Bread Machine: Every Pioneer's Delight

Ok, I like bread as much as the next guy, but the process of mixing, kneading, waiting for it to rise, punching it down and letting it rise again before baking, is just a long cumbersome task. I like the think of myself as a pioneer woman but I hate the wait. The bread machine changes all that.

I love my bread machine. I measure out the ingredients, pop the baking pan into the machine and set the crust (light, medium or dark) and press go. Three hours later I have freshly baked bread that I didn't have to labor over and for a fraction of the cost of sliced bread from the store. I have the added pleasure of knowing EXACTLY what is in the bread. No preservatives, no artificial anything.

Add to that the feature of the delayed timer, which allows you to put in all the ingredients but let the time to start the bread while you are out, so that it will smell like fresh bread when you get home, and you have the perfect mixture of pioneer and modern woman.

I purchased my bread machine from a lady who posted her barely used Bread Machine for sale on a local Facebook page. You can sometimes find the best sales that way. Years later when the first one finally gave up the ghost, I went to the Facebook sale page and posted an ad "searching for Bread Machine for $40". I got several ladies answering who were willing to sell their lightly used bread machines. What a deal!

Over time (and a couple of moves) I lost my original operating instructions for my bread machine but found that many of the latest books cover just what to do along with the instructions. The recipes are so easy, if you are adventurous you can try a new one every other day. Some call for eggs, some call for applesauce or pumpkin. Some call for spices, and some with unusual specialty seeds and nuts. My favorite by far is a simple recipe with water, brown sugar, yeast, oil and flour. It tastes great and makes a large lovely loaf.

You have got to get this affordable simple machine. Bread for sandwiches, bread for toast, bread with jam, bread for pizza, bread for dinner, bread for lunch, bread for breakfast. You simply MUST get this product. You'll kick yourself the next time you want fresh bread and have to make it the hard way.

That’s not all you can do with this bread machine. I made sweet rolls by setting the Program Function to none so that the machine mixed the dough and let it raise but didn’t bake. The beeper went off and out came fresh bread dough. For my sweet rolls, I used the brown sugar in the above recipe instead of granulated sugar.

I rolled out the dough on my breadboard and spread soft margarine over the dough. Then I mixed:

1 Tablespoon flour

½ cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ teaspoon ginger powder

1 cup raisins

I sprinkled this mixture evenly over the dough and rolled it up and began cutting the rolls in one-inch sections. Each one was laid cut-side down in an 8 x 14 Pyrex cooking pan. After about 1 hour of letting it raise it was ready. Bake at 350 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes till golden brown. Next, mix up the frosting and drizzle it over the warm rolls.

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon butter or margarine

¼ teaspoon vanilla

1 to 2 teaspoons milk

Mix till you have a smooth frosting and drizzle over the warm rolls. When the rolls are cooler you can drizzle more if you like a really sweet topping. Ready to eat.

Like the recipe for sweet rolls and fresh bread, pizza dough only needs a small change in the main dough recipe. Instead of using brown sugar, I usually use granulated sugar and only half what I would use for the sweet bread.

• 1 packet yeast, fast acting
• 1 cup water, warm but not scalding
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/8 cup sugar, granulated
• 1/4 cup oil, vegetable
• 3 cups flour, unbleached
• 1 teaspoon salt

Mix same as for sweet rolls, setting the machine to dough only, no cooking. When the machine beeps, take the dough out and roll it out on a baking sheet for the pizza. I like mine to have stuffed crust so I use Mozzarella sticks all around the edges and pull the dough over the cheese.

• 4 Mozzarella sticks
• 1 cup Monterey Jack cheese, grated
• 1 cup Mild Cheddar cheese or grated Mozzarella
• Parmesan to taste
• 12 to 14 slices pepperoni or turkey pepperoni
• ½ chopped white onion
• 3 chopped small sweet peppers or 1 bell pepper chopped
• 4 or 5 sliced black olives
• oregano season to taste
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

Next, sprinkle garlic powder and oregano over the dough. Pour on the sauce of your choice. I like to use bottled Ragu Pizza sauce for convenience but you can cook your own sauce to taste. Spread it evenly over the dough and add grated cheese. The cheese is also a matter of personal preference. Some people prefer Mild Cheddar, some Mozzarella or Parmesan. I like Monterey Jack cheese and a little Parmesan.

After the cheese, add the solid ingredients. I prefer turkey pepperoni because it has less fat for my poor clogged arteries. But I also like a vegetarian pizza loaded with vegetables. All a matter of preference. Add as much or as little as you like.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes in a hot oven, 375 to 400 degrees depending on your altitude and oven.

Yum. Ready to eat.