OT: Breadmakers.

T i m · 2020-04-20T18:07:14+00:00

So,We have some Wrights Wholemeal Bread Mix (just add water stuff) and asthe first batch we did went down very well, we were wondering thatpost Apocalypse, if it might be something we could continue doing.Now whilst it's not 'difficult' mixing and kneading the dough, Iunderstand many who do regularly make their own use bread makers thesedays?Now, we aren't into making cakes (the bread is moreish enough) orspecialty breads, just a dimple wholemeal loaf every few days would beenough and so wondered if there was a vfm but compact / reliablemachine that could do, or do you have to go to something more 'upmarket' before you get sufficient control to be able to get the breadthat you expect / want?Like, this mix is supposed to make 1 x 2lb loaf but we only had 1lbtins so made two of them. It says 30 mins for the 2lb load or 15 minsfor rolls so went for 20 mins in our straight gas oven and that seemedabout right (nice crust, baked though, no soggy bottoms). ;-)So, can you typically tweak the settings on these breadmakers to giveyou the sort of result you prefer, or is it set in a program?We have a soupmaker that seems to just have two settings (chunky /smooth) but the cooking time for chunky seems a bit short for ourtastes? ;-(Cheers, T i m

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T i m 6 years ago

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I think we just about waited ten minutes last night. I initially gave us just a buttered slice each, then we had to have more. ;-)

So, this 3rd loaf (the first of a 'fresh batch but a slightly different mix, Wright's 'Mixed Grain') with very similar results?

That is, a very consistent, fully baked (reasonable crust all round, nicely browned / crusty top), light inside (you have to be careful not to tear it if you are too heavy with the butter knife, especially when hot), tasty mini loaf?

This time I kneaded it for 5 not 2 mins and this time it did prove to fill the (2 x 1lb) tins but again, shrunk (by about 1/3rd this time) in the oven.

Now, an unknown is the actual temperature of the oven so I might need to check that but in general, when cooking frozen pies or baking other meals, they generally seem to come out right (cooked though / browned / not burned).

So whatever I'm doing wrong personally is consistently wrong or what I'm doing it with isn't suitable?

Like, the two tins I have look to be shallower than most I've seen on the net. They were leant to me by daughter and were inherited from her step-sister so we don't know what they were for, if not bread.

One is 200 mm (average, because of the taper), x 100 x 55 deep.

The second is 210 x 110 x 55mm.

They both look very similar to and seem a similar size / ratios as many sold on the Internet as bread / loaf tins so I don't think it's that ... and I've seen many 2lb tins of the same proportions?

I've seen the idea of Non-stick being frowned upon in some quarters but again ... ?

'This time' I think the water may have been a bit more than luke warm but that didn't seem to stop it rising to 'double the size' when proving?

The only thing I might have done wrong (Googling on it falling when baking specifically) is allowing it to prove a bit longer than I might if the mix contains a fast yeast ... but I was watching to see if it rose any more.

So, once we have eaten this last batch (shouldn't be long <weg>) I'm not sure what to try first with the next batch, remembering this is a mix so have little control over the grade or proportions of the ingredients?

Cheers, T i m

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T i m 6 years ago

As an aside here (and this is only a very trivial example), I think it's funny how we use all these time / effort saving aids and then pay to run on a treadmill looking at a wall. ;-)

We had one when we first moved in here but only ever used it a few times then it went rusty of summat and we re-cycled it.

I don't think I've ever bought / cooked 'a roast / joint' because even when I was a meat eater, meat in that quantity always looked too much like a lump of actual animal. Same applies to a whole chicken / turkey etc.

I may have roast a Turkey when I did Xmyth and may have even been why I had the electric carving knife (I like my gadgets) but I have never really had that disconnect between 'meat' and the animal it once was.

Cheers, T i m

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Adrian Brentnall 6 years ago

It did seems like a bit of a daft plan. Setting a loaf running this morning, I noticed that ours has not only a setting for 'Jam' - but also one for 'Conserve'...

Now if if could bake a loaf and then make jam sandwiches - that'd be clever. I'm sure Wallace & Gromit could do it!

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Nick Odell 6 years ago

Word to the wise. Do Not Try To Make Jam In You Breadmaker.

I tried it once. The result was less like a conserve, more like a consommé - and most of it ended up glued to the heating elements outside the pan.

Nick

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Joshua Snow 6 years ago

Nick Odell snipped-for-privacy@themusicworkshop.plus.com> wrote

You haven't adjusted the time on your system for daylight saving stopping here, so your posts sit at the top of the list sorted by time for a couple of hours.

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Nick Odell 6 years ago

<Grin> I like the idea of that.

Currently, down here in Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere we are making Dulce de Membrillo, a sort of solid loaf of Quince paste and sugar - without the aid of a breadmaker I hasten to add. Do not, I repeat do not follow the recipe from First Dog On The Moon -

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Nick

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Joshua Snow 6 years ago

Then there must be some other reason your system time is so far out.

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Nick Odell 6 years ago

There is quite a lot of Southern Hemisphere - at least 360deg x 180deg of it by my reckoning - and I am in a part of it that last used Daylight Saving Time in 2009.

Newsgroup quiz: Where am I?

For a chance to win a super prize, post your answer to uk.d-i-y with ARGENTINA COMPETITION in the subject line.

Nick

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