Bread making machine

[domtyler]

Just bear in mind that once you factor in the ingredients and energy you are using to make one loaf of bread is going to be setting you back about a fiver a pop. And that's not even taking into consideration the amount of your time yo will be wasting.

Much better off finding a decent bakers if I were you, where they can employ economies of scale to produce a more reasonably priced loaf.

 

[TheDoctor]

Not sure of your working there Dom. Bread flour costs about £1.50 for a bag that makes three loaves. Yeast - about 25p,
an ounce of butter - 12p. Maybe another 10p for some milk , sugar and salt, and then there's a unit of electricity or do. 5 mins to measure the ingredients and set the machine running, then put your feet up and wait. Unless you can't think of anything to do while it cooks, of course...

 

[strofiwimple]

I always go to my local bakery, i know its novel but he does make exceedingly good bread. i had a bread machine once but then i thought why????????

 

[buddha]

I have a bread machine somewhere. However I gave up using it as:
1) you can only make tiny loaves
2) there's always that hole in the loaf, where the mixing paddle was
3) the bread always had a strange taste - like it had been in a tin for a while, if that makes any sense?
When I do make my own bread, I prefer baking it in a proper fan assisted oven - even though this is not very economical energy wise.

 

[TheDoctor]

Drivel

Well, that's what I meant really, I was just being a bit polite

 

[Speicher]

Thank you all for your helpful comments.

Purple R, I think you are right about over mixing, I also have very warm hands, and perhaps have done too much "rubbing in" of the fat. Recipes say the result should look like breadcrumbs, I will try stopping at "larger chunks" and see what happens. You also mention using plain flour - I think I might have used half and half plain (white) flour and Self-Raising wholemeal flour (because I do not usually have wholemeal plain flour in the cupboard). I will try it with all plain flour. I had wondered why my pancakes turned out on the fluffy side as well, and that would explain it. Time to buy a small packet of wholemeal plain flour, I think.

We have a very good local baker, who sells me excellently yummy old-fashioned type wholemeal bread. I have tried various more exotic breads like walnut. They are available from the delicatessen, but only on two days a week, and they quickly sell out. We also have another baker, who does the mostest yummy pies and cakes. We are very lucky in this small market town that we have a good selection of shops, which I try my hardest to support (including the book shop) but that's another story.

Yoyo, I am not going to try making scones in the breadmaker, I agree that they need to be made by hand. However, it does claim to make marmelade and jam. If I go to the end of my garden in August I will find lots of plums, so might try the jam. Who would like to come to tea at my house?

 

[Fnaar]

I always see in recipes for dough 'wrap in cling film' and ignore it. Teal towel works fine for me.

Does colour of towel have an effect?
We have a bread maker, and use it a lot. Lovely stuff. Only prob is the loaf is really tall, and really difficult to cut (esp when warm) without ripping the loaf apart. Have taken to using electric carving knife on it, which seesm to do the job nicely!

 

[domtyler]

Not sure of your working there Dom. Bread flour costs about £1.50 for a bag that makes three loaves. Yeast - about 25p,
an ounce of butter - 12p. Maybe another 10p for some milk , sugar and salt, and then there's a unit of electricity or do. 5 mins to measure the ingredients and set the machine running, then put your feet up and wait. Unless you can't think of anything to do while it cooks, of course...

50+25+12+10+10=107p ingredients
Electricity = ~70p

So getting on for two quid for a small loaf of bread.

Hmm, think I'll stick to going to the bakers. You guys must have more money than sense!

 

[Fnaar]

...and here I was thinking you were going to post something about plums

No, if you stick your plums in the beread maker, it makes an awful mess!

 

[domtyler]

No, if you stick your plums in the beread maker, it makes an awful mess!

You tried it then?

 

[Fnaar]

You tried it then?

[squesky voice] not since the last time [squeaky voice]

I was going to buy a better bread maker, but i knead the dough for something else...

 

[Arch]

My Mum is one of those people who can't make bread. Pastry yes, bread no (apparently people who can do one well often can't do the other, something to do with temperature of hands.) Always came out leaden - really, like a brick. So she gave up. Years later, on the recommendation of lots of friends, she got a breadmaker. First one, blew up. Replacement: still makes leaden bread. Edible, which is an improvment on her own efforts, but still pretty heavy. I tried it and got a better result, but still a bit dense. She's taken the hint and given up for good...

 

[Speicher]

No, if you stick your plums in the beread maker, it makes an awful mess!

There are lots of plum trees at the bottom of my garden. In August we have a Plum Fayre in this town.

Some plums are quite small and a very dark purple, but other people's range widely in colour and size. You can visit the tent erected for the specific purpose of viewing other people's plums as well as plum jam and tarts.

There is a large group of Volunteers who help out on the Day. They wear specially-designed t-shirts in dark purple. This means that if they sucked any plums, and got squirted on, the stain would not show.

I believe that on the same day, the Firemen have an open Day at the Fire Station, and you can go and admire how smart they look, complete with their shiny helmets.

 

[numbnuts]

I can make bread and very good pastry,
but there again I'm a smart arse

 

[summerdays]

I've had a Panasonic Bread maker for years, its great though I hardly every use it to bake the loaf. I normally use it for making dough (which I am hopeless at, and pastry too - sorry the exception to the rule Arch).

I hardly every follow the recipes now... I don't use milk at all most of the time (several relations with dairy alergy problems). I use olive oil rather than butter as its easier to measure out, and I put in less salt than it suggests). And I use a slightly warm oven to raise the rolls in without any cling film or tea towel. And its good to prepare pizza dough in too.