One Last Bread Machine Post--My Favorite Recipe

Home made bread is a great way to help fill the hunger gaps, as well as the gaps in the food budget--but I may have said that before.

So, enough on the glories of the bread machine loaf--just let me share my favorite recipe, which makes a 1-1/2 pounder.


White Bread for the Bread Machine

1-1/4 cups water
3 Tbsp. oil
2 Tbsp. sugar
1-1/2 Tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. non-fat dried milk powder
(or 1 Tbsp. if you use non-instant)
3 to 3-1/3 cups flour
1-1/2 tsp. yeast

Layer the wet ingredients, then the dry ingredients, then the yeast, so the yeast stays dry--especially if you plan to use the delay timer. Be sure you put the paddle(s) in the machine! Press 'start'!

Just a little discussion of ingredients:

Water can be cool--the machine will monitor the temperature.
Oil improves texture and should be mild flavored--canola is great.
Sugar feeds the yeast and helps with browning.
Salt improves flavor and is a control for the yeast.
Non-fat dried milk improves nutrition by making more protein available to the body.
Flour provides proteins for loaf structure and nutrition, and carbs to give us energy. Bread flour is recommended, but I have to admit that I use all-purpose.
Yeast grows to produce the gasses that raise the loaf--make sure it's fresh! (Admission: I was too embarrassed to take a photo of that loaf which went through the entire machine cycle without yeast. Not recommended.)

Don't be afraid to peek at the dough and evaluate it early in the cycle. It should be soft and almost sticky. You can then scrape down the sides of the pan or maybe add flour or water to improve the dough texture. I will admit that I have been known to stop the machine early in the cycle, add flour or water to adjust the dough, and then re-start it. Nothing bad happened.

So, that's it for my Saga of the Bread Machine. But I might not be finished with the subject of the dough.

We haven't even talked about whole grains--any input?

A Bread Fail. . .ish.

Just when I was about to post my favorite, most reliable bread recipe, I turned out the strange, streaky, and lumpy loaf above. I ran through the trouble-shooting list--accurate recipe? Check. Correct cycle? Check. Change ingredients? Check!

Bread baking is not an exact science, even with a machine--I guess it's still at least partly an art! Different factors can affect the finished product--weather, humidity, accuracy. . .and ingredients.

The only change I could come up with is that I had opened a new bag of flour. Although it's the very same flour I always buy, and the same recipe, results are definitely not the same! But I have to say that 'failure' is relative--this loaf was moist and nicely chewy, and made the best toast ever--think 'large English muffin.'


Now to troubleshoot: big holes and collapsed top say that the loaf couldn't support itself. Either the dough was too wet (or slack), or the protein content of the new flour is too low to build a solid structure.

Since my flour should contain a standard amount of protein and starch from bag to bag, I decided it's probably a difference in the flour's moisture content. Dough too moist = add more flour, so for the next loaf I added 1/3 cup more flour, and it turned out quite nicely--but still just a little different than the bread made from the previous bag of flour!

I always open the door of the machine and check out the dough--nothing bad has happened so far! If there's a ring of dry flour around the edges, I'll poke and scrape it with a rubber spatula at the first of the cycle, so I don't get a streaky loaf like the one above.

When the dough is too soft, I add extra flour as it runs, near the start of the cycle. You should check your machine's manual, but I say be bold--poke and scrape! The dough should be soft and just a little sticky.

**All this brings up another interesting point--I have always made my bread from all-purpose flour, just as my mom and grandmas taught me. Bread machine manufacuters recommend bread flour for best results--bread flour has a slightly higher percentage of protein, for a sturdier loaf structure. Any bread flour experience to share?

Homemade Bread--Cost Factors Again

Mama Squirrel brought up an interesting point in her comment on an earlier post--how much does the cost of power affect the cost of baking a loaf of bread in the machine?

An internet search told me the cost of power locally--in the winter months, our electrical cost is 8.7 cents a kilowatt hour, and there is a sliding scale for the warmer months here. (I'm wondering how this compares to other areas.)

A calculator on the internet figured that for 600 watt usage, average for breadmakers, our cost is $.07 for an hour--I'm assuming that would be for the baking part of the cycle. (In comparison, the cost to run an electric oven would be about $.26 per hour here.) A good part of the 3.5 hour cycle is inactive, however.

So the answer is: I can't say definitively. Somewhere between 15 and 20 cents for the power cost? Input, anyone?

One plus for the machine is that it just might keep you out of the grocery store to avoid further spending!

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!

Thrift Thursday--Bread Machine, Part 3!

Please allow me to introduce you to my beloved thrift store West Bend bread machine! I do love this bread machine! It's my favorite of the 6 or 7 machines I've tried--one of its big advantages is that it makes a traditional shaped loaf-- a huge plus!

I got my first machine in this model some years ago, when I needed to replace my old worn-out tall-loaf machine. I came across the West Bend at a yard sale, and picked it up for $10.00--with the manual, fortunately--and just loved it. Besides the loaf shape, another favorite feature is that the machine opens in the front rather than at the top--and there's a good window in the door. It's easy to reach in and adjust the dough if needed, and the pan and the paddles (it has two) are easy to clean. The pan releases well.

Homeless bread machines seem to abound at thrift stores, and my girls and I have watched for this model ever since. We've so far found three other machines like it, and we've paid anywhere from $8.00 to $12.00 each--about the going rate for thrift store bread machines around here. This machine come in two versions--the one I'm using now is a little more deluxe, and has a 'quick bread' cycle as well as all the standard cycles the other model has. (FYI--if you don't have the instructions, the manual is available at westbend.com).

I have to say that I think it's hard to utilize the machine well if it's not stored where it can be used--I suppose this is one big reason for the number of homeless bread machines out there. My machine measures 17-1/2"wide by 11-1/2" high by 11" deep--a little bigger than some standard machines, I think. Too much valuable space would be taken up by keeping it on the counter in my small kitchen, but I found a place for it on top of my vintage cookbook shelves, next to an outlet, where I can use it anytime. Poor Kitty lost her favorite viewpoint to the machine--but she's found a new spot!


I'm afraid I'm gushing . . . and I still have much to say! More later.


Another FYI: West Bend also makes conventional tall-loaf machines--while doing an internet search, I was fascinated to learn that some of them have been recalled due to fire danger! I believe these were all older, conventional machines, but it's easy to tell by tell by the machine's date, which is stamped on the back. Info is at
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml95/95106.html

The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread--Cons?

Since I've praised the bread machine, it's only fair to look at the other side--there must be a few minuses, since thrift stores are always full of rejected machines at bargain prices!

First: the machine may not automatically turn out perfect, tasty loaves.

Second: counter space being valuable real estate, the machine can be a space hogger--especially if it isn't turning out tasty treats.

Third: on the other hand, if the machine isn't easily accessible we are much less likely to drag it out and use it.

Fourth: the usual tall machine loaf is not nearly as satisfactory as the traditional long loaf shape. Slices can be too big, and they're more fragile.

Fifth: the bread machine does only make one loaf, which may not be enough for bigger families.

Difficulties--and I suppose someone really might be tempted to just toss the machine out. That said, I have to admit that in my mind, none of these difficulties outweighs the benefits. I have much more to say!

The Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread!

I love my dear bread machine, and use it all the time! My mechanical friend has repaid me many, many times over for the $8.00 I spent on it at the thrift store.

We're all being affected by the continuing rise in the cost of food--I propose that using that dusty bread machine can reduce the cost of food, and in many ways!

First, one of my basic rules for spending less at the grocery store: stay out of there as much as possible! We all know how hard it is to drop into the store for a gallon of milk or a loaf of bread, and not end up buying a few more things--and chances are that we could have got along without those extras just fine. Not to mention the time and gasoline consumed by the errand!

Second, a loaf of homemade bread is less expensive to make than to buy.

Third, the machine's dough setting makes practically foolproof pizza dough, dinner rolls, sweet rolls, coffee cakes, and crusts for main dishes (ideas to come!) .

Fourth, homemade bread is inexpensive, delicious, and satisfying--a plus for filling up teenage boys and hardworking men.

Fourth, homemade bread is wholesome--you know just what's in there because you put it in yourself And with a few tips and some practice, you can make your bread just the way you like it. Tune in later for further info!

Fifth, homemade bread just tastes better, and has great texture.

Last, (and not least) of all: nothing in the world beats the smell of bread baking when you come home. With your machine's timer, you can have fresh bread just when you need it. Or want it.

And so, I embark on a series: In Praise of the Bread Machine!