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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
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Thank you.
Note: This only affects The Nest's community members and will not affect members on The Bump or The Knot.
breadmaker?
anyone have a breadmaker? I saw some inexpensive ones on craigslist and I am thinking about getting one. is it worthwhile?? TIA!
Re: breadmaker?
I know a lot of people that love their breadmaker. I have one and have used it but I'm currently listing it to sell actually.
Do you have a Kitchenaid stand mixer? Thats what I use, and I find that process easy and I like the end result better personally. I guess like anything else it comes down to personal preference.
I like this recipe and method for WW sandwhich bread. There's also the Artisan bread in 5 Minutes book thats supposed to be great and easy.
http://rumbleinthekitchen.blogspot.com/2009/01/no-bricks-allowed-whole-wheat-bread.html
Big E (6) & Little E (2.5)
We have one, a Cuisinart model, that specifically has a gluten-free setting. I've only ever made GF bread in it, actually. I love it for that reason.
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I'm not a fan of our bread maker and have used it only a handful of times. Maybe it's just my imagination but I feel like it limits me to mixing the dough and making loaf bread. Or maybe newer machines give more options and the IL's hand-me-down is just really old and basic. On the plus side, I love waking up to the smell of fresh bread.
I make bread from the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day cookbook every week. It's really fast and easy and there are more options for styles of bread than just a loaf. The next cookbook on my list is the healthy version of the series.
Tired after a long morning of hiking and swimming.
I had one in college from the Goodwill that I used ALL THE TIME. It was a lot of fun and if I wasn't completely happy with the results or couldn't get it all eaten in time, I could leave the loaf of bread in the doom lounge and thereby work on my reputation as "The Bread Fairy." However, one day a friend used a knife to loosen the bread in the pan and he badly damaged the non-stick coating. I got rid of that one and replaced it with another Goodwill one which never worked very well or reliably. I don't think there is anything broken about it, just not as well engineered as the first one I had. On top of that, DH and I have a hard time getting through the quantity of bread it makes before it goes bad and we don't have classmates to give the leftovers to. DH makes bread in the Kitchenaid stand mixer from time to time.
I wouldn't spend a lot of money on any bread machine. If the first one you buy doesn't work out, consider trying another used machine.
Make sure the pan is not scratched inside. Make sure it has its little paddle in the bottom of the pan (lots of the ones at the Goodwill are missing the paddle--it can easily be lost down the garbage disposal or where ever and the machine is useless without it). Never ever use a knife to loosen the loaf from the pan. Shake it like hell, or loosen with a rubber or silicone spatula.
We have one that is a good 10 years old. DH had it before we started dating.
We use it periodically. Here are my bread-baking issues (not necesarily connected to the machine as I have tried various methods)
1. We only eat 100% whole wheat.
2. Due to the above I have to add a ton of gluten which I have yet to find a cheap source for, negating some of the financial benefit
3. The texture of my bread is never quite right. If you are eating a big chunk of bread this is fine but if you want thin slices for sandwiches/toast, it is a disaster.
4. I am not a reliable bread baker (and neither is my bread machine) so I end up throwing away every third loaf, or saving it for bread crumbs/bread pudding/etc if it is semi-edible. That makes me cranky.
Long story short, since bread baking in general is not something I do regularly, I am thinking about donating the bread machine and just using my kitchenaid for the infrequent times I actually make bread.
I bought one at an estate sale for $8 and have definitely gotten my money's worth from it. They had 2 for sale and I bought the one that had the more normal looking shape/size loaf. I also bought a breadmaker recipe book @ the same sale and have made some yummy bread.
Ditto the pp's reccs on what to look for when buying a used machine- also I would want the instruction manual- typically that has recipes in it.
I would say that 75% of the bread I have made is good- the other 25% were failures due to my own experimentation.
I have this one from Target and I really like it: http://www.target.com/Breadman-Stainless-Steel-Bread-Maker/dp/B000FZZ0VE/
I love the way the house smells too!