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Choosing The Right Bread Machine

September 28th, 2009 No comments

If one of your major temptations is fresh bread, then you need a bread machine to indulge your cravings. Regardless of personal preferences or even budgetary constraints, you are guaranteed to find the perfect one for you.

When bread machines first came on the market in the 1980s, they became an immediate hit. Even with their $300+ price tags, people scooped them up off store shelves and headed home to bake up a storm. In the beginning, the mainstream houseware retailers hadn’t caught on to the craze; bread machines were made by companies who produced that one particular product only.

It took about ten years for the big name kitchen retailers to produce their own bread machines, but when they finally brought these newer models to market, prices had dropped to under $100 and they were lighter, tinier, and quieter. Even with these price reductions, options and styles increased.

Bread machines originally produced only round loaves of bread simply because the ingredients needed to be mixed and it was impossible to put a square mixing pan in and expect decent results. Although a bit awkward for sandwiches and the like, the bread nevertheless rivaled what grandma used to turn out by hand.

Today we can find models with round, rectangular or square baking pans inside. Since many bread machine owners have used these things since their invention, they prefer the round tins simply because they do indeed produce a more consistent quality loaf of bread, no matter what. No matter how many technological advances are put into place, manufacturers have not been able to perfect the outcome of the square loaf pans. Loaves still occasionally come out with some crispy edges or unmixed dough.

When you tire of baking bread all the time, try some homemade pizza dough or bagels! Machines now can do just about anything including “quick breads” that don’t require yeast or rising. Timing mechanisms will alert you as to when you should remove the dough to continue with your recipe.

Even diehard professional cooks and bakers have given up the time consuming manual methods and turned to bread machines to help them out. They appreciate that there is no more guesswork due to the total automation of these baking wonders. Just open, add your ingredients, turn it on, and walk away for a few hours.

Make certain you know how easy it will be to clean, however. The less expensive models tend to make cleaning fairly difficult. Since the ingredients tend to get all over the place during the mixing, you want to be able to easily reach in and wipe it off. Try to find a machine that at least protects the heating coils.

Look for a machine that allows you to completely remove the top and put it in the dish washer. Also look for a machine that has built in splatter guards so that when accidents happen – and they will – you only need to clean the guards.

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