Breadman

Breadman Breadmaker

Years ago people use to make bread at home, but then bakeries became so prevalent and bread was cheap enough from the store that consumers gave up on the home bread makers and bought it straight from the store. I remember registering for my wedding back in the last 1990’s and everyone was telling me to register for a breadmaker. At the time, I didn’t really think I would need something like that and I so talked my wife out of it. Many of our friends received them for wedding gifts but we found they used them initially and then the excitement wore off and the bread machines ended up stored in kitchen cabinets. But with people leaning towards organic and healthy food, there is something nice about cooking a loaf of fresh bread for your family — not to mention the smell of fresh bread baking in your house!
Most home bread makers bake either 1 or 2 pound loaves. When it comes to price, you may find a few machines for around $75, but for a good unit, you should expect to pay $100-$200. Their operation is pretty simple – you add the ingredients, mechanical kneaders knead the dough (it takes about 30 minutes, not something you want to do by hand), the dough is allowed to rise (usually in 2 or 3 cycles, takes about an hour and a half), and then it is baked (you can usually set how “done” or dark you want the crust to be, baking time is around 45-60 minutes).

RECOMMENDED: The best bread maker on the market for under $100 is the Breadman TR2500BC Ultimate Plus 2-Pound Stainless-Steel Convection Breadmaker ($99). You get tasty bread in 1, 1 1/2, and 2 pound loaves, it comes with a jam cycle, a dough cycle, 300 pre-programmed recipes, and a 24-your delay timer. For someone just getting started with bread making, this is a good, safe choice. The removable lid is see-through so you can see the dough being mixed and the bread baking.

Breadman TR2500BC Ultimate Plus 2-Pound Stainless-Steel Convection Breadmaker

How to Bake

How to Bake – Bread on the Grill

Summarized from articles written by Dennis R Weaver

One of the slickest tricks we know is baking bread on the grill. You can enjoy fresh baked bread while camping, or at the cabin, or at the next family reunion. (Watch the neighbors turn their noses upwind when the smell of fresh baked bread wafts over the fence.) You can bake nearly anything with a covered grill. (If your grill doesn’t have a cover, improvise with a large inverted pot.) The trick to grilling bread perfectly is controlling temperature and time. If your grill comes equipped with a thermometer, you’ve got it made (though outside temperatures and winds may impact how well your grill retains heat). If not, guess. Burning grease in the bottom of the grill makes the temperature harder to control and the soot can stain the bread.

Here are a few more hints to help you along the way:

• Bake the bread before the burgers. The bread can cool while you cook the rest of the food. Burning grease in the bottom of the grill makes the temperature harder to control and the soot can stain the bread.
• If you are letting your bread rise outside where the temperature may be less than indoors or where breezes may swirl around the bread, consider using a large food-grade plastic bag as a greenhouse. Simply slip the bread dough–pan and all–inside the bag, inflate it slightly, and close it. If the day is cool, set the bag and the bread in a sunny warm place to capture a little solar energy.
• Grills tend to not circulate the hot air as well as ovens. To keep the bottom of the bread from burning, place one pan beneath the other and a wire rack between the pans to create space for insulation.
• If your bread is baking faster on one side than the other, turn the pan 180 degrees part way through the baking time.
• The tendency is to burn the bottom of the bread. Place the bread as far away from the flames as you can even if it means elevating the bread.

How to Bake – Muffins

Summarized from articles written by Dennis R Weaver

Muffins are a mainstay around our house. (For Easter, we served cranberry nut muffins with a ham dinner.) Extras can be frozen and heated in the microwave for hot muffins anytime. Today we will make muffins using the “muffin method”. (Just as there are two major makeup methods for quick breads, there are two methods for muffins-the muffin method and the creaming method) In the muffin method, the liquids and the dry ingredients are mixed separately and then stirred together until just combined. To make muffins using the muffin method, choose a favorite muffin recipe that does not call for the creaming of sugar into the fat. In preparation, grease the muffin tins. Muffin recipes are sensitive to the ratio of flour to liquid. Too little flour and the muffin will flow over the edges of the muffin cup rather than dome nicely. To make cake-like muffins, use lower protein flour-cake or pastry flour. Fill the muffin tins with a large spoon or ice cream scoop. Make sure that the muffin tins are evenly filled so that they bake evenly. Bake the muffins until they are a light golden brown. Over-baked muffins will be dry and tough. Under baked muffins may be moist and heavy.

Cake Pans

Cake Pans

Executive summary about Cake Pans by Nina Romanov

Cake pans….the secret behind every successful cake. When we were shopping for our wedding decorations, wedding dresses and wedding cakes, we gave a decent thought to the wedding cake pans. A one stop cake shop online or a retail cake shop will have the best deals in cake pans, with interesting varieties put to effect.

We finally choose an aluminum cake pan for long lasting baking performance. We baked the wedding cake traditionally courtesy our family chef, from the same wedding cake pan.

Of course on our wedding Mr. Gillian, (my nephew’s friend; he loves cakes a lot and believes that cake pans are more important than cakes) gifted us with a wedding cake pan. I have been intrigued by the subject of wedding cake pans.

Cake Baking Tip Guide

Executive summary about Cake Baking Tip Guide by Patricia Jensen

Successful cake decorating is all. Easy tips will ensure your cake decorating success.

-          Preparing a Cake Board

Many specially themed cakes are too large to fit on a plate, so a cake board may be used. Cut a piece of stiff cardboard to the desired size. Cover with foil, or heavy coated wrapping paper. I often use colored tissue paper, covered with colored cellophane of the type used to wrap gift baskets. This gives the desired background color, with a surface which is easy to wipe clean. It also makes a great background to enhance the presentation and photographing of your final cake masterpiece.

-          Preparing Cake Pans

Use metal pans with a nonstick finish. Grease and flour pans before adding cake batter. Spread a thin layer of vegetable shortening on the bottom and sides of the pan. This works better than butter or margarine as the cake releases more easily from the pan. Sprinkle a little flour in each pan, and tilt to coat evenly. Shake out excess.

-          Testing for Doneness

Follow baking instructions for time and temperature specified in the recipe. Cakes are done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The cake should have pulled away from the sides of the pan and the top will spring back when touched lightly in the center.

-          Removing Cake from Pan

Let cake cool for about 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Invert wire cooling rack over cake and flip over. Shake gently until cake releases from pan. Place a second wire rack over the bottom of the cake and flip over again so cake can cool right side up.

-          Preparing Cake for Frosting

Slip each cake layer into a gallon-size freezer bag and place in the freezer for 30-45 minutes. An even easier method is to place each layer on its own plate and cover with plastic wrap before freezing. I poke a toothpick or two into the top of each layer to keep the plastic wrap from sticking to the cake’s surface. Light freezing firms up the cake just right and allows you to easily brush any crumbs from the surface prior to frosting.

-          Best Base Frosting Recipe

The thin texture of the base frosting allows easier coverage without pulling bits of cake and crumbs away from the cake. This is essential particularly if you are frosting white over chocolate cake. When base coat is done, frost over with your desired finish frosting.

3 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened

1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Combine powdered sugar, butter, milk and vanilla in a large bowl. Beat with electric mixer until smooth. Add milk 1 tsp. at a time to desired consistency. Frosting should be fairly thin. This is a great base frosting. Use if as a first coating layer to seal in any crumbs and give a nice smooth surface to the cake.

-          Cutting and Trimming

You can create many different cake designs by cutting your cake layers into various shapes. Measure and mark your cutting line with toothpicks or wooden or metal skewers. Use a sharp knife and brush cake lightly with a soft pastry brush to remove crumbs prior to frosting. Trim the rounded tops off cake layers to form a flat surface. Use a long serrated knife to trim with a gentle sawing motion. You may also wish to trim the edges of rectangular cakes to give a more professional look.

-          Frosting Tools

Use various sizes of flexible metal spatulas for frosting. Large ones are used to smooth wide flat areas while a narrow tipped spatula is great for getting into small areas. Toothpicks or wooden or metal skewers can be used to mark cutting lines on your cake. A pastry bag with several tips is necessary to pipe on decorations. I have a reusable pastry bag that is easy to rinse clean. In a pinch, you can even use a plastic sandwich bag with a tiny hole snipped from one corner. Now that you have all these important basics in place, you and your cake are primed and ready for frosting.

Bread Maker

How To Choose The Perfect Bread Maker

Taken from articles written by Sharon Chennault

Bread makers are extremely popular. The average person can make delicious, baking bread at home or homemade bread quite easily with a bread maker. You can make a variety of shapes and sizes of loaf with a bread machine. Some bread makers will have a preheat cycle to heat the ingredients before baking. If you want your bread to rise properly, choose a bread maker that does not heat before time to bake the bread. Bread makers will generally have separate settings for different types of bread. Bread makers come in a variety of sizes, so choose one that you can store easily. You should choose the capacity of the bread maker based upon how big your family is and how much bread they eat. You can choose a bread maker with a delay timer which will allow you to place the mix in the bread maker before you leave home each day and the bread will be ready when you return. If you want your bread maker to prepare the dough but not cook it, you will need to find a bread maker with this feature. A bread maker is a wonderful addition to your home.

Why Quality Bread Machines and Bread Makers Are A Must For Every Kitchen!

Taken from articles written Gregg Hall

As a big time bread lover I am a huge fan of the highly popular bread machines that are now on the market. Having baking at home or fresh bread makes a big difference in meals like spaghetti, gumbos etc. Well, thanks to the ingenuity of inventors we no longer have to make the trip to grandma’s house just to get fresh bread now bread machines or bread makers are quickly becoming a small piece of equipment used almost as much as the microwave. If you get a bread machine that has a view window you can actually watch the bread baking without removing the lid which saves energy and time.

Bread Machines and Bread Makers for Every Kitchen!

Taken from articles written by Curtis Miller

Bread machines or bread makers are fast becoming a small appliance used almost as much as the microwave oven. Bread machines with a view window allow one to monitor the bread baking without raising the lid, saving energy and time. Whether for once a week baking to everyday use the bread machine has become a part of the modern kitchen.

Cookie Recipes

New Ways to Enjoy Your Favorite Cookie Recipes

Executive Summary by By Danna Vach

- Make ice cream cookie sandwiches by softening your favorite ice cream and pressing once scoop of ice cream between 2 cookies. Chocolate chip cookies work great for this with vanilla or chocolate ice cream.
- Add cookie crumbles to the top of your ice cream or yogurt.
- Try substituting dried cherries or dried cranberries for raisins in cookie recipes such as oatmeal raisin cookies. This works really well with sugar cookies and shortbread cookies.
- Add 1/3 cup of sunflower seeds or mixed nuts to your cookie recipe. Use a shortbread cookie, sugar cookie, or gingerbread cookie instead of a Graham cracker when you makes mores by the campfire.
- Instead making regular round cookies, make cookies of different shapes. Follow the directions for making bar cookies, and instead of cutting the cookies into bars, use cookie cutters to make different shapes.
- Use you favorite cookie as a pie crust.
- Share your cookies with someone new.

Top 3 Reasons Why You Need Cookie Recipes

Executive Summary by Freddy Maier
- Baking cookies is easy, fast and, most important, fun. It is Christmas time and you decide to bake some cookies. We can prepare cookies almost with any ingredient.
- We find great recipes with exact ingredients and quantities. We just have to follow them step by step. The result will be delicious cookies that will enjoy the children…and their parents! That is really easy and fast to prepare!
- You could organize the preparation of those cookies in your kitchen with the children. They love to give a hand and to taste those great cookies afterwards. We can prepare cookies almost with any ingredient. Just name it. You will discover recipes that were used a lot by our grandmothers and you will retrieve the smells of your childhood.
So, now…, imagine taking out the hot cookies that you prepared from the oven.