The next baking tip in our series highlighting winners from our 4th annual America’s Best Raisin Bread Contest comes from Bill Hunter of Grapevine, Texas.
Bill’s tip for bakers? If you’re trying to lessen the fat and increase fiber for recipes, substituting flax meal for whole eggs is a wonderful way to go. You can’t take out all of the eggs, but you can substitute for half, he says.
This is just what Bill did for his winning recipe, Sunrise Bagels, when he took home the Judge’s Prize in the Breakfast category at the America’s Best Raisin Bread Contest last year.
A Certified Master Baker and Certified Executive Pastry Chef, Bill’s winning formula started as granola. He was looking for a way to create a bagel that would do all of the things granola did. He used a basic bagel recipe and then added interesting ingredients, such as flax meal, almonds, California golden and natural raisins, and rolled oats. The bagel itself is dense, moist, chewy on the inside and crunchy on the outside but doesn’t contain a lot of fat.
Bill’s love of baking began when he washed pots in a college cafeteria at the age of 14. His incentive was that he could help out in the bakery when the dishes were caught up. He is currently in the process of becoming a Certified Research Chef and Certified Master Pastry Chef, and works at Crestone Group Baking Co., which supplies chain restaurants with custom bakery items.
Congratulations, Bill, and thanks for the tip!
