Can we talk breadmakers?

[bonnylass79]

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Love my sourdough starter. It's not hard to revive as long as the hooch hasn't changed some strange color. I just made sourdough pancakes this morning. Making bread later today, but have to decide which kind.

 

[marymac]

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I just bought a KitchenAid Artesian mixer off the internet for 268.00, that was tax free, and no shipping cost. it is beautiful, also I am getting the grinder attachment free. I just couldn't beat that price locally or on TV shopping. It was a big decision for me to spend that much money on something like a mixer, but I have wanted on of these quality machines for as long as I can remember,[ being married 40 years], I finally decided I deserved it. Look at it as an investment. On Craigslist they may have some, they did around here, but they all were holding their price even for used ones.100.00 to 200.00 . Here is the one I got, and the website if anyone is interested.

http://www.everythingkitchens.com/kitchenaid-ksm150.html#order

 

[bargain]

Nice and great bargain!

 

[jacyjones]

I love my breadmaker and use it every day. I have a Panasonic and have never had any problems. I think I have had it nearly 2 years now and never buy bread. I use the quick loaf a lot which takes 2 hrs and also a ciabatta loaf that I cook overnight. I work full tiem so would not have time to make my own bread otherwise.

 

[cindy leigh]

My first bread machine was a WelBuilt and it lasted a long time. Now I have a Zojirushi and LOVE it. I usually don't bake in there, I mix the doughs and hand shape. I use it about 4 Xs a week, because I bake ALL our bread products: sandwich bread, baguettes, hotdog and hamburg rolls, gorditas, english muffins, bagels, etc.

I also have a Kitchen Aid Pro 600 (lift bowl) which I love. I chose that model because it got better ratings than the tilt-head version. KitchenAid has a great bulletin board if you need advice, recipes, etc. I also have attachments for ice cream, pasta cutters/roller/extruder, and grinder. I grind all our meat ( no e coli for me!), and make all our pasta. The Pro 600 is a real work-horse.

I also love the King ARthur flour web site and blog for recipes and advice. I only use KA products. They are employee owned, an American company, and their customer service and quality of product is awesome.

The Zo and the KitchenAid Pro 600 were a bit more $ than other brands or models, but with how much I rely on them, I could justify the investment.

 

[wombat]

We hardly ever used our breadmaker (gift from the inlaws one xmas) and it ended up being relegated to the basement.

I guess if you like the smell of bread in your kitchen and don't want to put a lot of work in, it's ok.

I never found the end result to be very good, and not at all comparable to baking by hand.

 

[halo]

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I love the King Arthur website also. I only buy their flour products, too. I love supporting smaller American companies. Plus, they have the most awesome recipes on their website.

 

[halo]

Amazon has the Artisan for $259, with free shipping. Dont think this beats the above deal, with the free attachment, tho.

http://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-KS...1?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1257706984&sr=8-1

 

[skeeter9]

I have an Oster breadmaker and, up until relatively recently, I used it ALOT without any problems. I work very long hours and have other commitments, so having a machine make the bread from start to finish without requiring any of my time is wonderful. However, for the last year or so, I have been getting back into doing more hand-baking, which is made very easy with my Kitchenaid mixer. There's nothing wrong with what typically comes out of a breadmaker, but if you want more flexibility with the types of dough, shapes, etc that you can bake, then you might be happier with a Kitchenaid. I love my Oster breadmaker, but if I had to choose, I would take my Kitchenaid mixer! It truly is an investment!!

 

[PeeperKeeper]

All I ever wanted was a bread maker....until I got one. I have better control of the outcome if I do it the old fashioned way.