in their breads (and, I have observed, most commercial
>breads) is that almost every recipe I have come across on the web
>contains oil or milk or eggs or all three, and their breads contain
>none of these. My wife is lactose intolerant, and in my cooking I try
>to maintain a low-fat regimen, so I would like to make my bread like
>they do.
>
Stop by the alt.bread.recipes or rec.food.sourdough groups and browse
awhile. You can also google either of those groups and check for
recipes that have been posted in the past.

You are looking for what is known as "lean" breads, those that depend
on the basics, as Vox said, of flour water, yeast and salt. I bake
almost all my own bread and rarely use milk or eggs or fats. (ok.. I
do like to make a brioche once in awhile). There are wonderful whole
grain breads to be made with no "extras" needed.

An excellent start may be your local library, too, to find a few
cookbooks that specialize in bread baking.

Start here, by reading a sourdough faq, not to point you exclusively
to sourdough, but just to give you some starting point on looking
around.

http://faqs.jmas.co.jp/FAQs/food/sourdough/basicbread

Here is another web site that may give you some interesting background
and offers many bread recipes that you may like.
http://www.theartisan.net/bredfrm.htm

Boron

"Maximillian" > wrote in message
news <snip>
> I want to
> start by making a basic whole wheat bread. So the question is do any
> of you have tried and true basic recipes and maybe some tips for
> baking bread without milk or eggs? (It seems to me that the milk/eggs
> either add some quality or reduce the amount of work involved,
> otherwise why include them since bread can be made without them).
>
> Thanks for your responses.

Here is a recipe http://www.gbronline.com/jacke/recwheat.htm for whole wheat
bread without milk or eggs. It does have 3 tablespoons of shortening for 2
loaves. If that is too much fat for you, try it without the fat. Fat just
'softens' the dough.

Milk and/or eggs add richness to the dough. Brioche and challa are examples
of 'eggy' breads. French bread (baguetts) have nothing more than flour,
water, yeast and salt.

There are some rustic breads on this site that even if you don't want to
make soon, present a spectrum of starter breadmaking that might be of
interest to you. They contain no sugar, oil, milk or eggs. She has created
three breads using techniques of 3 very popular breadmakers. It is an
excellent page.

http://ejmtph.crosswinds.net/recipes/rusticbread.html

Dee



"Maximillian" > wrote in message
news
> I am about to undertake breadbaking. I am a pretty good cook
> otherwise, but this will be new to me. There is a bakery near my
> mother's home and when I go for my annual visit I get addicted to
> their bread, and I want to try to reproduce their recipe at home.
>
> The difference in their breads (and, I have observed, most commercial
> breads) is that almost every recipe I have come across on the web
> contains oil or milk or eggs or all three, and their breads contain
> none of these. My wife is lactose intolerant, and in my cooking I try
> to maintain a low-fat regimen, so I would like to make my bread like
> they do.
>
> Here are the ingredients lists for breads from Stone Mill Bread &
> Flour Company.
>
> Sesame Sunflower. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seeds, yeast, salt, egg whites
> (brushed on top for browning)
>
> Bronze Honey Wheat. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
>
> Cranberry Pecan. Unbleached white flour, water, honey, cranberries,
> pecans, yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
>
> You can see that no oil or milk is used and only the whites of eggs
> (most likely reconstituted powdered egg whites, which I use).
>
> Obviously, they have a basic whole wheat recipe and a basic white
> flour recipe from which they can vary added ingredients. I want to
> start by making a basic whole wheat bread. So the question is do any
> of you have tried and true basic recipes and maybe some tips for
> baking bread without milk or eggs? (It seems to me that the milk/eggs
> either add some quality or reduce the amount of work involved,
> otherwise why include them since bread can be made without them).
>
> Thanks for your responses.
>
>

> > I am about to undertake breadbaking. I am a pretty good cook
> > otherwise, but this will be new to me. There is a bakery near my
> > mother's home and when I go for my annual visit I get addicted to
> > their bread, and I want to try to reproduce their recipe at home.
> >
> > The difference in their breads (and, I have observed, most commercial
> > breads) is that almost every recipe I have come across on the web
> > contains oil or milk or eggs or all three, and their breads contain
> > none of these. My wife is lactose intolerant, and in my cooking I try
> > to maintain a low-fat regimen, so I would like to make my bread like
> > they do.
It is not most recipe contains such ingredients that are not essential
but it adds to the varieity in terms of appearance texture, and
taste .
> > Here are the ingredients lists for breads from Stone Mill Bread &
> > Flour Company.
> >
> > Sesame Sunflower. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> > sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seeds, yeast, salt, egg whites
> > (brushed on top for browning)
> >
> > Bronze Honey Wheat. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> > yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
> >
> > Cranberry Pecan. Unbleached white flour, water, honey, cranberries,
> > pecans, yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)

Actually egg whites are not essential if you had a good oven and it
has good steam formation you can forego with the egg white.
> > You can see that no oil or milk is used and only the whites of eggs
> > (most likely reconstituted powdered egg whites, which I use).
> >
> > Obviously, they have a basic whole wheat recipe and a basic white
> > flour recipe from which they can vary added ingredients. I want to
> > start by making a basic whole wheat bread.
Ot they have one recipe , they just vary the flour and incorporate
other materials. Most bakery do that. Actually they are making only
few recipes but the varieties that they can bring out are countless.
So the question is do any
> > of you have tried and true basic recipes and maybe some tips for
> > baking bread without milk or eggs? (It seems to me that the milk/eggs
> > either add some quality or reduce the amount of work involved,
> > otherwise why include them since bread can be made without them).
> >
Bread that is tried and true when baked by other people sometimes does
not come out the same.
The reasons are varied, so the most important point is you had the
basic recipe: the flour,salt,yeast,water and you know how to make it
properly.
Do not be misled the bread is just fixed to the basic ingredients.
BRead can be classified as lean, medium, and rich.What I mean here
simply is the lean recipe is just made with flour,salt, yeast and
water; the medium type contains some amounts of sugar and fat. The
rich (in the simplest way) contains in addition eggs and milk.Spices
and other flavorings such af fruits, with their essences etc can be
added.
It is the ratio(in relation to the basic components) of the
incorporated enriching ingredients that will dictate the degree of
richness of the bread.
Conclusively a bread recipe can have infinite permutations on the
other ingredient that you can incorporate; and hence create varieties
that is limited only by the bakers imagination and skill.
Roy

Flour, salt, yeast and water does the trick:

http://www.gardenguides.com/recipes/...tbreadever.htm

"Maximillian" > wrote in message
news
> I am about to undertake breadbaking. I am a pretty good cook
> otherwise, but this will be new to me. There is a bakery near my
> mother's home and when I go for my annual visit I get addicted to
> their bread, and I want to try to reproduce their recipe at home.
>
> The difference in their breads (and, I have observed, most commercial
> breads) is that almost every recipe I have come across on the web
> contains oil or milk or eggs or all three, and their breads contain
> none of these. My wife is lactose intolerant, and in my cooking I try
> to maintain a low-fat regimen, so I would like to make my bread like
> they do.
>
> Here are the ingredients lists for breads from Stone Mill Bread &
> Flour Company.
>
> Sesame Sunflower. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seeds, yeast, salt, egg whites
> (brushed on top for browning)
>
> Bronze Honey Wheat. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
>
> Cranberry Pecan. Unbleached white flour, water, honey, cranberries,
> pecans, yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
>
> You can see that no oil or milk is used and only the whites of eggs
> (most likely reconstituted powdered egg whites, which I use).
>
> Obviously, they have a basic whole wheat recipe and a basic white
> flour recipe from which they can vary added ingredients. I want to
> start by making a basic whole wheat bread. So the question is do any
> of you have tried and true basic recipes and maybe some tips for
> baking bread without milk or eggs? (It seems to me that the milk/eggs
> either add some quality or reduce the amount of work involved,
> otherwise why include them since bread can be made without them).
>
> Thanks for your responses.
>
>

Egg yolks, oil and milk increase the "keeping quality" of the bread,
and they do affect taste of course.
I.I. loaves go stale slower with milk, yolks and oil added.

You can safely eliminate the egg yolks, fat and milk
in any bread recipe, just be sure to add less flour or substitute
an equal volume of water for the eggs, fat and milk.
Substitute about 1/4 cup for each whole egg, or 1-2 tablespoons for each
yolk.
Lots of bread is just flour, water, salt and yeast--some boast of this.

If you simply leave out the milk, fat or eggs, be very stingy as
you add the last 1-2 cups of flour as you are kneading it.
In general, 1 cup of liquid needs 2 1/2 to 3 cups of flour/dry ingredients
to form a
dough of the correct consistency.

This last is just a guideline however, and most recipes will give an
approximate flour amount, usually adding the last 2-3 cups of flour as you
knead, adjusting up or down as dictated by the "feel" of the dough.

Baking bread is one of the most satisfying things a cook can embark upon.
I bake so often that my husbands starts telling me to slow down as the
freezer is bursting! I start to send them home with guests after that.

Good luck!

Barb
"Maximillian" > wrote in message
news
> I am about to undertake breadbaking. I am a pretty good cook
> otherwise, but this will be new to me. There is a bakery near my
> mother's home and when I go for my annual visit I get addicted to
> their bread, and I want to try to reproduce their recipe at home.
>
> The difference in their breads (and, I have observed, most commercial
> breads) is that almost every recipe I have come across on the web
> contains oil or milk or eggs or all three, and their breads contain
> none of these. My wife is lactose intolerant, and in my cooking I try
> to maintain a low-fat regimen, so I would like to make my bread like
> they do.
>
> Here are the ingredients lists for breads from Stone Mill Bread &
> Flour Company.
>
> Sesame Sunflower. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, flax seeds, yeast, salt, egg whites
> (brushed on top for browning)
>
> Bronze Honey Wheat. Freshly milled whole wheat flour, water, honey,
> yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
>
> Cranberry Pecan. Unbleached white flour, water, honey, cranberries,
> pecans, yeast, salt, egg whites (brushed on top for browning)
>
> You can see that no oil or milk is used and only the whites of eggs
> (most likely reconstituted powdered egg whites, which I use).
>
> Obviously, they have a basic whole wheat recipe and a basic white
> flour recipe from which they can vary added ingredients. I want to
> start by making a basic whole wheat bread. So the question is do any
> of you have tried and true basic recipes and maybe some tips for
> baking bread without milk or eggs? (It seems to me that the milk/eggs
> either add some quality or reduce the amount of work involved,
> otherwise why include them since bread can be made without them).
>
> Thanks for your responses.
>
>

BRevere wrote:

>[....]
>Baking bread is one of the most satisfying things a cook can embark upon=
=2E
>I bake so often that my husbands starts telling me to slow down as the
>freezer is bursting! I start to send them home with guests after that.[=
=2E..]
>
The excess bread, Barb?

Or the bursting frezer and the husband? :-)

--=20
Grue$$e.

C=3D=A6-)=A7 H. W. Hans Kuntze, CMC, S.g.K. (_o_)
" Strive for excellence in your life & reject being a doormat to others. =
Serve God. "
http://www.cmcchef.com , chef[AT]cmcchef.com
_/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/ _/=20

> I bake so often that my husbands starts telling me to slow down as the
> freezer is bursting! I start to send them home with guests after that.

No wonder, one would be enough for most women.

Kim