bk wrote: "Hello to all! I am new to this list & wonder if the recipes
posted for
bread machines can be made without the machines using the same
proportion of ingredients. Are the amounts of ingredients different?
Also can anyone recommend a good bread making machine that does not cost
too much? TIA, bk"
I am still too new to bread baking in general and ABMs in particular to
answer your first question, however I would suspect you have to make
some slight adjustments to the recipes. I will however add my two
cents in answer to your second question. For some time I watched all
the different bread machines cropping up and the prices begin to come
down with all of the competition. I am not able nor willing to spend
200 bucks for a kitchen toy that only has one function (unlike a
KitchenAid that seems to do all sorts of neat stuff), and was real
hesitant to spend a lot anyway for something that I might not like and
rarely use, so I watched the ads. Memorial Day, a catalog store here
in Tucson called Best, had a 4 hour sale and was selling the Welbilt
ABM3600 $79.00--cheapest I had ever seen! With the exception of one
hockey puck (that based on comments from my bread-making colleagues on
the list here, was because my yeast came into contact with the
salt---not humidity as I thought), I have been very pleased. It
makes both 1 and 1 1/2 lbs loaves, hasn't given me any trouble with
the paddle sticking except the first time I used it, has an add fruit
and nuts chime, and has whole wheat and french bread cycles along with
"normal". Also, the company is still in business, so I would assume if
I had problems, I could get some type of support. Anyway, since then
the cheapest I have seen them offered for is $89.00, which I think is
still a good deal. The only thing it doesn't have that I wish it had
is a cool down cycle---which I understand keeps your bread from getting
too soft if you aren't around to take it out of the machine straight away.
Hope this feedback helps.
Regards,
Karen in Tucson