We just wrapped our 12-week Knead to Know series — twelve posts walking through the craft of making bread, flour to finished loaf. Consider this the bonus round: what happens when you pull the gluten out entirely, and how to bake well anyway. Gluten-free baking has a reputation, and a lot of it is earned. Dense. Crumbly. Gummy in the middle, sandy at the edges. People assume that's just the deal when you take the gluten out. It isn't. The difference between sad gluten-free an

How to store bread so it lasts: why the fridge stales it faster, the right way to freeze a loaf, and how to bring day-old bread back to life.

Scoring bread controls where a loaf opens in the oven. Here's how to score, why steam matters, and how to know when the loaf is actually done.

Shaping the dough Last week we covered bulk fermentation — the long quiet stretch where the dough goes from a wet mass into something with real structure and flavor. This week we get to the hands-on part where that mass finally takes its actual shape. Shaping is the moment the dough finally takes its actual form. Done well, the loaf holds its shape through proof, springs cleanly in the oven, and slices into the structure you wanted. Done poorly, it spreads flat on the stone,

Bulk fermenting dough Last week we covered yeast — what it is, what it eats, what kills it, and why time is a flavor ingredient. This week we get to the stretch where most of that flavor actually shows up. Bulk fermentation is the first major rise. It starts the minute the dough is mixed and ends when you divide it for shaping. Everything happens here. The yeast goes to work in earnest, the gluten finishes organizing itself, acids and flavor compounds build, and the dough qui

Healthy, active yeast! Last week we covered mixing and autolyse — the chemistry of the first ten minutes, before anything biological happens. This week the biology shows up. Once yeast hits hydrated flour, your dough stops being a paste and starts being a colony. Living things are working in there. Eating, producing gas, throwing off heat, building flavor compounds, growing. If you understand what those living things need — and what kills them — bread stops being a recipe to

The difference autolyse makes in dough. Last week we broke down hydration — what the percentage means, why it changes the crumb, and why your water source matters more than most home bakers think. This week we zoom in even further, to the first ten minutes of a bread formula. Before the kneading starts. Before the yeast goes in. Before the salt. That window — flour meets water, then everything pauses — is called autolyse. And what happens inside the dough during that rest cha

Not all water is the same...... Last week we got into baker's percentages — flour at 100%, everything else as a ratio. This week we're zooming in on the most important number on that list....Hydration. Settle in, this is a LONG post..... If gluten is the muscle of the loaf and flour is the foundation, water is what brings the whole thing to life. Adjust the hydration by ten percentage points and you don't just change the dough — you change the bread. Different crumb, differe

Scaling all ingredients Last week we got into gluten — what builds it, what limits it, and why every loaf has its own target. This week we're talking about the system professional bakers use to keep all of that under control. Baker's percentages. If you've ever tried to double a bread recipe and ended up with something weird, or wondered why two recipes with the "same" ingredients turn out completely different, this is the missing piece. Once you understand baker's percentage

Gluten Strands Last week we talked about flour — protein content, which types to use, and why it matters for everything you bake. This week we're getting into what that protein actually does once you add water and start working. Gluten. It's the most important thing in bread that you can't see, and understanding how it works is the difference between making bread and just mixing ingredients and hoping for the best. Think of a Rubber Band Full of Ball Bearings Here's a menta

Wheat stalk with berries and milled flour We're starting something new. Over the next several weeks, we're going to walk through the entire bread-making process from start to finish — one step at a time, one post at a time. No shortcuts. No skipping ahead. Just the way we do it here at The Lakehouse Bakery. And it starts where every baked good starts: with flour, wheat flour specifically. We'll talk about other grain and nut flours in another post. Flour selection matters. N

Lovely lemons with zest Spring is here, and if you're not reaching for citrus in your baking right now, you're leaving one of the easiest upgrades on the table. We're not just talking about lemon bars or lemon cake — though we love them both. We're talking about using citrus as a tool to make everything you bake taste sharper, brighter, and more alive. Muffins. Scones. Quick breads. Cakes. Frosting. Most of the time, there's a place for it. Here's what most people don't re

Various stages of creaming Most home bakers think creaming butter and sugar is just... mixing them together. It's not. Creaming is aeration. You're not just combining two ingredients — you're forcing air into fat. Those tiny pockets of air are created by the crystalline edges of the sugar and determine the texture, structure, and lift of your finished product before you've added a single other thing. Get it wrong at this stage, and nothing you do after it will save you. Here

Not All Eggs Are Equal — How to Know Which Ones to Bake With and Which Ones to Boil (BONUS TIP: How to Dye Them Like a Pro) 4 min read It's Easter season. You just bought two dozen eggs. Some are going in the pot for deviled eggs. Some are going into your cake batter. And if you're like most home bakers, you're grabbing from the same carton without thinking twice. Stop. Because not all eggs are equal — and using the wrong egg for the wrong job is quietly ruining your results

Last night, I was presented with the 2025 Small Business Leadership Award from the Chelsea Area Chamber of Commerce at Revel Run. Along with it came a City of Chelsea Proclamation signed by Mayor Kate Henson, two State of Michigan Special Tributes signed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer, and conversation time with State Representative Kathy Schmaltz, State Senator Sue Shink, and Congresswoman Debbie Dingell. First I want to say congratulations to all of this year's Chelsea Are

Get to know The Mother Sauces and how incredibly versatile they are!

Bread is what we do. It's the foundation of everything at The Lakehouse Bakery. Sourdough. Sandwich loaves. Dinner rolls. Pizza dough. It's not just a product line — it's what separates scratch bakeries from everyone else. And we're about to do a lot more of it. Meet Kayla (She's Here to Help Matt) You probably know Matt. He's been our lead bread baker for years — the guy responsible for making sure your sourdough is ready when you walk through the door. But Matt can only mak

King Cakes Fat Tuesday is five days away, and if you've never experienced a King Cake, you're missing out on one of America's most delicious traditions. Here's everything you need to know about the colorful braided cake that takes over New Orleans every Mardi Gras season—and why we make them fresh at The Lakehouse Bakery. What IS a King Cake? A King Cake is a brioche-style sweet bread that's hand-braided, filled with almonds and cocoa and topped with vibrant purple, green, an

You've seen it in almost every recipe. "1 cup sifted flour." Or maybe it says "1 cup flour, sifted." And you stand there wondering — do I sift it into the cup? Do I scoop it then sift it? Does it even matter? Here's the truth from someone who's been baking professionally for 35 years: it almost certainly doesn't matter, and you're wasting your time. Why sifting existed in the first place Sifting flour was essential 80 years ago. Flour came from small mills with inconsistent g

You followed the recipe. You did everything right. And yet... your dough is just sitting there like a lump, refusing to rise. Don't panic. This happens to everyone. After 35 years in kitchens, I've seen every bread failure imaginable — and most of them come down to a handful of common mistakes. Here's what's probably going wrong and how to fix it. 1. Your Yeast Is Dead This is the #1 culprit. Yeast is a living organism, and if it's dead, your bread isn't going anywhere. How t