I've ordered a breakmaker - any tips?

[Growingboys]

Never baked bread in my life, so got the second cheapest on Lakeland.

Any tips please? Good books, recipes?

Thank you!

*breadmaker, obvs

Yeah send it back. The loaves are small and there is a big hole in the middle as it bakes with the mixer attachment in. Buy a loaf tin and follow a basic recipe!

We love ours (Aldi) and my husband makes bread 2-3 times a week. He uses a mixture of white and granary flour. We only buy shop bought white bread for our fussy 14 yo. The 17 yo has recently decided he likes it, hence up to three loaves weekly

I love mine. I got it when I was pregnant and dd is 16 now. It will have recipes with it when it comes.

I don't wash mine. That's my tip. Even if I've just made dough and it's a bit sticky. I just leave it and the bits go hard and I just tip them out the next time.

My tip is to peek once it's mixing. It should look like dough (!! No shit!!) - if it looks too dry or wet it won't bake well, but if it's still mixing you can chuck in more flour/water. Don't peek after it's finished mixing or you let the heat out.

Use it on the dough setting and bake in the oven; I find it's a much better loaf, and it avoids the big hole the paddle creates.

We got a really posh one secondhand. It had never been used lol. Anyway, I mostly use mine to just knead the dough, because I have arthritis and can't do it myself. I have a book called 100 bread machine recipes, mostly I just do a basic white loaf, but it great for cakes too and you can even make jam in it! I hope you enjoy yours!
Ps I'm stocking up on bread flour in case I can't get out

If you like hot cross buns:
Use the basic white loaf recipe & add 2 teaspoons cinnamon, 2 teaspoons nutmeg & 3 oz sultanas.
If it lasts until the following day, toast a slice & spread with real butter.
Delicious 😊

Spelt loaf is lovely. And I agree with previous posters to use it to knead the dough, but then shape, prove and bake separately , it always tastes nicer.

Thanks all! Am quite excited - it will be a nice project when I'm 'wfh' - and fun to do with the DC if schools close.

I got ours secondhand. Panasonic machines are the best rated. I love it as it gives really consistent results. I use if for making hot cross buns too - once the dough is proved, shape the buns and prove again before putting a cross on and baking them.

They're a great way to make pizza dough for homemade pizza.

If you use a timed programme overnight it's worth mixing the ingredients into a dough, when we just chuck them in the loaf comes out a funny shape.

It's nice to wake up to the smell of bread baking, but in our experience the bread is too soft to slice for a couple of hours. When it has cooled I cut it in the middle and freeze half. Home-made bread gets stale quickly (no preservatives) so unless you can eat the whole loaf in a day or so, or want breadcrumbs it can work to save some in the freezer. We have a Panasonic and usually make half and half or third and two third wholemeal/white loaves. Its one of the kitchen devices that I would replace immediately if it went wrong. Toast made with fresh bread is very special.