New bread machine: trying it out

I had decided it was worth splashing out on an expensive bread machine. I eat bread every day! And it had better be good. And one day I got the email saying I could come and collect it, which I duly did. 

When I had eaten the bread I still had, I could start trying it out. I figured it would probably take me months to find out how to make bread the way I like it! But one has to start somewhere. And I decided I would just start with the wholewheat option. But maybe with a slightly longer baking time. This machine allows you to customise everything!

The machine ready to go 

For a bread machine this expensive, it was a bit of a disappointment I did not come with a recipe book. There is one; you can download it for free from the Internet. Why don't they just include it? But anyway; I started with wholewheat. The smallest bread size, and the setting on the darkest crust. I checked with the difference was between the various crust colours; from light to medium was five minutes, and for medium to dark was eight minutes. I decided to go four minutes longer than dark. So I had a stab at what a good baking time would be.

So how was my first attempt? The good news was: The crust was nice and dark. The less good news was that the bread was quite flat. Just like in the bread machine that didn't bake bread the way I like it. My old Breville would produce beautifully domed loaves (even after a few attempts)! And I think that’s the way it should be. It is an indication of the structure of the bread, and that is important. So the first attempt is only that: the first attempt.

First attempt: a bit flat

My next attempt involved the "Crusty loaf" option. Another avenue I considered was to try to just emulate the Breville as closely as I can. They do provide the exact timings of the various phases of bread making. The problem is that they don't give the temperature at which they are baking. So that would have to be done by trial and error! Hence the easier option of using the crusty menu.

And how did this go? Much better! I got a lovely domed loaf with good structure. But it could have been a bit darker, so next time I will add something to the baking time. And then I might be sorted! And when I have my default bread figured out, I can start experimenting with more exotic breads…

Second attempt: much better!