Thinking of making my own bread
#282549 - 09/16/06 12:12 PM
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chupie
Reged: 05/30/06
Posts: 301
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Is a breadmaker of use, or should I just learn to make homemade bread on Sunday mornings for the week? I'm tired of plunking down 3 or 4 bucks for a good bread with no preservatives that I don't get all the way through. I think I'd feel less wasteful. It has to be cheaper. Although my big fear is I'll eat half a loaf when it is fresh!
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Can you freeze the portion of the loaf you don't eat while it's still fresh?
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Ha! I came on here looking for a good bread recipe. I've been researching bread makers and wondering about that myself. What recipe will you be using for regular white bread?
-------------------- Courtney (IBS-D)
"Do your part to live in peace with everyone, as much as possible." Romans 12:18
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I suppose, but I'm not usually very happy about things besides soup or sausage rolls after they are thawed.
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I thought I'd try a basic french bread recipe. Flour, water, yeast, salt. I saw one on here in the index.
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A few people here swear by their breadmaker -- Alicia (HanSolo) in particular, so maybe she'll offer you some advice about that. I asked for one as a wedding gift but once I got it I hated it.
I make homemade bread all the time -- I also use the same recipe for pizza crust, pizza pockets, and breadsticks -- it's this recipe.
I was scared to try making my own bread at first, but it really isn't too bad. The main thing is that you really can't take any shortcuts or the end result will suffer.
For the recipe I posted, this means warming the flour, making sure you knead it for the full 10 minutes (it turns out better if I do it by hand, but I don't have enough energy these days for that), and not letting it rise too much. There are a variety of other things that can go wrong, of course, but those are the three most common mistakes I always make. I can tell when I've screwed up because the texture is too coarse, or there are little holes from air pockets, or it tastes a little off.
It really isn't too time-consuming -- I can have the loaf of bread ready to rise in 20 minutes, and after that the work is fairly minimal (keep an eye on it while it's rising and then when it's in the oven). But, if you're not crazy about the work, you might want to try a breadmaker. Ask around before you buy one -- a lot of people have a breadmaker they never use stashed away in a cupboard, and you might be able to borrow one and test it out before making a purchase.
Oh, and if you do go the homemade bread route, make sure you buy yeast in bulk. The little packets cost a fortune in comparison.
-------------------- jen
"It's one of the most serious things that can possibly happen to one in a battle -- to get one's head cut off." -- LC
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