Recommend me a bread maker

[IHateMyJob2004]

UPDATE 2:
Bought her a mixer. Talking to people at work I think I am still going to get her a bread maker. So, any recomendations on that front? Under $100...

UPDATE:
per discussion below, a better idea is to get a Kitchen-Aid mixer. So, any model recomendations? How many quarts do i really need? 4.5, 5 or 6?


ORIG:
I’m thinking about getting one for my wife. I want something good but not overly expensive. I have no idea how they work and what more expensive models do for you. Nor do I know how they work.

As a kicker, some recipes or links to sites with recipes would be appreciated.

Also, how needed are bread makers? Would something in the oven taste better? What about bread shapes?

 

[Anubis]

here

 

[BoomerD]

The best bread maker I know of isn't for sale. I have far too much invested in her to get rid of her now.
(she learned from her grandmother...then went to baking school)

 

[zinfamous]

I’m thinking about getting one for my wife. I want something good but not overly expensive. I have no idea how they work and what more expensive models do for you. Nor do I know how they work.

As a kicker, some recipes or links to sites with recipes would be appreciated.

Also, how needed are bread makers? Would something in the oven taste better? What about bread shapes?

i like to think of bread machines as awesome little thermocyclers (the machines used for PCR reactions). They handle all of the busy work very well, in a perfectly controlled, and cycled system.

I like setting the program for kneading cycles and temperature regulation.

then, once it's done, you can take the dough out and toss it into the oven in the pan of your choice. baking in the machine is fine, but all your bread will have the same shape, and same little hole in the bottom from the kneader.

I don't know what we have, actually--it was given to us after being acquired from elsewhere, but it works well. I suspect that most of them get the job done.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Actually, I would recommend using all the same type of bread pan. Dark pans tend to burn bread so I usually drop the oven temp 25 degrees when using those.

 

[techs]

He's French so you will have to put up with his attitude.

 

[Sentrosi2121]

Don't get a breadmaker.
Get a good Cuisinart or Kitchen-Aid mixer and some bread pans.
We have a Williams-Sonoma breadmaker and pull it out 4, maybe 5 times a year. To me, it was a waste to get her it for Christmas.

 

[SunnyD]

Don't get a breadmaker.
Get a good Cuisinart or Kitchen-Aid mixer and some bread pans.
We have a Williams-Sonoma breadmaker and pull it out 4, maybe 5 times a year. To me, it was a waste to get her it for Christmas.

This.

Making bread is so fucking easy it's ridiculous.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Don't get a breadmaker.
Get a good Cuisinart or Kitchen-Aid mixer and some bread pans.
We have a Williams-Sonoma breadmaker and pull it out 4, maybe 5 times a year. To me, it was a waste to get her it for Christmas.

Actually, the Kitchen-Aid mixer sounds like a better idea. So, any model recomendations?

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Actually, the Kitchen-Aid mixer sounds like a better idea. So, any model recomendations?

Get a bowl lift 5 quart model with the smallest motor they offer for that configuration. I own one and have used many in various kitchens over the years. The reason for getting the smallest motor is that you pay a huge premium for larger motors and it's not needed. If the motor ever burns out (usually after 20 years of continuous service) you simply have it rewound and it's good for another twenty years.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Read up reviews opn the KitchenAid Artisan 5-Quart mixer and people love it. Costs about $299 tops.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Get a bowl lift 5 quart model with the smallest motor they offer for that configuration. I own one and have used many in various kitchens over the years. The reason for getting the smallest motor is that you pay a huge premium for larger motors and it's not needed. If the motor ever burns out (usually after 20 years of continuous service) you simply have it rewound and it's good for another twenty years.

Are there sizes for the motor? If so, I'd rather go up one size. Wouldn't a larger moter be needed for other functions, like grinding meat?

 

[Linflas]

The best bread maker I know of isn't for sale. I have far too much invested in her to get rid of her now.
(she learned from her grandmother...then went to baking school)

LOL that was my first thought as well. My wife loves to bake and makes some great breads.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Are there sizes for the motor? If so, I'd rather go up one size. Wouldn't a larger moter be needed for other functions, like grinding meat?

I grind meat all the time when I make sausage. Making bread puts much more strain on the machine than grinding meat. I repeat, get the smallest motor offered. You may not know so, this is my opinion as a professional Chef.

Apparently the 'Pro 500' is their base model now with a 325 watt motor.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Why not tilt head? That seams more funcitonal. The only thing a lift bowl design allows is for you to get a 6 qt model from what I can tell and the lift bowl is harder to work with (add ingrediants, scrape sides, etc).

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

I grind meat all the time when I make sausage. Making bread puts much more strain on the machine than grinding meat. I repeat, get the smallest motor offered. You may not know so, this is my opinion as a professional Chef.

Apparently the 'Pro 500' is their base model now with a 325 watt motor.

All the 5 qt tilt heads havea 325 watt motor. I want a tilt head but some prefer bowl lift designs. I don't know what the pros/cons are but bowl lift seems to have no benefits over tilt heads otehr than larger capacities and shorter height for storing on a counter.

EDIT: Read more ... bowl lifts are more rigid ... obviously. And have more powerful motors available.

The base model bowl lift is 325 watts. All others for 5 qt are 450 watt.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Why not tilt head? That seams more funcitonal. The only thing a lift bowl design allows is for you to get a 6 qt model from what I can tell and the lift bowl is harder to work with (add ingrediants, scrape sides, etc).

Personal preference and ease of cleaning. The number one factor in the longevity of kitchen appliances is cleaning them.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Now to ponder if this is something that:
1) my wife will use
2) my wife will want

kitchen appliances are kinda frowned upon as gifts by many people. She wants to cook just has never started learning for some reason. I think I have more motivation than my wife to cook.

 

[BoomerD]

My wife has had a Kitchen-Aide stand mixer for decades. It gets used heavily during the holidays, but sporadically the rest of the year. For many things, she prefers her Kitchen-Aide hand mixer...but for breads, the stand mixer is mandatory. (arthritis is taking its toll on my bread maker)

As for the different motors...we're guys...we NEED that Kitchen-Aide mixer modded with the Binford 6000 high-performance motor!! (after all, isn't that why we overclock our PC's?)

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Now to ponder if this is something that:
1) my wife will use
2) my wife will want

kitchen appliances are kinda frowned upon as gifts by many people. She wants to cook just has never started learning for some reason. I think I have more motivation than my wife to cook.

A good mixer is a blessing. There are no end of useful attachments as well. Unfortunately, no companies have made metal attachments that fit them since the '40s and Kitchen-Aid has never made them. I use the grinder all the time but the pasta extruder is a piece of crap. The juicer works well. A second bowl is very useful as well.

 

[Gooberlx2]

We got this one recently. Works great, good price.

My mom actually said she wished she has gotten the 4.5-quart model instead. I guess her 5-quart is a bit unwieldy and a PITA to access the bowl with the spatula if needed.

edit: It seems the model I got is no longer sold by Amazon, but Target..and for a higher price. Here's another 4.5-quart model. Not sure what the differences are.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Bought my wife the 5 qt tilt head mixer from Kitchen-Aid.

Still thining about getting a bread maker.

Any recomendations for under $100. Hoping for hte I love this model that I own type of recomendation.

 

[IHateMyJob2004]

Bump, anyone?

 

[torpid]

Zojirushi makes some good bread makers.

There are some good bread recipes that require neither a bread maker nor a stand mixer. America's Test Kitchen has a great "almost no-knead" recipe.

 

[sandorski]

here

How much for your woman?