After the dough is properly kneaded in the manner just explained, it is placed in the mixing bowl and allowed to rise again. When it has risen sufficiently for the last time, depending on the process employed, it should be kneaded again, if it must be reduced in size, and then shaped into loaves and put in the pans. Here, again, much care should be exercised, for the way in which bread is prepared for the pans has much to do with the shape of the loaf after it is baked.



In order to shape the dough into loaves, first loosen it from the sides of the mixing bowl, using a knife or a spatula for this purpose, and then turn it out on a flat surface on which flour has been sprinkled, as in preparing for kneading. Knead the dough a little, and then cut it into pieces that will be the correct size for the pans in which the loaves are to be baked, as shown at the right in Fig. 11. Dust each piece with a small quantity of flour and knead it until the large bubbles of gas it contains are worked out and it is smooth and round. In working it, stretch the under side, which is to be the top of the loaf, and form it into a roll that is as long and half as high as the pan and as thick at each end as in the center. A good idea of the size and shape can be formed from the loaf held in the hands in Fig. 11.

As each loaf is formed, place it in the pan and allow it to rise until the dough comes to the top of the pan, or has doubled in bulk. So that the loaf will be symmetrical after it has risen--that is, as high at each end as in the middle--the shaped dough must fit well into the corners and ends of the pan.. To produce the result the dough must be kept in a warm temperature, and to exclude the air and prevent the formation of a hard crust on the dough, it must be covered well with both a cloth and a metal cover. Another way in which to prevent the formation of a hard crust consists in greasing the surface of the dough when it is placed in the pan, for rising.