Q: Can you give us some tips on how to properly freeze unbaked bread dough?
J.C., New York City

A: Here are a few tips to optimize bread quality using frozen dough. Use gentle freezing methods, such as blast freezing. Store the dough pieces at about -4°F, which is the optimal storage temperature for bread dough. Avoid uncontrolled temperature variations. A constant temperature during transportation and storage is essential for consistent bread quality from frozen doughs. Use a first-in, first-out (FIFO) scheme when using frozen dough pieces. Never refreeze frozen dough pieces once thawed. Thaw larger dough pieces overnight at about 35°F to 40°F. In case of an unexpectedly large demand, small dough pieces can be proofed without thawing. Extend final proof time to compensate for any loss in gas production of yeast during frozen storage.

Q: What is the composition of mixed spice?
X.T., Tucumari, N.M.

A: Mixed spice, made from freshly ground spices, can impart an interesting aroma to baked products. Mixed spice is a combination of spices and can include rice flour and sugar as well. The spices used are cinnamon, cassia, caraway, ginger, coriander, cloves, mace and nutmeg in varying proportions, with cinnamon predominating. As the amounts needed are rather small, I recommend weighing the spices in metric. The total yield of 3.5 ozs. goes a long way, and I also recommend making this mix from freshly ground spices, as ground spices lose their aroma and flavor over time. The following two options will give you a nice mix.

Mixed spice