Re Debra Widera's query on the BREADMAN machine. We have had the "Trilium"
model for about a year and use it 4 - 5 times a week. On the plus side. it's
been rock-solid reliable and clean-up couldn't be simpler. On the minus side,
it's a bit noisy and it doesn't offer the degree of 'customization' that some
of the other machines provide.
In addition to its three basic wheat cycles (light, medium and dark), it has
a 'European cycle',. a 'Fruit & Nut" cycle and a dough cycle. The basic cycle
takes about 2 1/2 hours and produces breads of a texture somewhat coarser
than when the same recipes are made in a Hitachi. I rather like the coarse
texture, but my wife prefers a finer grained bread. As texture is governed in
part by the duration of the kneading cycle (a factor over which one doesn't
have any control) someone suggested we stop the machine after the first
kneading and restart it -- but the Trillium doesn't allow you to do that.
Bottom line: If you like coarse-textured breads, you'll find the BREADMAN
machine very satisfactory.
cdluria@aol.com (Carlos Luria)