Breadmaking machines

[Bernard]

Hi everyone,

I have always wanted to invest in a breadmaking machine but my DH tells me I probably won't use it if he buys me one. So, I was wondering, does anyone out there own one ? Do you use it regularly ? Does the bread taste better than supermarket bread ?
Are the machines easy to keep clean ?

Look forward to your replies !

Many thanks

Anna

 

[Cocomac]

Hi Anna,

I have a bread machine and I did use it consistently for a long time. I would fill it the night before and set the timer so it would be ready when I got up at 5:30. Then I would take out the bread to cool, go running or work out, and come back and make sandwiches for lunch. I made mostly whole wheat bread and it really is awesome. The problem is that the loaves are so big and it's hard to cut in thin slices so if you're watching your calorie intake it's tough to make a 'lite' sandwich. My sandwiches were always huge ( I called it mutant bread)

I have been on Weight Watchers so I haven't used the machine in a while, but this has prompted me to take it out again....

P.S. there are tips to making better bread, so if you do get one, check back with us.......

Donna M

 

[Bernard]

Thanks Donna,

Mutant bread :7 ! I like that. I never thought about those giant doorstop pieces of bread. Would an electric carving knife make slicing thin bits easier ?
I bet mutant bread is good with vegetable soup ! :9

Anna

 

[Lynjap]

Hi
I have two! I use then because at the begining of this year, I was diagnosed with PCOS and I have resulting Hyperinsulemia and have to take Metformin although I am not Diabetic. I found the amount of sugar in comercial bread to be too high and this way I control what goes into my loaf.

I make naan bread, pitta bread, English muffins, Pizza dough......

Both of mine are on everyday and the sliced bread keeps for quite a while. Do check out the brands though as they are not cheap and some of them are not as good as others, do your research, commit to putting the ingredients in, relax and smell the bread!!!!!

 

[Bernard]

Hi Lynjap,

Wow :-wow ! Naan bread too ! Oh, and I forgot about pizza dough, which means you can control how much fat goes on top of your pizza !

many thanks for those ideas - i think I am getting sold on this idea !

Anna

 

[Erin-F]

I love mine! I am hypoglycemic, so I too have "special bread needs." Mine is out on the counter all the time because it gets used so much. I'm actually on my 2nd. My 1st lasted me two years, which I figured was pretty good considering how much use it gets. I've used it for all the things others have, but also to make bagels. It's a lot of fun to do with kids on cold winter days!

The slicing the bread thin is mostly a matter of practice. People see my bread on the counter and ask how I slice it so thin and evenly. Well,if you are making and slicing as many loaves as I am, you'd get a a lot better at it too! ;-) Oh, and it may help that I invested in a really good bread knife. It's from Pampered Chef, and the blade is less flexible than some bread knives I've seen. I slice mine all at once, BTW. It makes it easier to use on a regular basis if I just have to reach in for slice when I want bread, rather than go through the whole production of pulling out the cutting board and the bread knife . . .

 

[clareMc]

Anna:

do you reaally need one?!?!

If I still lived in the UK I would not need to bother with one. In the UK we still have the ability to walk into town and do the shopping, cruise the line of shops in the high street, go to a baker's shop and buy wheatmeal, wholemeal, granary, all of my favourites.

Living in the US with it's car dependency, strip malls and pre-sliced yuk, supermarket bread, a bread machine for me became a necessity. I really noticed a difference in bread between home and here, sorry if this seems offensive to others reading this post. There's really no comparison. The bread here for the most part is so incredibly over-sweetened, with sugar and corn syrup and goodness knows what else.

So, a bread machine is very useful. For the best rise, always buy your dried yeast in small, fresh batches, store in the fridge, use "Better for Bread" white flour because it has more proteins and therefore a better rise will ensue, and when making wholemeal bread, I get best results when I use, say for a 2 pound loaf, half wholemeal flour and half Better for Bread white flour. A pure wholemeal loaf never rose as much for me.

Good luck

CLare

 

[Bernard]

Hi Clare,

The American bread sounds very sweet like the European bread - Spain is a country where you find very sweet bread, too. I thought a machine might come in useful for pizza dough, etc, and garlic breads (a bit like the famous Cranks garlic wholemeal bread).
This will make your toes curl, Clare, you can get loaves of bread here that keep for up to 10 days ! How yuk is that ? And it tastes vile, too !
Did you ever try Stotty bread, from the North East of England ? I am originally from Cleveland, and it is a type of bread that can be found easily up there, but is hardly found in the South of England. Stotty bread is divine, and very more-ish !
I also used to loving baking bread years ago, manually, and got really good results from it, but it is so time consuming !

Anna