Ingredients for a bread machine?

[Mimi1977]

We're getting a breadmaker for Christmas and I just wondered what ingredients we would need to get - best flour, type of yeast etc And I read somewhere about adding sugar?

Thanks

you will need:
-strong bread flour (we use Doves Farm but any decent quality will do)
-dried yeast (again, Doves Farm in the orange packet is good but if you're not going to use it much, the stuff that comes in sachets will keep better)
-any sugar
-any salt (little granules not big sea salt crystals as that would mess up the measurements)
-milk powder
-butter but you can replace it with oil (eg oliver or sunflower)

milk powder is not necessary - an Americanism...

true Blackduck.
it will be in the recipes that come with the machine but if you don't have any, just ignore it.

Dove's Farm Yeast (as mentioned previously), your choice of strong flour for breadmaking, a little salt and some oil.
Nothing else necessary for a basic loaf.

Great, thanks all. Glad you said didn't need milk powder as sounds a bit fake to me and that's one of the reason we wanted the bread machine, so we could go more natural!

Yes, just leave the milk powder out. I've also chopped the sugar content right down to 1/2 teaspoon in the recipe I use.

I often add 4 tablespoons of wheatgerm to mine. It gives a nice flavour and texture. I also tend to do a 50% white/50% wholemeal bread using Waitrose bread flour (and Doves yeast). I've not bought a loaf since I got the bread maker at Christmas.

I don't use milk powder. I am not sure what it is meant to add, I certainly haven't noticed any difference.

Oil instead of butter
A bit more salt than they suggest [Scottish]

Spelt flour (combined with either white or wholemeal flour) makes a tasty loaf, and yes to throwing in things like wheatgerm, and oats, and linseeds, pumpkin seeds etc.

Have also made fig bread: brown loaf, handful of chopped figs, nice toasted

It softens the crust.
You might not want a soft crust anyway, though!

I add a small amount of milk powder to mine but it is not necessary. It makes the bread slightly softer and adds calcium.

And I half the salt.