Bread Making Assistant
The perfect environment for raising bread exists right inside your dehydrator. Remove the trays from the dehydrator, set the thermostat at 115ºF and allow the unit to preheat. Place a shallow pan of water on the bottom of the dehydrator. Insert a tray directly above the water and place the bowl of dough on the tray. Cover the dough with a cloth to keep it from drying out. Allow the dough one-half to one hour of time to rise. When it has risen, continue with preparation according to your recipe.
An Excalibur Dehydrator is the perfect assistant if you use a bread machine. Depending on the model, it takes 3 to 3½ (or more) hours to complete a single loaf of bread. During the same time, you can prepare dough for many loaves of bread. Let your bread machine do all of the hard work for the initial kneading. Use the dough setting and remove the dough before it starts the first rise. Place the dough into an oiled bowl, turn the dough over to oil the top, and cover tightly. Place in the refrigerator. (Or freezer*) Put your next batch of dough in your bread machine and repeat. When you have enough loaves for a baking session, place these in your Excalibur for the first rise. Punch down, when needed, based on your recipe. When ready, shape into loaves and bake as your recipe directs. Based on an estimate of 30 minutes for bread machine preparation, using an Excalibur will allow you to produce 4 loaves (or more) of bread fresh baked bread in the same 3 to 3½ hours your bread machine took to produce 1 loaf!
*Make dough by hand or using the dough cycle of your bread machine and store in the freezer. On baking day, remove from the freezer. Use your Excalibur to expedite the final preparation steps for baking."
Drying Bread for Bread Crumbs
Put your extra breads of all types in your dehydrator to dry for making bread crumb recipes. Dry slices, burger buns, hotdog rolls, and other breads until they are crispy. Crumble by hand or process for a few seconds in your food processor or Vita-Mix. Store in air tight containers until needed. Add your favorite herbs and spices to create stuffing mixes for side dishes or poultry stuffing.
Pasta Tips
No need for separate pasta racks! Place strips of freshly made pasta in single layers onto your drying trays. Dry for 2 to 4 hours at 135ºF. Store in airtight packages.
Dry cooked pasta (smaller varieties work best) and break into bite size pieces, if applicable. Store in air tight containers. It rehydrates in 2-3 minutes in boiling water. Add some cooked pasta to heat-and-eat microwave meals.
Powder some of your dried vegetables in a blender or food processor. Add the powder to your pasta recipe for a change of pace. Also adds another level of nutrition to your pasta in addition to being a tremendous flavor enhancer. Check some of the commercially prepared pasta for ideas. Then, experiment with amounts and combinations of vegetable powders according to your flavor preferences. You may elect to try basil and tomato, asparagus, beets, mushrooms, spinach, carrots, to name a few. For ease of combination, add your vegetable powder to your beaten eggs. Stir in the powder and let it sit for a few minutes, then continue with your recipe. Start out with 1 tablespoon of dried powder for each egg in your pasta recipe, then adjust according to your tastes. You may need more or less, depending on the intensity of the flavors of various vegetables.
Recrisping Crackers and Other Foods
There is no need to throw away crackers, chips, cookies or cereal that have become stale. Recrisp those items by placing them in a single layer on the drying trays and drying them for 1 hour at 145ºF. However, if the food is a raw food and you want to preserve the enzymes, drying at 105ºF fo a longer period of time would preserve the enzmes in the food.
