Look what I found, all alone on a shelf, today. Maybe I should sell it on Ebay.

[sinkingfeeling]

[irisblue]

1. A use by date?

[sinkingfeeling]

3. March 08, 2022!

[redwitch]

2. Score!

Bake some bread!

[procon]

4. Have Platinum card, will travel for yeast. nt

[marigold20]

5. Yesterday I found the same yeast

Same Exp date but my store had two jars. I bought one and also found King Arthur flour. I can't wait to make some bread - kneading bread is very satisfying.

They also had a few jars of bread machine yeast. I guess I didn't know that was a thing you could buy.

[Major Nikon]

8. Bread machine yeast is basically instant yeast

More specifically it's rapid rise yeast which is a form of instant yeast that includes dough conditioners.

My preference is either plain instant yeast or active dry. The latter requires proofing prior to use. The former requires a dough hydration of at least 70% to properly activate.

In times of want you take what you can get and figure out how to use it.

[MissMillie]

10. all the recipes that came w/ my bread machine

call for active dry, but the recipe says "one envelope"

[Major Nikon]

12. You can use most any kind of yeast with a bread machine

But active dry yeast must be proofed prior to use. Instant or rapid rise yeast is more convenient because you can just dump it in with the rest of the ingredients and the machine can start mixing immediately.

[MissMillie]

13. the instruction that came w/ my machine

The yeast always goes into the machine first. Then all the other ingredients--including room temperature butter, usually a tbsp. of sugar, and warm liquid.

Turn it on and walk away.

[Major Nikon]

14. It has a proofing cycle

Yeast goes in first, liquid ingredients settle to the bottom, yeast gets proofed for a few minutes, then mixing begins.

Some bread machines do this so if someone uses active dry yeast, it will still work. Makes everything a bit more fool proof. You can still use instant or rapid rise yeast as well.

[msongs]

6. make sourdough, no yeast required nt

[Retrograde]

16. Just time and patience

the last time my husband made sourdough starter it took 2 weeks of daily feeding to get something usable. Which is fine if you want bread in 14 days, but not so convenient if you want some tonight!

If you do have some yeast on hand and are worried about supplies, save back a bit of your dough to make some starter - the commercial stuff may not be as flavorful as wild yeast (which varies widely by location) but it will do in a pinch.

[eleny]

7. I've got two jars & several pkgs of the Fleischmann's + one pkg of this I purchased in January

But try and find some bread flour. And rye flour is as scarce as hen's teeth.

[sir pball]

18. The SAF is way better than the Fleischmann's

In the kitchens at work we usually use fresh yeast but that's a bit finicky; the only dried yeast I've used in the last 15 years is the SAF Red. Had the current home batch in the freezer for four years now and it still works fine.

[eleny]

19. I read that it really does last for years in the freezer

So that was another reason I decided to try it. Eventually I plan to split it with my cousin.

I've got it in the fridge, unopened, now. Maybe I should pop it in the freezer as I use up the Fleischmann's which is working pretty well. But I guess everything rises easily here at high altitude.

[sir pball]

21. I've heard it's freezer life is essentially infinite

I've definitely had this lot for years and years, I usually nick some fresh yeast from work when I bake but with the restaurant closed it's back to the SAF...made a half dozen batches or so with it, works just as well as fresh. Maybe I'll stick a little bag away and see what it's like in ten years...

[eleny]

22. "Maybe I'll stick a little bag away and see what it's like in ten years..."

Hey, inquiring minds are eager to know!

[sir pball]

23. Remind me and I'll get back to you in 2030!

[MissMillie]

9. Oddly enough I haven't had a hard time finding it

Maybe not so odd, really. In a very unexpected location in my grocery store (there's a shelf in the dairy aisle above an open stand-alone cooler), they keep a box w/ the pre-measured envelopes. That shelf is always where I've looked for it, and always where I've found it. I never even checked the baking aisle.

Flour, on the other hand, is a different story.

[no_hypocrisy]

11. I'm running out of baking powder. Do you have any?

[Major Nikon]

15. You can make it yourself

Combine 2 parts baking soda;one part cream of tartar;one part cornstarch(optional) and use at the same rate as baking powder. If you don't have cornstarch mix only as much as you intend to use and don't store it. It won't work quite as well as pretty much all baking powder you buy at the store is dual action and this combination is just single action.

If you don't have cream of tartar, you can use another acidic ingredient like buttermilk or mix some vinegar or lemon juice with your liquid ingredients.

[no_hypocrisy]

17. Thanks!

[Phentex]

20. Great find!

I still have some and I'm hoping the stock refills before I need it again. I let a neighbor borrow some because that's just what we do!