Bread Makers

[Ga Chicken Mom]

The Zo is a great machine, mine is 3 yrs old and we never buy bread anymore. I use the dough cycle, do the second rise and bake in the oven. The second rise is done in the microwave, I heat 4 cups of water to boiling then put the dough in the microwave and let it rise, this is a perfect atmosphere for the dough, warm and moist. My favorite book is "Whole Grain Breads by Machine or Hand" by Beatrice Ojakangas. My favorite recipe which I develpoed myself through trial and error is:

1 1/2 C Boiling water
1 C 5 Grain cereal ( 3 , 7 10 grain cereal also works)
1 C Bread flour
2 C Whole wheat flour
2 t Salt
3 T Brown sugar
1 T Wheat gluten
1 T Wheat germ
3 T Unsalted butter
2 t Bread machine yeast

Pour boiling water into bread machine pan, add cereal, let cool as you get other ingredients ready. Mix dry ingredients ( except yeast) in bowl, add to pan. Dot with butter,
add yeast. Set on dough cycle. At end of cycle, turn dough out onto lightly oiled surface, punch down, shape into loaf, set in loaf pan, cover and let rise until double. Bake at 375 degrees for 25 - 30 min.

You may have to adjust the temp and time according to your oven. There are more ingredients in this loaf but it is a very healthy bread. I think it was a nutritionist at Cornell U. who recommended using wheat gluten and wheat germ to increase the nutrition in bread. The more whole wheat and whole grain cereals, the better. I don't like loaves made with all whole wheat flour, if someone has a recipe you like, please share.

 

[ChickenToes]

Lately I've been hooked on sourdough. It makes the best breads, hamburger buns, and pizza crusts. As for the cost, all you need is flour and water to make the starter. I use a stand mixer to knead the dough, no bread machine required!

 

[Beekissed]

Bread machine????

I make a wholewheat that is to die for...got the recipe from my mother. When I first thought of making bread, it seemed so complicated and lengthy. But then, I really watched my Mom, after all these years of breadmaking and it didn't look so hard. I will never go back to store bought. I have tried the bread from bread machines that others have made and it sort of taste like bread from a deli....not much different than storebought.
I love the feeling of kneading the dough! I have to call my Mom and talk while I make bread because I feel so close to her when I smell that wonderful smell! I have taught all my teenage boys to make bread and I make them take turns, so they won't forget how. They really crow when their bread turns out better than mine!

4 c. warm water
3 T. yeast
1 c. honey (I use dark brown sugar when I don't have honey...next best thing to being healthier)
2 c. white flour (optional, sometimes I don't use any white)

Let yeast work.

1/3 c. ground flax seed, optional (bulk foods or health food store has it...makes the bread super moist and tasty!)
1 T. salt
1/2 c. Canola oil
Add 4 c. whole wheat flour, one cup at a time, or until the desired consistency.

Knead bread until springy and hardly sticks to hands. After oiling dough ball and bread bowl, cover with plastic or clean dish towel and let raise.
Form into loaves or rolls as desired. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min.

I don't take my bread out of the bowl to knead it, so it leaves virtually no mess on the counter and kitchen. We also do not do loaves anymore, as we have found they dry out quicker, need a longer bake time and are so messy with slicing. We form ours into rolls that we space onto a cookie sheet and roll to about 1 inch with a rolling pin. These bake up into sandwich size flat bread that one can slice and place in the toaster or just use for a sandwich. They store better in the ziploc bags and can be placed in the freezer for later use if one needs to. We call these rolls WV Flatbread!

These will stay more moist than a loaf, as they are encased in crust with no open end from which to lose moisture.


I recently was blessed with 35# of red turkey wheat and an electric wheat grinder! That wheat has so much gluten in it you can SEE the yeast working all the time you are mixing and kneading! It tastes entirely different than store bought whole wheat!

Good luck!!!!

 

[nccountrygirl]

What is the best middle price range bread machine. What do most of you use? Thanks....Laura

 

[happyhen]

I'm on my third Breadman machine (I have a tendency to wear them out) from Salton. It's a mid range machine at about $70 (including S&H) and I love it. It's used at least once every day for not just bread doughs but for noodles, pasta, pizza crust....just about anything that has to be kneaded. It also does jams and quickbreads.

I let the machine do the knead and first rise, then hand form and bake in the oven (or freeze for later).

As a former chef, I recommend The Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook by Beth Hensperger. She has recipes for just about any type of bread with very easy to understand instructions and useful tips. She is a Master Baker (not an easy accomplishment!).

 

[pdsavage]

i got mine used at a second hand store for 5 bucks.I see them all the time at yard sales and second hand stores.
i bake bread,all diffrent kinds.

 

[blessedchickenmama7]

I have a Wellbilt that I picked up at an auction for $25.00. It's old, but works great. My favorite is Egg Bread. It's great for sandwiches and makes great French Toast.

I'll probably buy a better machine with more bells and whistles when this one dies, but it's not showing any signs yet. Knowing how much I love it, I definitely will keep doing it. And the energy savings is phenomenal as well.

 

[Josie]

ChickenToes - I like using my breadmachine, and I think using sourdough starter makes some really yummy bread, but I haven't put the two together yet. With sourdough I do it by "feel" and "look". D you have a recipe for the breadmachine you like?

 

[nccountrygirl]

Hey fellow bread makers. I finally got my first Breadman bread machine today. I love the recipes everyone has given, keep them coming. Thanks

 

[happyhen]

Congrats! Here's a recipe for a Pepperoni Pizza bread that makes the best grilled cheese sandwiches using mozzarella or provolone cheese.

1 cup water
3/4 finely chopped pepperoni
1/3 cup chopped green bell pepper
3 TBSP olive oil
2 TBSP tomato paste
4 cups flour
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 TBSP sugar
1 1/2 tsps fennel seed, crushed
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 tsps yeast

Makes a 2# loaf.