This recipe makes 64 ounces, approximately, of stuffing cubes. The stuffing cubes can be made to make our stuffing recipe and can be used as croutons and also be ground up to make herbed bread crumbs.
Getting Ready
Gather all your ingredients and group by type. Also. gather all the equipment needed for measuring and mixing. Measure out all your ingredients for each bread recipe. See instructions below on how to measure. You will mixing one right after the other and having all your ingredients ready will speed up the process. Do NOT heat the water and activate the yeast for either recipe until right before you are ready to mix.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Measure the Dry Ingredients
Measure the flours and starches for the bread recipe and place in the stand mixer's bowl. Measure and add the supplemental ingredients to the same bowl as the flours. Add the herb blend to the bowl (4 grams).
While you have your scale and dry ingredients out for the bread recipe, measure the flour, starch, and supplemental ingredients for the French bread recipe into bowls and set aside.
Measure the Wet Ingredients
Measure each of the wet ingredients and then put in a small bowl. All the wet ingredients need to be in one bowl.
While you have your scale and wet ingredients out for the bread recipe, measure the flour, starch, and supplemental ingredients for the French bread recipe into bowls and set aside.
Activate the Yeast
Measure the yeast for the bread recipe into a small bowl. Also measure the yeast for the French bread recipe and set aside.
If using club soda, measure 2.75 cups into a 4 cup measuring cup and heat to 110 degrees in the microwave, about a minute. Use a probe thermometer to test the temperature. If you heat the water to over 110 degrees, wait for it to reach 110 before activating the yeast.
If using a soda stream, temp the water coming out of your facet to 110 degrees, fill the soda stream bottle, and carbonate the water. Measure 2.75 cups of the carbonated water into a 4 cup measuring cup.
When you have your 110 degree water ready, begin whisking the water as you add the yeast slowly to the water. Keep whisking until nearly all the yeast has dissolved. You should see foam when you do this. If you do not, your yeast may be out of date or bad.
Time to Mix the Sandwich Bread Recipe
Attach the mixing bowl to the stand mixer, attach the mixer's paddle attachment and raise the bowl into the mixing position. Set to speed 1 for 15 seconds to combine the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients while the mixer is still set at speed 1. You will need to use a spoon to get the honey out of the bowl. Now, add the yeast and water slowly. Once it is all added, increase the speed to 2 until all the water is incorporated into the dry ingredients. Increase the speed to 4 and mix for one minute. Increase the speed to 5 and mix for one more minute.
While the dough is mixing, spray a large sheet pan liberally with non-stick spary. When the mixing is complete, the dough should be soft and silky, similar to frosting. Lower the bowl and remove the paddle attachment. Scoop out ALL the dough onto the greased sheet pan. Wet your fingers before you touch the dough to help with the stickiness. Spread the dough throughout the pan, making sure to get into the corners. Use a light touch. If you feel any high or low spots, smooth those with your fingers by pushing the dough around. When you are done, move the pan to the top of the stove.
Mix the French Bread
Clean your mixing bowl and paddle and attach to the mixer. Add the dry ingredients to the bowl. Add the herb blend to the bowl (4 grams). Activate the yeast in the same way you did for the sandwich bread recipe. Add the yeast water and the wet ingredients as you did in the sandwich bread recipe and mix.
When the French bread is done mixing, scoop ALL of the dough onto a greased sheet pan and spread and even the dough as you did with the sandwich bread recipe. When complete, place the sheet pan on the stove next to the sandwich bread sheet pan. Set a timer for 20 minutes.
Baking the Breads
Put each sheet pan into the 400 degree oven on separate racks. Bake for 10 minutes and then rotate the pans. Bake for another 10 minutes. You may need to bake an additional 5-10 minutes until they are doe. They should have a golden brown color and be separating from the sides of the pan. Remove the pans from the oven and transfer the each sheet of bread to a cooling rack. Let cool about 15 minutes.
Slicing the Bread Sheets
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Slice the French bread sheet in half, and then in half again for each pieces, making quarters of the original full sheet. Then slice into 3/4 to 1 inch pieces, rotate, and then slice again in the same sized pieces. The goal is to have 3/4 inch cubes. You can make your cubes larger or smaller than 3/4 inch. Be careful not to make too small or they will burn while drying in the next step.
Add a cooling rack to a sheet pan and place all the cubes on the cooling rack and distribute as evenly as possible. Bake in the 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until the cubes are toasty but still have a slight spring to them. Remove from the oven and let cool.
While the French bread cubes are drying in oven, slice the sandwich bread in the same way. You may need two sheet pans because the sandwich bread is thicker than the French bread. Bake in the 350 degree oven for 20 minutes or until the cubes are toasty but still have a slight spring to them. Remove from the oven and let cool.
Marrying the Two Types of Cubes
In a very large bowl, add a small amount of the cubes to the bowl, alternating between the two recipes. The goal is to have an even distribution of the two types of cubes.
Storage and Usage
To make the sausage stuffing recipe, you will need 16 oz of stuffing cubes. I recommend measuring out 16 oz of the cubes and place in a freezer bag. You should get four bags. Or, you can store all the cubes in one or two bags and measure out what you need when you need them. Cubes can be frozen up to one year. You may want to double-bag them for long-term storage.
Use the cubes for stuffing, as croutons, or grind them (once fully cooled and dry) to make herbed bread crumbs.
Notes
Although any certified gluten-free flours and starches will work wonderfully, I recommend Bob's Red Mill: https://www.bobsredmill.com/Soy Milk Powder can be found in most natural food stores and some grocery stores. If you are not dairy-free, you can replace it with milk powder. Find Soy Milk Powder Here: https://www.nowfoods.com/natural-foods/soy-milk-powder-organicFind Knox Unflavored Gelatin at your grocery store.If you have any questions, comments, or concerns when baking, send me a message: https://r7p.d98.myftpupload.com/bakingbread/