Saturday, January 21, 2012

The Cost of the Loaf. . . More Bread Machine!


In thinking about the bread machine, I began to wonder how the cost of a loaf of bread actually compares between a home-made and a commercial loaf. So we got out the calculator!

I recently re-stocked my flour supply, and paid $7.80 for 25 pounds. (I'm wondering how the price of flour varies in different locations--my price was apparently a pretty good buy, since on the same weekend flour was $10.00 for 25 pounds at the local grocery, on sale.)

Hubby and I calculated the number of 1-1/2 pound loaves the bag of flour could make, by weight, and divided the price of the flour by the number of loaves. Price of flour was about $.30, so with the other ingredients, we figure the cost is between $.40 and $.45 per loaf from this bag of flour.

Just for interest's sake, we figured the cost of a loaf from a $10.00 bag of flour--flour cost was $.50, so the cost of a loaf is $.55 to $.60 per loaf.

The rock-botton price for a 1-1/2 pound loaf of balloon bread this weekend was $.99--looks like there's a considerable savings on a home-made loaf, and the homemade bread actually tastes good!

Note: it hurts me to compare a flavorful, good-textured loaf of fresh homemade bread to a fluffy, washed-out loaf of commercial balloon bread, but since balloon (or Wonder-style) bread is the least expensive option, I'm willing to use it for comparison! Savings on actual bread would be much greater!


11 comments:

  1. My husband won't eat any other bread for sandwiches but the "washed-out...commercial...bread" - and it's SO irritating! He claims the other ones (home-made or baker) are dry, and he is nuts!

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    1. Well. . .at least we can say 'sandwich' bread tends to be sturdy!

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  2. A 25-pound bag of flour costs $6.94 where I buy it in Kansas City. I bake all our bread, but I make "Country Buttermilk," so the cost per loaf is definitely higher than $0.60 a loaf! Still, the store-bought Country Buttermilk is at least $4 a loaf, so I definitely save money! I let my bread machine do all the "work" of mixing, kneading, and growing. Then I transfer it to two loaf pans, let it grow half an hour, and then bake it.

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    1. Yum--I love buttermilk bread! Great idea for making two standard-shapedloaves at once--how many cups of flour do you use for the two-load batch?

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  3. I've had my mom's bread machine for years and never used it until this past fall. It was wonderful just adding the ingredients and pushing a button! My dogs did not like the sound the machine made but the gluten free bread I made was pretty good! Thanks for the posts about yours. Now I think I'll go start a loaf!

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    1. Poor doggies--does your gluten free bread make good toast? Wonderful toast has to be one of the big pluses for homemade bread!

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  4. I cannot even fathom how much money I have saved over the years by making homemade bread. We go though 6 loaves a week, sometimes more. Homemade is more filling, so I know we would go through more if it was store-bought!

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  5. Homemade bread is just so homey! I've been wondering--what machine do you use for your dough? Do you make 6 loaves in one baking?

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  6. This is a very helpful breakdown- thanks! It makes me want to start baking bread again!

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