Wow. I went to Tesco's the other day and a loaf of Warburtons was £1.45. Bloody hell I thought. And then I thought Bugger. And then I thought about women because my seven minutes was up. And then I was back to bread again.
Now compare that to 55p for a bag of Tesco's own bread mix. Aha! Cheapy! Well sort of. Using a breadmaker has obvious implications on your electricity bill and some of the programs are quite long but cheaper than Warburtons, thats for sure.
This was a much welcomed Christmas present. It has a use. Socks do not. Well thats a lie I suppose but they have a boring use. Ive always been a bit envious of my sisters electric time-savers and I must have mentioned this to her in passing because the big fat red one bought me one for Christmas. we thought it was an expresso machine but it definately aint.
Getting it going -------------------- Having never used one before I thought it might be tricky but I was oh-so-wrong. It came in a big box and was well packaged without being strangled with plastic ties. Ive 3 kids and by the time China has finished super-gluing every plastic component to every other plastic component on the kids Christmas toys to make sure there was no chance they could play with them until they had been wrestled to the ground and attacked with wire cutters, I really wasnt in the mood to be subjected to another item wrapped by the same minds that created the Rubiks Cube. I often imagine Chinese workers laughing their heads off in humongous factories egging each other on to attach just one more little plastic-coated wire tie. Anyway - a simple case of removing the polystyrene and the plastic-bag coatings and it was out. After that - twist in the bread pan, attach the kneading paddle and err....thats it.
The instructions --------------------- The breadmaker came with a good booklet detailing how to make a huge range of breads and the appropriate program. These included all types of flour and fruit breads. There were also instructions if you just want to make the dough for pizza and rolls etc etc etc. The instructions were brief but exact (I think).
Anyway. Sod instructions. I'm a man. I can skin a wild deer etc etc Instead I got a bag of Tesco bread mix, read that you just chuck it in with some lukewarm water and put it on the fastbake setting-and I did. Tell you about that in a mo. To make the bread from scratch, you do the same thing as with the mix but you need to put in flour, yeast salt and a little milk to taste depending on the type of flour you use. To get the best results you are told to weigh the ingredients carefully. Whatever that means
The results --------------- The fastbake prog with give you a loaf in just under an hour. The other programs take up to 3 hours. Yeah right. That puts me past breakfast and its time for dinner - no thank you. The fast version kneads the bread for a while and then heats it up so that an hour later 3 beeps signal its arrival in this world. And Im pleased to say that what comes out is GREAT. The 2lb loaf it produces is soft, warm and has a nice crust. When cool, it slices well and tastes really yummy. I was well chuffed. The only drawback is the whole left in the base where the paddle sits during the cooking. You have to give the tin a good hard shake to loosen it from its little prison and slide past the paddle but its not so hard.
The cleaning ------------------ The non-stick tin and paddle are a doddle to clean - scrubs up well with just some cold water and a dishcloth. Ready to go once more.
Appearance ---------------- Our version is cream in colour. The top lifts on a hinge and has a see-through observation window. Personally, the telly is better as it can get a bit tedious watching it after a while and it tends to repeat itself but I got a good half hour out of watching the bread rise before I turned over and watched the toaster., The front boasts several large buttons for choosing the weight, browning and program as well as a power light. Simple to use and understand! It has a large footprint and you will only have it out on display if you have a lot of work-top space. We havent.
Overall ---------- Im no cook but it made me feel like a famous chef. Albeit a lazy one. It really is simple and makes good results that are as good as anything youd get in the shop, only with a hole in the bottom. Id recommend it.
Warning ----------- There is a good chance this device will join the graveyard of the bulky electronics. It could well end up in the garage. With the juicer. And the blender.
Price ------- It was a present so I havent asked but a bit of research shows it as £40. Good value methinks.
Find out more at: http://www.morphyrichards.co.uk/wizz400/index.pl?REFID=mruk&ORPGM=prod uctOverview&ORPGT=perl&ORPRD=48280&ORGRP=R12&ORCAT=SR01&ORLID=ENG
Thanks for reading
More details
Cleaning & Maintenance
Very easy
Safety
Safe
How much did you pay?
40
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