High Altitude Baking Tips for Bread Machine Aficionados

Denver musings

Living in Colorado's Mile High City was an adventure! Working out money saving tips for an unforgettable backyard wedding celebration but not considering the ever changing Colorado weather, vacationing in Breckenridge and finding some delectable restaurants, and of course sticking my toe into the raging stream that is mountain bike racing only to quickly jump back, it was a time to be remembered. Yet it was a job at a bakery and sandwich shop (which no longer exists) near the 16^th Street Mall and its various eateries that inspired me to try my hand at baking - high altitude baking.

Of course, the fact that Denver is also called the Mile High City might have tipped me off to the fact that with being a mile high, my prized bread machine French bread recipe might have benefited from some adjustments for said high altitude, but for reasons which I cannot readily remember, this did not dawn on me until my golden loaf came out looking like something the cat sat on.

Dry atmosphere, thin air & atmospheric pressure

In retrospect, considering the fact that bread machines are calibrated for use at sea level, it only makes sense that this needs to be taken into account when measuring the ingredients into the baking container. The environmental components adversely affecting the baking process are quickly numbered: first and foremost is the dry atmosphere; next comes the inescapable variation in air pressure, and last but not least is the thin air.

Bread machine users beware! Evasive action is needed.

The foregoing notwithstanding, you can still have a great loaf of French bread (or any other kind of bread) coming out of your bread machine without despairing! High altitude baking requires very little finesse and with a few simple tips you will be right as rain.

Problem: bread is too dense