Wednesday, February 9, 2011

The Bread Machine


Do you remember when the Bread Machine came out on the market?  It was an instant success!  No decent kitchen should be without one!  It was one of the most popular new appliance to have in your kitchen.  Just think, fresh homemade bread without much  effort on the part of the user! Toss the ingredients in the baking pan thingy and push a button.  Fresh bread in no time at all.  It was a really popular gift to give mother-in-law. Especially if you were trying to rack up a few extra points!  Most folks that ended up with one though,   used it 3-4 times and then put away. Right next to that nifty panini sandwich maker the Hot Air Popcorn Popper and the waffle iron.   Eventually most of them found their way out to the garage and from there it ended up in the garage sale or at the local goodwill. Another one of those Mother's Day gifts that just didn't quite take hold.

Now if you know me at all then you know that I am all about simple and easy. If I can find a way to go about something in a way that means I don't have to work so hard...Count me in! 
     Anyway, a couple of years or so ago I found one of those bread machine at a local thrift store. Someone's retired holiday gift just waiting for someone like me to take it home.  It was brand new and even had the manual that came with it.  I think I paid like $4.00 for it.  I decided I was going to start making "homemade" bread. It just tasted sooo much better than store bought and it was easy to do. So from then until now I have used that bread machine regularly.  I've probably bought less than a dozen loaves of store bought bread since then. 
    Folks made fun of me, but I knew at least I wasn't having to buy bread anymore.  The problem was this though.... All my prepper friends who bake bread from scratch seem to love to give me shi...grief about me and my bread machine. I'm talking about them straight up laughing at me!!  Seriously! Many good jokes were made at my expense in the prepper chat room!   But I was ok  with my machine even with everyone poking fun at me.  After all, I still was baking my own bread.  Which is more than a whole lot of people can say, right?  


Mrs M was one of those who kept poking fun at me about my bread machine. She just kept telling me how much better homemade bread was. Then she got it in her head that one way or another she was going to get me to retire my beloved Bread Machine.  Of course she never actually told me that. She started giving me bread making lessons. We made all sorts of breads.  Rustic Italian Bread, onion rolls, hamburger buns, pizza dough, whole wheat bread, honey wheat bread.... The list just goes on. Then one day I was looking for something in the storage room and had to move my bread maker out of the way.  That was when I realized that I hadn't used  it ONCE in over 3 months. I had "graduated".  The bread is just so much better than what I am able to make in my bread machine. The stuff made in the machine tends to be more dense... a truly different texture and flavor to it. 
     So I have an announcement to make to all my "Bread Buddies" out there.   You can stop with the jokes now,  I am going to retire my once favorite kitchen appliance. I'm not quite ready to actually give it away or let it find a new home at Goodwill just yet.... but I am comfortable in my "doughiness" (is that even a word?) now.  And Mrs M.... Thanks for being so "sneaky", as well as patient, and teaching me how to make wonderful homemade breads all by myself! 
                   ~~~ Hey ... I'm Just Sayin'...~~~

13 comments:

  1. I used to make our bread and all our rolls from scratch - no bread machine, but I did have one.

    Then when I got sick I couldn't knead anymore and it was too much effort, so out came the bread machine.

    I am so happy I have it - yes, you are correct - it is a completely different product, but it is the best I can do.

    Well - at least until I can teach Hubs to make bread.

    I do take the dough out and put it in pans/on a stone - that improves the texture a bit. I don't like it baked in the machine.

    Congrats on your graduation. :D

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  2. Love homemade bread. I would like to find a good recipe that we can make sandwiches with. But then we work all week and I would not have time to do it on a regular basis on the weekends.

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  3. congrats sound as if they are in order SciFi. I do't know what all the teasing was about because you used a bread machine, saving $$ and better ingredience is definately a good thing.

    I was given one of those machines for Christmas one year( from my MIL), used it twice and proptly gave it away to a friend, who BTW still used it,so they are eating better from that stand point. I even convinced her to stop buying those expensive bread mixes from the store and instead use pantry ingredience. She makes bread twice a week for she and her Dh.

    I'm just not a gadget kinda gal, I even use a hand mixer or simply mix stuff by hand.

    Congrats, happy eating and enjoy all of that homemade goodness :o)
    Kelle

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  4. Well, I still use my bread machine and have to say I love it. I have been taking the dough out to rise on it's own though and bake it in the oven. The taste is better and the mixing thing-a-ma-jiggy on the bottom always tears my bread and what a waste. I do need to find time to make bread the "right" way though, but for now I can at least know my family is putting better and healthier food into their bodies. One step at a time I say...

    Congrats on your new skills!

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  5. Nothing tastes better than homemade bread hot just out of the oven with real butter. OH my, you got me hungry now!!!

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  6. Skippy Mom- I'm just now learning about cooking on stones. I really like the way the crust is turning out on the breads. I wish I had known about them sooner!

    Sonya- I sure know how it is not to have time enough in the day to do everything you want to. Stay tuned though. I have a recipe that is right up your alley. You may find that you have the time for this one!!

    Kelle - I'm glad to hear your friend is baking bread in your old machine. And you are so right about fresh ingredients being better. I have a confession... I never even bought any of those mixes. I'm too cheap...err. frugal. :D Part of being a prepper (for me) is to be able to use things from my pantry.

    Shelly - You notice I said I still have my bread machine! I still keep thinking I might still use it on occasion. Another confession here... I've never taken my bread out of the machine, always have just cooked it in there too. You're one step ahead of me there!

    Dizzy - Amen to that! Homemade bread, no matter how it is cooked, smells like Heaven and tastes like it too!

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  7. I have tryed the machine and making sour dough bread by hand. Sorry to say both were a flop.I have given up on fresh bread,but envy those who have learned to make this treasure. Blessings jane

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  8. My bread machines came from yard sales. Yes, three of them. Could not pass on the great buys. Funny thing - the one that makes the best bread only cost .50 cents. And like you, they are in retirement now that we make rustic breads. But I, too, just can't quite get rid of them - and after reading what SkippyMom wrote, I probably never will... Just in case...

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  9. I love the bread machine. We have literally worn three out and are on the fourth one! The first three were bought new but got #2 & 3 discounted because of breaking down within a year. The one I have now was found at a thrift store. Yes, I am perfectly capable of making homemade bread without a machine. Learned back when I was a pre-teen. However, I am a busy person and like the convenience of the machine and still have fantastic bread!

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  10. Welcome to the dark side!!

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  11. I do home made bread My Mom uses a bread machine.
    Skippy, I can't knead bread so I use my Kitchenaid mixer for that or No-knead bread that just sit for 12-24 hours in the fridge after a hand mixing of the ingredients.

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  12. ...ahh,heck with'em...use it,jus'don't tell nobody...i miss the Mrs bread machine,it went as garage sale fodder years ago...

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