Do bread makers save money?

[rob62521]

One problem that I was reminded of at dinner tonight. As I mentioned earlier, the bread is phenomenally better than store bought stuff so you tend to eat more of it. My wife made a double size challah tonight. 4 of us devoured about 2/3 of it. Had it been a store bought challah, I probably would have had one slice.

LOL, Disney Steve!

I try to make something every week from scratch and I usually use the bread machine. I was discussing what I was doing with my doctor and he was impressed that I was using whole grains and oatmeal in our bread. You are so right, the taste is wonderful, the smell is relaxing, and it's far more nutritous than store bought bread.

Last year when I baked bread with the kids at school, it was amazing how many of the staff members would stop in to get a sniff and talk about someone who baked bread in their childhood. I thought it was not only food for the tummy, but food for the soul as well.

[kenyantykoon]

never even thought of making bread but i dont think that getting that machine is a good idea seeing that you dont even eat bread often. it would be a waste of cash and space and electricity. not to mention more work to clean it and who will be making the bread?? and maintenace costs? just buy the bread or make pancakes or something

[Radiance]

kenyantykoon ,

Was that directed to me? I eat bread every day, about two loafs a week if you read my original post.
I am told they are very easy to clean. Maintenance costs, I guess similar to other kitchen appliances, you use it until it dies years later.
\
Plus I will be able to do pizza and other goodies with it

I actually think it is a great idea.

[disneysteve]

I eat bread every day, about two loafs a week if you read my original post.
I am told they are very easy to clean. Maintenance costs, I guess similar to other kitchen appliances, you use it until it dies years later.
\
Plus I will be able to do pizza and other goodies with it

I actually think it is a great idea.

Yes, clean up is simple. Just the pan in which the bread bakes (or mixes if you pull it out for something else) and the little hook that mixes it. Really no maintenance cost at all. Sure it uses some electricity but likely a lot less than the oven.

[mom-from-missouri]

Right now in my area, (I really study the prices) I am NOT making bread from scratch. Right now (not to say in 2 weeks I will) I am buying the Always Save brand of 5 frozen bread dough loaves and baking them myself. The bag of preshaped frozen loaves is $2.98 and it contains 5 loaves. It normally cost me around 89 cents to bake a loaf.

Our local grocery wants $4.18 (as of last week) for ONE loaf of GENERIC bread. I have been baking my own bread since we moved here for this reason.

I also buy my flour in 25 lb bags (we well as my sugar and salt and cornmeal) and keep them in a nonworking chest deepfreezer. It keeps the critters and moisture out. I get my yeast in 5 lb containers at an Amish Store (that I have heard has since went out of business...) and keep it stored in the working freezer. That yeast will last me around a year and since I keep it frozen it is always good.

We do use a bread machine for speciality breads or I buy the mixes and use them in the machine when we are in the RV camping. Our RV oven is smaller and sometimes heats unevenly and the bread machine comes in handy then.

[wincrasher]

I have a bread machine - don't use it much. My old one was more consistant that this one. You can have your choice of machines for about $40 bucks brand new.

I generally go to our "day old" store. Last time I went, I got loaves of multi-grain that generally $3 to $4 for about $1 each. Bought 17 loaves and put them in the freezer. Every town has one of these places - you should check it out.

[Miss Curly]

One thing no one has mentioned is how the bread is a different shape than store bought bread, depending on your bread maker. Mine makes square shaped bread, and the bread itself doesn't fit well into many things. Like if I were to try to pack sandwiches, etc. The bread slices are too big for sandwich sized baggies and normal tupperware style plastic containers. Something to think about when you look at bread machines.

That said, the fresh bread is so good, you can easily eat it all the day you make it, especially in the beginning when you have fresh baked bread around.

I do use mine to pizza dough, especially when I am not using it to make bread. Just let it make some dough while I cook something else. The dough freezes really well and I find that it defrosts easily in the ziploc bag and even rises again.

[disneysteve]

One thing no one has mentioned is how the bread is a different shape than store bought bread, depending on your bread maker.

That's true, but there is no reason that you need to bake it in the machine if the shape is important to you. You can use the machine to do all the mixing and then put the dough into a loaf pan for the final rise and baking. That way you can get it whatever shape you'd like.

We have a heart-shaped bread pan that we've used a few times for special occasions. We've also made pizza dough, challah bread that we've braided and other stuff that we've shaped ourselves or put in another pan to bake.

[Miss Curly]

That's true, but there is no reason that you need to bake it in the machine if the shape is important to you. You can use the machine to do all the mixing and then put the dough into a loaf pan for the final rise and baking. That way you can get it whatever shape you'd like.

True. But running the oven can be a hot proposition, especially for Radiance in Florida, and her a/c is already running quite a bit. There are normal shaped loaf pans available, which may be more or less important depending on whether or not you care about shape and care about reducing/increasing the heat in your house. Personally, I like running the oven in the winter, when Texas actually gets somewhat cool, especially since I like colder bedrooms and warmer living areas. But in the summer, spring and fall? I don't use my oven if possible.

[Thrif-t]

mmmm we love fresh bread and use our bread machine all the time. We mostly use it for toast not sandwiches or to eat hot bread with our dinners. I've started using my machine to make pizza dough too and make homemade pizza. I buy a 25# bag of flour from Sam's Club that probably lasts us 2 or 3 mos and is aroune $7. I started making bread because I'm trying to get away from high fructose corn syrup which is in everything. Plus its so yummy warm.

[rob62521]

Good plan on the high fructose corn syrup...as well as preservatives. Two of the same reasons I like baking my own bread.

[Inkstain82]

It costs me about $0.40/loaf to make simple homemade bread.

It's not really good for sandwiches, too crumbly, but it's great as a side. Honestly, I love it so much I usually just eat it for breakfast every morning with a glass of milk. Not much cheaper than that.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Inkstain, to get a less crumbly loaf, buy a box of gluten and add a tablespoon to your dry ingredients. Gluten is just the protein in the flour. It makes the bread stick to itself, a little chewier, a little denser.

The person who is having trouble with their loaf falling as it cooks might also benefit from adding some gluten to the recipe. Sometimes all it takes is to switch brands of flours. Some brands are milled from wheat grains that naturally has more (or less) gluten. The low gluten flours are good for biscuits, cookies, muffins, and cakes. We like the higher gluten flours for breads.

In a large supermarket gluten is usually in the aisle with flour, but on a shelf with the special flours and milled seeds and grains other than wheat. Bob's Red Mill is one recognizable packager of gluten.

When looking for flour for bread, you could consider buying those marked for bread making, or those marked high gluten. My own local supermarket generic brand is okay for bread, but I prefer a very dense bread so I do prefer more gluten.

[Inkstain82]

I'll try that, thanks!

[rob62521]

I found a great non bread machine recipe for bread that is easy and doesn't take forever... it's good for regular meals, slicing, and even making croutons:

Old Fashioned Brown Bread

2 1/3 cups boiling water
1 cup old fashioned oats
½ cup butter, cubed
1/3 cup molasses
5 ½ to 6 ½ cups all-purpose flour
5 teaspoons active dry yeast
2 teaspoons salt
In a large bowl, pour boiling water over oats. Stir in butter and molasses. Let stand until mixture cools to 120-130, stirring occasionally.
In another bowl, combine 3 ½ cups flour, yeast, and salt. Beat in oak mixture until blended. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.
Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
Punch dough down. Turn onto lightly floured surface; divide in half. Shape into loaves. Place in two greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.
Bake at 375 for 35=40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.