What should I do with my Bread Machine?

August 17, 2010 4:18 PM

What are your best bread and non-bread recipes for a bread machine?

Just got a used Breadman bread machine and am eager to explore. It came with a brief collection of recipes but I'd like more ideas. I've also heard that you can make jam and chutney in them. Anything else? Online recipe archives would be particularly useful.

I've made tons of bread by hand before and I'm over the kneading. Sometimes I use my Kitchenaid for kneading but I'm intrigued by the all-in-one approach and don't mind a decrease in artisanal quality to get there.

posted by otherwordlyglow to food & drink (10 answers total)

I always end up opening this book. I am a big Beth Hensperger fan in general. It's less than $10 used at Amazon.
posted by bearwife at 4:24 PM on August 17, 2010

My "standard" loaf, that I make almost every week in my breadmaker:

1 1/4 C warm water
2 tablespoons honey or brown sugar
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 C whole wheat bread flour
1 1/2 C white bread flour
2 tsp bread machine yeast

Set it to standard, 2lb loaf

At the "add stuff" beep:

1/4 C flax seeds
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 tablespoon poppyseeds

Also, bagels!

On the dough cycle:

1 C warm water
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 tablespoons white sugar
3 C white bread flour
2 1/4 tsp yeast

When the cycle has completed, divide the dough into 8 equal pieces and shape it into rings (I usually roll the dough between my hands to make a sort of tube, then use a bit of warm water to stick the ends together)

Cover them with a towel and let them sit for anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on how big and fluffy you want them to be.

Next, you need:

Cornmeal
Medium pot of boiling water
3tblsp white sugar
Egg white
Seed/topping of choice

Sprinkle an ungreased cookie sheet with cornmeal and set it aside. Add 3 tablespoons of white sugar to the water. Boil the bagels for 30 seconds on each side and allow them to drip dry on the towel; when they've dripped off a bit, put them on the pan, brush with egg white and sprinkle with your topping. Bake at 375 for 20 - 25 minutes, until just golden. Careful not to leave them in too long, they get really chewy.

Anyone I've given them to loves them :)

Enjoy!
posted by torisaur at 4:31 PM on August 17, 2010 [3 favorites]

Cinnamon Swirl Raisin Bread.
posted by raisingsand at 4:41 PM on August 17, 2010

So what is the difference between regular yeast and bead machine yeast?
posted by otherwordlyglow at 4:50 PM on August 17, 2010

What I've done is take a recipe and then work out how to do it by volume - i.e. I have a cup that fits the right amount of water (about 375 ml), and I have a cup that I put 3 cups of flower in (these are impearial cups). To which I add 2 tsp of salt, about 1 tbsp of sugar and about 1tbsp of oil. Because I use relatively low protein wholemeal flour I tend to add a tablespoon of gluten flour (probably slightly less). A teaspoon of bread improver is also good. Depending on temperature I add 1-2 tsp of yeast depending on the weather. The salt and yeast are the ingredients which need to be measured carefully. If I was using white flour I wouldn't need the gluten flour and I would use slightly less water.

Working it out by volume like this means you can prepare a loaf very quickly (in under 5 minutes) with minimal mess.
posted by singingfish at 4:51 PM on August 17, 2010

I make a knock off of the Macaroni Grill Rosemary bread. Here is the recipe:

1 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon Oregano (I use dried)
1/4 teaspoon Basil (I use dried)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2tablespoon dried rosemary
2 1/2 cups bread flour

Use the "white bread" setting. When it's done, rub it with a little olive oil, sprinkle some coarse sea salt on top and enjoy!
posted by Nickel Pickle at 6:55 PM on August 17, 2010 [3 favorites]

Don't forget that you can use the bread machine to make just the dough (I hate kneading too) then take the dough out to shape it the way you like. We make cinnamon rolls, dinner rolls, pizza, etc. You can also shape things like hamburger/hotdog buns. Braided loaves, fancy filled breads, calzones, stromboli, whatever you would normally bake with bread dough.

I never bothered with the jam or other non-bread recipes in my bread machine.
posted by CathyG at 7:34 AM on August 18, 2010

Regular yeast usually needs to be proofed, by mixing it with sugar and water that is at exactly the correct temperature. Bread machine yeast is the same thing as "instant yeast," and because it contains ascorbic acid or some other substance the yeast doesn't need to be "woken up."
posted by Bleusman at 9:33 AM on August 18, 2010

From what I understand, either of the two types of yeast can be used in bread machines. I just always buy bread machine yeast.
posted by torisaur at 11:27 AM on August 18, 2010

Bought the Hensperger book and it's pretty awesome. Also just made the apricot jam recipe from it. SOOOOO delicious.
posted by otherwordlyglow at 8:01 PM on August 21, 2010