I rediscovered my bread machine - now have questions.

[imagine]

I rediscovered my bread machine ( use to make all our bread it in years ago) but with all the grounded to the house due to the weather store bought wheat bread was not an option and it was to cold for regular homemade bread to rise properly.

So I dug out my bread machine couldn't find the operating instructions or recipes but found some on line. So I made a Whole wheat loaf. It was a big hit, so I had to make another and then I tried home made pizza dough in the maker (3 out of 4 people liked it better than the bagged pizza mix).

So now my questions:

Is bread made in the machine have less of the preservatives and other yucky stuff ( ingredients I used whole wheat, butter, water, powdered milk, molasses, salt, and yeast)?

Is it really healthier for you then the same kind in store bought?

Is it cheaper than store bought or more expensive? (I can buy store bought wheat bread for $1.59 a loaf). Hubby thinks he needs less of the bread machine bread to make a filling sandwich. How does one go about comparing the loaves for cost?

[Contrary Housewife]

Is it healthier? It could be, you have to compare your ingredients vs the store bought bread. Not all breads are made with preservatives.

You do control your ingredients, which is the beneficial part.

[Pianolady]

I don't know if it's cheaper for basic breads, but it sure makes the house smell good, and you do control what goes into it. For the specialty breads and rolls (i.e. raisin bread, etc.), it's definitely better and cheaper. We use the dough setting more than anything....for cinnamon rolls, yeast rolls, pizza crust, etc.

I buy the wheat bread at the store.

[Grainlady]

"Healthier" than store-bought is subjective, as Country Housewife pointed out, but the breads I make are healthier because the ingredients I use aren't common to commercial breads.

I first started making all our breads to eliminate the trans fats that were commonly found in commercial breads, but most of those are now removed (which is a good thing). After years of research on the subject, lots of books, and piles-of-files, this is how I improve nutrition.

1. I use freshly-milled flour, which is the only way you can get the abundance of nutrients, germ oil and fiber from wheat, at their peak, because they begin to degrade within 3 hours of milling. The nutrients and germ oil are already degraded in commercial whole wheat flour because it's "old" by the time it reaches most homes. When I judge foods at fairs, I can instantly tell who uses commercial whole wheat flour and those that use freshly-milled. Commercial whole wheat flour tastes something like road dust to me (country gal that lived on a dirt road growing up - LOL), and always has a rancid, acidic taste.

2. Additions like bean flour, freshly-milled flaxmeal, high-maize resistant corn starch, chia seeds, and freshly-milled coarsely-ground multi-grain blends to lower the glycemic impact, increase protein, fiber and nutrition.

3. I add "preservatives" and dough enhancers to my breads, they just aren't things you would consider a preservative.

-Honey or agave nectar aid in preventing mold and make the crumb stay moister in loaves you freeze.

-Chia seeds to help hold moisture in the crumb of the loaves so they stay soft for much longer than typical homemade bread. The same with coconut oil I add. It aids in keeping the bread fresher longer and prevent mold. Hubby made a peanut butter sandwich for lunch with a loaf of 100% whole wheat bread that was frozen, removed from the freezer last Thursday morning, and was still soft enough for a sandwich today.

-Ascorbic acid (aka vitamin C). This helps prevent Glutathione from wheat germ forming. Gluthione breaks down gluten strands. Ascorbic acid helps gluten development and produces a lighter loaf, especially important when making 100% whole wheat bread.

-Spices... Old German bakers' say a pinch of ginger will make your yeast work better. Small amounts of ginger, ground caraway, cardamom, cinnamon, mace, nutmeg, and thyme all improve yeast activity.

-Ground beans... "Most French flour is fortified with 2% fava bean flour, which improves dough performance and enhances flavor, nutrition and yeast growth." I mill and add my own bean flours, include fava beans.

What I'm not adding are bleaches, bromates and iodates. When flour is milled and used fresh, there are 44 vitamins, minerals, and proteins available. Once milled and made into white flour, the bran and germ are lost, which is where most of the nutrients are located. The mandated fortification add back only a small portion of the nutrients that were removed. The naturally-occurring nutrients are removed and chemical forms of vitamins and inorganic forms of minerals are added back. What a bargain.... "When compared with the whole grain, enriched white flour shows significant losses in 15 of 22 nutrients.

Interestingly enough, you'd think most of those vitamins would be destroyed in the heat of the oven. Scientific literature show how the fermentation process in bread making involves enzymes that protect vitamins during baking.

Bleaching flour destroys any speck of vitamin E that may have survived milling when the germ was removed. Bleaching flour is not allowed in many countries.

[lotsadebt]

I would LOVE to do as much as grainlady. Hats off to her!

But I have found it is cheaper. The cheapest I can get a 5# bag of bread flour is $1.50. I get about 4 loaves of bread out of it. The rest of our favorite recipie is: 1.5tlbs yeast $4.00/jar, pinch of salt, water, 2 teasp of sugar.

I want to try the honey tip. Grainlady how much honey?
I have converted our faimily to the breadmachine bread. No one complained.

[vickilynn]

Yesterday I made bread with coconut, pineapple and banana....yummy! (posted on recipes).

I'm sure the bread costs more, but it sure tastes better hm!

[shoiji]

For me homemade bread is much more filling then the cheaper white/wheat breads. I do not go to the length of milling my own flour, however I do purchase King Arthur flour or unbleached flour.

It is only me here, and even though I could eat a 2.0 lb loaf of bread in a day, if I slice then freeze it the bread lasts for a long time.

I also enjoy the satisfaction of knowing there are much less preservatives and ingredients that I can not eat. Also love the smell of baking bread. If I make pizza dough I make enough to freeze. That way I have some on hand. Plus I use pizza dough to make foccacia bread or bread sticks or twists.

I have a breadmachine that I rediscovered about two years ago. I love it since my house is also cold plus I am not wasting energy heating a whole oven. It is also fun to watch peoples eyes light up when you say you are going to make some bread. Many people really enjoy homemade bread!

[mauimagic]

Shoiji - never thought about the emotional response that people have to HM bread - not only the taste, the smell - also that you car enough to make it for them!! IMO - we need more of that these days!! Mahalo!!

[frugalwarrior2]

Hey, have at LEAST 4 books to make bread machine bread so if you are looking for a certain recipe.

[Rhayne]

Yay for homemade bread! My mother always made HM bread when i was younger and as a teen she got a bread machine. I never could wait for it to come out and cool so we could eat it. I think sandwichs are 150% better on HM bread. I spoke to her a week ago and next time she visits she's bringing me her second bread machine. I can't wait to start making our own. We actually rarely buy bread. Other then the price, we just don't eat much. But I think my BF would love it homemade.

[KeithBC]

Is bread made in the machine have less of the preservatives and other yucky stuff ( ingredients I used whole wheat, butter, water, powdered milk, molasses, salt, and yeast)?

That's the big plus with homemade bread: it only has what you put into it. No yucky stuff in; no yucky stuff out.

We started making bread in the bread machine because we didn't want milk products in our bread. Almost all store-bought bread has milk, though it is totally unnecessary. We get to control what's in it.

Homemade is almost always less expensive. I was going to say "cheaper", but that can imply something else. Store-bought bread is "cheap" even if it costs more. But if you cost out the quantities of ingredients that go into a loaf of home-made, it's not very much at all.

[Grainlady]

I want to try the honey tip. Grainlady how much honey?
I have converted our faimily to the breadmachine bread. No one complained.

Exchange honey (or agave nectar) for sugar measure for measure. Since there is such a small amount of, it won't alter the balance of the ingredients. You may find your breads brown more, and brown quicker using honey/agave nectar, instead of sugar.