Bread Maker Machines

[Donica]

I've been interested in baking my own bread. I don't eat a lot of bread. I may buy a loaf of sourdough and white bread once every 3 or 4 weeks (I keep it in the fridge so it last longer). Hot dog and hamburger buns even less often. I've been looking into bread maker machines for the ease and convenience, but the main reason is, I want to make my own sourdough bread. But after researching how to make sourdough bread, I think I'll just keep buying it from the bakery.

So, this leaves the bulk of my baking to white bread. I do love a good Italian bread, banana bread, and the thought of making healthier bread without preservatives is appealing. Justifying buying a bread maker is somewhat of a dilemma for a couple reasons. 1: The necessity, considering how often I buy bread. 2: Counter space, which is becoming more and more of a premium. If I do this, a couple of the items already taking up space on my counters are going to find themselves in one of my cupboards, which means rearranging some pots and pans and things.

Maybe I'll get a cheap model from Walmart. They have a decent Hamilton Beach bread maker for $65 that has gotten so nice reviews. Or maybe one that will make sourdough starter. So, how many of you use a bread maker machine? Is it worth it? Do you prefer your bread maker machine over traditional bread baking in an oven?

 

[christina047]

Donica, I have a fair amount of past experience with bread machines. While our son was in elementary school throguh high school we had a bread machine. The daily routine was: I would load it up the night before and at about 6 am it would start making bread. By the time our son got up the house smelled like warm bread fresh out of the oven. We then would put the entire loaf on his plate (it was cube shaped) and he would proceed to gut out all of the warm bread in the middle with his fingers and leave a shell of a loaf of bread for his two moms . It was something to watch. Yes his two moms did spoil him!! He is an only child so I think he probably got more motherly love and attention than he wanted! Ahhhhhh the good old days!!!

But I diverge, bread machines you ask......yes they are worth it if you like to have fresh, warm bread often and not have to spend a lot of time or make a mess making it. A couple of suggestions / tips:

- Good idea to buy a lower priced model like the Hamilton beach you mentioned. $65 is a very reasonable price. Something important to know: most bread machines will eventually end up under the counter or in the garage (sort of like exercise equipment!!). That's just the reality of it. But for a while they are fun and I love the smell of baked bread.

- Follow all instructions carefully. While much more reliable and easy vs making it from scratch, the proportions of ingredients are still very important.

- All bread machines will have recipes for making Sourdough starter and for making sourdough bread.

- Before you get a bread machine, try some of the u-bake loaves from the grocery store. They usually come frozen and you just pop the loaf in the oven (typicall around 375-400F) and its done in 12-15 minutes. Depending on the brands, some are quite good and lately we have been baking those at least once a week (I love bread).

If I think of anything else, I will let you know....I am quite impressionable when it comes to food and now I want some warm bread!!

Wishing you warm bread and Hugs

Christina

 

[OzGirl]

I inherited a bread machine from my mother many years ago, a 'Breville Country Bake,' and I use it a few times over winter, but only to bake the pre packages Crusty White bread mix. I tried a couple of times to use the timer so I could wake up to the smell of freshly baked bread and warm bread for breakfast, but it takes 3 hours to cook, meaning it starts at 5 am. The problem is it's very noisy, and I have a small house, so the sleep interruption isn't worth it. The best I can do is put the dry ingredients in the night before and start it when I get up at 7 am. The other problem is that bread keeps me fat!

Hugs,

Allie.

 

[Donica]

Thanks for the advice, Christina and Allie! I bit the bullet and bought a bread machine. It should be here tomorrow. I decided on the slightly more expensive model than the Hamiton Beach (KBS Large 17-in-1 Bread Machine). It has 17 pre-programed functions including sourdough start/natural sourdough, although not really sure what the difference is, but it has all the rest of the bells and whistles, including delayed start time and an automatic nut/fruit dispenser. I'm sure it may eventually end up collecting dust on my counter, but as long as I'm buying bread, I may as well make my own.

I had no idea it took 5 to 7 days to make sourdough starter, but other than being time consuming, it seems to be relatively easy, so I'll give in a try. My grocery store rarely has good French and Italian bread, so this should be an added plus. There are few things better than fresh warm Italian bread dipped in a dish of olive oil/balsamic vinegar for an appetizer. I'll post results of my first few attempts in this thread.

Hugs!
Donica

 

[TonyaJanelle]

Something important to know: most bread machines will eventually end up under the counter or in the garage (sort of like exercise equipment!!). That's just the reality of it. But for a while they are fun and I love the smell of baked bread.

Yeah. Pretty sure mine is in the garage or the storage locker. Hasn't been used in years. It was great having the house smell like a bakery though

 

[Donica]

Just bought the goods today. Spent roughly $40. I'll crunch the numbers cost per loaf later. I'm going to try the Natural Yeast bread first (Natural Sourdough 6:35 hour cycle time). I don't know why they call it Sourdough, it ain't Sourdough without a starter, which will come later after I've familiarize myself with the machine.

 

[Donica]

So, my first attempt at baking Sourdough bread was a success. It wasn't as tangy as traditional Sourdough, but it did have a mild Sourdough flavor. I'm guessing it's due to the use of vegetable oil instead of butter, plus the extended fermentation process (6 hours and 35 minutes).

I chose to start with a 1 pound loaf, and I'm almost glad I did because, towards the end, the loaf looked like it might rize over the top of the baking barrel. Next batch, I'll use a Sourdough starter. In all, a good choice I'm sure I'll enjoy for a long time. No more buying bread for this girl.

Bread Maker Machine Recipes
Natural Soudough 1 Lb Loaf

Ingredients:
160ml.............Water
1 Tbsp.............Vegetable Oil
1/2 tsp.............Salt
1 Tbsp.............Sugar
1 Tbsp.............Dry Milk Powder
250g................Bread Flour (All Purpose Unbleached Ok)
1/3 tsp.............Yeast

 

[christina047]

Donica, thanks for sharing!! If you could see me, I have a big smile on my face .

Brings back happy memories of making bread in my bread machine. You are now initiated in the brave, new world of breadmaking.

I also, too, thought that some of my early loaves would rise too high. Actually now that I think of it, some did and hit the inside of the lid of the machine.

I enjoyed the picture of the ingredients earlier as well. When I saw them, I noticed immediately they were all exactly the same brands we use. But then I remembered you are from SoCal (I am NoCal) so it suddenly made sense. All brands readily available in West Coast Grocery Stores.

Hugs to the newest breadmaker on the block,

Christina

 

[Donica]

My first attempt at banana bread in my bread maker machine. I think it turned out a little on the dark side, but it taste good. What do you think of the color?




Banana Bread Recipe.

Ingredients:

8 tbsp unsalted butter melted
2 eggs beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 ripe bananas mashed (The riper the better)
1 cup light brown sugar
2 cups all purpose flour unbleached
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda

Bread Machine Instructions:

Mix all ingredients together well.
bake for 1 hour and 40 minutes.

If you are using a bread machine, it's important to use the correct cycle. Bread maker machine cycles vary widely. Some machines, the sweet bread cycle works well for banana bread, for others, you may want to select the cake cycle. On top of all the usual cycle selections, my machine also has 3 really cool cycles, a basic mixing cycle, a basic fermentation cycle, and a basic baking cycle, so you can set to your own desired mixing, fermentation, and baking times individually. PERFECT!

I may do some tweaking on the recipe, like using a different type of sugar, or different flour, or a little more of this and a little less of that. In all, I'm going to say, not bad at all for my first bread maker machine banana bread attempt.



Hugs!
Donica

 

[OzGirl]

I love the bread from my bread machine, but I have not been as adventourous as you Donica! Mainly because I can’t resist eating it all and gaining weight! But also because bananas at my house never last long enough to get over ripe!

Hugs,

Allie

 

[Donica]

I love the bread from my bread machine, but I have not been as adventourous as you Donica! Mainly because I can’t resist eating it all and gaining weight! But also because bananas at my house never last long enough to get over ripe!

Hugs,

Allie

So far, I've baked 6 loafs of bread and I haven't gained any weight yet, but I haven't lost any either . The loafs usually sit in my fridge for a week or so, just nibbling on one or two slices every couple of days. Same when I was buying bread from the bakery (grocery store bakery). I miss my sourdough bread. My first attempt to make a sourdough starter failed. I've been trying different vinegar/sour cream sourdough recipes that get close but, it ain't sourdough without a good old fashioned San Francisco sourdough starter. So, I will attempt to bring another sourdough starter to life soon. I just gotta have my sourdough toast. I'm going to try baking some pumpkin bread for Thanksgiving. More updates coming soon.

Stay Tuned!
Donica

 

[christina047]

Donica, the color of the banana bread looks just fine to me. I am sure it is not the case with everyone, but I prefer banana bread that has a darker crust on it. I find it adds more flavor to the bread.

Looking at your picture, makes me hungry for banana bread, I will have to make some later this week.

Thanks for the update on the breadmaking. Looks like you are having fun with it, not to mention good bread to eat!

Hugs,

Christina