For as long as I’ve known him @cuppacafe has enjoyed baking bread, pizza dough, all manner of yeasty things. (He used to make me pizza when we were dating. *g*) And all without any sort of measuring of ingredients or recipe usage. He just tosses stuff by ratios and it all turns out good. A month or so ago he got a bug to get a bread machine. Remember when those things cost a fortune? No longer.
$50 later we’re home from WalMart with the one and only Sunbeam model they had in stock. The first loaf he made was another of his no recipe concoctions (and it remains my fave of our experiments thus far) and didn’t use bread machine yeast, but the live yeasty blob growing in a container in the fridge. (Scary science experiment.)
My first loaf was a big fail because the only yeast I had needed to be proofed, but I treated it as bread machine yeast to see what would happen. It was a jalapeno cheese recipe that we eventually made again. The jalapenos were great, but the cheese worked as a flavoring rather than being a chunky part of the slices. We’ve done another cheese loaf since, with a sharp white cheddar, timing when we added the cheese, but we haven’t yet managed to get it right. Everything gets eaten, a lot of it toasted with garlic, butter and parmesan with whatever we’re having for dinner!
I blogged here about one of the loaves I made. It was a bit heavy, and if I do it again, I’ll do some adjusting, cutting back on the wheat flour. I’ve also done the following:
- 1 – French Bread (super great crust, texture meh)
- 2 – White Bread (thick slices toasted made great sandwiches)
- 3 – Black Pepper Onion Bread (boy did this one smell good, decent taste)
- 4 – Dill Cottage Cheese Bread (again, great smell, flavor okay)
We’ve finally found a recipe we love so much we’ve now made it twice. In one week! It’s a Buttermilk Cinnamon Raisin Bread and it’s the best! We have tweaked it a bit, cutting the wheat flour to 1/4 a C and increasing the bread flour the same amount. Also, we upped the yeast to 1 1/2 tsp, and might up it a tad more next time.
I also played with adding the raisins so they wouldn’t all be stuck on the bottom. Dusting them with flour and pouring them in a bit at a time at the add-in cycle worked great. At the same time, I had to add about a tablespoon of water as the machine was starting to bounce across the countertop! I should’ve used the sweet setting instead of basic as it keeps the sugar from burning, but I was rushed and forgot.
Anyhow, this is SUPER yummy. Anyone else play with bread machine recipes?
Got any good ones to share?
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I love my bread machine. I just sorta dump stuff in though. *g* I have a basic bread recipe I follow and then modify depending on what I have on hand and how the spirit moves me.
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I’m not yet confident enough to just dump stuff in, LOL, but am getting there! I love experimenting. I just don’t love all those carbs, heh.
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I LOVE my bread machine and use it at least three days out of the week. My kids actually prefer homemade bread to store bought now and when I had a slacker few weeks all I got asked was if I was going to start making bread again.
This is where I got most of my bread machine recipes.
http://www.recipezaar.com/recipes/breads,bread-machine
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Thanks for the link! I’ll have to browse!
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OMGosh. Bread machines are only $50 now? Wow.
We actually got rid of our bread machine a few years ago, cause it was just taking up counter space. I’m the only breadaholic in my family – all the guys are meataholics. But looking at your picture and reading what you’re making is making me think about going back for another one. Especially at that price!
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I know! When he decided he wanted one, I had no idea they were that cheap now! And we store ours on top of the fridge. ;)
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I know a lot of people who have them including my daughter but I haven’t gotten on yet, Maybe since we just remodeled my kitchen I should get one now! : – )
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Lisa – I never wanted one and I still like my OroWheat bread for sandwiches and the like, but it’s fun to play!
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That bread looks yummy Alison!! I gave my bread machine to my Mom a few years ago. My hubby loves to bake and he makes bread atleast once a week but he does it the “old fashion” way…….no bread machine. He makes an awesome Amish white bread that even the kids will eat! I just wish he would figure out how to clean the mess up once he is done baking!!!
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Blanche – I definitely love the bread done by hand MUCH better. I’m not a fan of the texture of bread machine bread. I love the artisan stuff with the airy centers and crusty loaves. And, yeah, I have to do the dishes, too. *g*
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Do you have the book Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day? It’s really THAT easy and totally fantastic. Cuppa might love it, too.
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Oooh, good idea for a Christmas gift!
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I always had good luck with the basic bread recipes from my cookbooks (the recipes not necessarily intended for a bread machine). I also used it a lot on the dough cycle for hands-free cinnamon roll or pizza dough.
Gave up my machine when I got a stand mixer several years ago because I found the mixer did just as good of a job, and it could do other stuff (like cake batter). I might have kept it if the bread machine’s timer worked with the dough cycle (so I could have yeast cinnamon roll dough ready to shape and bake for breakfast), but for some reason they didn’t do that.
With my oldest child in kindergarten, I’m now packing school lunches and balking at grocery store bread prices. It’s tempting to buy another bread machine, but I’d need to chuck some other appliance to make room in the kitchen.
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The bread we prefer eating is SO expensive, but I actually think it’s healthier than the bread we’ve made so far. I haven’t invested in the different flours and other ingredients.
And I hear ya on the counter space. Between the microwave, the coffee pot and grinder, the toaster and can opener . . . everything else is shelved until we actually need it!