Our Daily Bread

Many of us on here make our own bread, be it by hand or by breadmaker (or in a chicken brick!), so this is the thread for all bread-making tips, questions, discussions et al.

To kick off with, my number one tip for breadmaker users is: when your breadmaker is new, make 2 or 3 photocopies of each page of the recipe booklet, and get one set laminated and put the others in a safe place with the booklet and guarantee etc.
Over time the booklet gets grease stained, water splashed, pages stuck together and generally becomes illegible. Whilst I can remember the quantities for the 2 loaves I make on a daily basis, I always have to consult it for any of the others, and even for different sizes of the same loaf. And breadmakers, I have found, tend to be rather unforgiving of quantitative error.

Top tip Billy! A breadmaker is on my christmas list, and DH bought a laminator just last week so I shall do as you suggest if I get the breadmachine

I dunno what I do wrong but I've yet to make a loaf by hand that doesn't get fed to to birds and even they sometimes ignore it
so I thought I'd try my luck with a machine instead!

I think that the main problem people have with making bread by hand is over complicating the ingredients and not kneading enough - for that matter not developing a good kneading rhythm either.

I make a loaf every two days for us and have over the years refined the Delia white basic to a point where I can use it for any type of bread, I think that the trick is mixing your hot water, yeast and sugar together and letting it activate and froth up before adding to the flour - since I started doing that, I have not had one loaf failure, I get lots of air bubbles and therefore a good crumb in the loaf.

Anyone got a breadmaker? Dh said I can have one for christmas but I can't decide between the Panasonic SD255 and the Kenwood BM450.

I know the Panasonic is popular but then again Kenwood's a good brand too.....

Help!!

Ta

A x

We've got a very cheap and cheerful Morphy Richards. It replaced the one we had (a pass on) that broke. We looked at Panasonic, but went with what we knew 'cos it was cheaper and we were satisfied

Panasonic 255 here......replaced another panasonic we had mucho use out of ( we make all our own bread, bread products etc here)

I have had a number of other makes in the last 14 years but only the panasonic consistantly makes good bread and lasts the use we give it.

I don't think Kenwood make anything particularly well.

We are Panasonic 255 people as well and I have only good things to say about it. Have tried various machines before without really satisfactory results. Have yet to have a duff loaf from the Panasonic.

Could this thread be usefully folded into the existing Breadmaking thread perhaps?

Gosh, is there one? I missed it... sorry Oh yes...I have found it now... again..sorry!

How is where you are, Billy dear?

Admittedly the other one is a little cryptically titled. I couldn't find a way of stickyifying threads.
If we can merge them I will retitle the combined one '... The Breadmaking Thread'

Another Panasonic fan here - we got our SD255 about 3 months ago on the strength of recommendations - and I have not bought a single loaf of bread since! My OH says frequently that it was the best £78 we've ever spent! I got mine from a website called something like 'kitchen magic' and that was the best price anywhere at the time. If you possibly can afford it, I'd go for it - you won't regret it!

Panasonic 255 it is then!

Thank you all for steering me in the right direction, I shall let DH know and hopefully I should be turning out tasty bread in the new year!

Billy, good idea to merge the threads.....ummm.....any idea how to?!

A x

Wilhelm Von Rhomboid wrote:Admittedly the other one is a little cryptically titled. I couldn't find a way of stickyifying threads.
If we can merge them I will retitle the combined one '... The Breadmaking Thread'

No..my bad...not your fault at all...I just forgot there was a thread already...

I think it might be Badger as he's the mod.....he'll be the man to merge the threads. I shall go and ask!

A x

I've got no work-top space for a breadmaker, and so still make our bread by hand. It doesn't take that long and my main thought in favour of non-machine bread is you can make a much bigger loaf, or a totally different-shaped loaf such as a plaited loaf, or a farmhouse with a "topknot". My favourite bread flour is Bacheldre Mill - I have never made a bad loaf with that.http://www.bacheldremill.co.uk/

I love Bacheldre Mill flour too.......a couple of years ago when we were staying in Wales we happened to drive past, so called in to have a look. It was a miserable november day, but the guy who is running it was really lovely, let us have a quick look round and then opened up their little shop specially so I could stock up on flour!

Wilhelm Von Rhomboid wrote:Breadmakers, I have found, tend to be rather unforgiving of quantitative error.

Yep, I found that - it's one of the reasons I freecycled my breadmaker and now just make bread by hand.
During my year in Naaaaaaaaaaaarfark I got really pretty damned good at making my own breads.

What ingredients are folk using for their 'basic' bread ?

I use Allinsons Premium White Bread Flour:
http://www.allinsonflour.co.uk/products/premium-white-very-strong-bread-flour.html
Mainly because it's often on 'special offer' and it always gives good results.
I use the cheapest dried milk I can find (sadly it's usually Te$co Value !)
And I've never been refused free yeast from any bakery or s*permarket bread counter.

When we left the UK I gave my breadmaker to my sister and learned how to do it by hand. I used a many times refined version of Delias simple white loaf.

I get a lovely local stoneground heritage wholewheat flour which makes for a nice crusty loaf. Given up on tins and we just have cottage style now. (though I do hanker after an antique Hovis bread tin that leaves the word on the side of the loaf - I'm a sentimental bugger you see.

Our bread maker is a Zojirushi whose model number I don't know because it is in the kitchen and I am not. It most closely resembles this model but is at least a few generations older. Mom bought it 10, or maybe even 15 years ago, when my father was still alive. It's a good machine, makes a fine loaf of bread, but it's desperately underused. Although I love a good yeasty loaf as much as the next fella... I just don't eat that much bread on a daily basis to warrant making one. Maybe one day I'll really put it to good use...

Without bread, no breadcrumbs. Without breadcrumbs, no stuffing.

(ancient proverb)

Wilhelm Von Rhomboid wrote:Without bread, no breadcrumbs. Without breadcrumbs, no stuffing.

(ancient proverb)

So would it be sufficient to give my boss a slice of bread instead of a verbal answer when he asks me to work overtime...

Wilhelm Von Rhomboid wrote:Without bread, no breadcrumbs. Without breadcrumbs, no stuffing.

(ancient proverb)

I understand, truly I do. Life is somehow less without good bread. It's just that I most often find myself using up my tummy space on something other people use up frozen apple slices to make room for.... when forced to make a choice... MEAT wins.

Ah yes that daily meat or bread? Bread or meat? conundrum...

But, as demonstrated by that most sublime of culinary artforms, the bacon sandwich, meat and bread can symbiotically co-exist in a symphony of unparalleled yummage, just like black people and white people (*) can live together in perfect harmony on an enormous piano.

(*) as long as they are not gold-digging monopods. In which case they can't.

Wilhelm Von Rhomboid wrote:unparalleled yummage

This is my new official all-time favorite phrase.... ever!

There's nothing better than a good fresh loaf of bread and some quality butter........sepecially when the bread only came out of the oven 20 mins earlier or so.

My breadmaker is one of the best things i've bought. So easy. Can also set the timer and have a fresh loaf ready for when you get up in a morning.

Our usual Sunday breakfast is home made granary tosted with smoked salmon and poached eggs. Accompanied by a good cup of coffee made on a proper commercial espresso machine with beans I roasted myself less than 3 days or so ago. Nom, nom, nom.......

Can't beat it.....bet it would rival anything of Gordon Ramsays!

It always amazed me how clean the bread maker stays.....i thought they'd be a nightmare to clean before i bought one.