bread makers any advice please

earwig

hi i want to know what is the best breadmaker to get in terms of how easy it is to make and be best value for money i have never made bread before but after doing a spending diary i was shocked on how much money i spend on bread in one month 34.50 :eek: so my pals over at dfw have suggested getting a breadmaker and to come here to find out more about them

make_life_easier

I'm not sure which is the best but I am looking at the morphy richards fastbake at £45 from argos. I would like to know how economical they are though cos it's a lot to fork out and was wondering if it did really save money. Also can you use any flour when making bread?

razra

I also use a morphy richards fast bake but only because it was on offer when I bought it. My mom had a cookworks one which she found fantastic till she broke it, shes now got a panasonic and although it was expensive she does rave about it.
I think you do get better results from the more expensive ones but if you search you'll probably find one on offer somewhere
Have you tried asking on your local freecycle for one?

razra

This is the one Ive got
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00065IA6U/instantwebsit-21
and you get free delivery from Amazon

Ticklemouse

I used to have a cookworks one which I "freecycled" to another member on here. The bread tasted fine but I now have a Russell Hobbs Breadman Ultimate and I find the bread much lighter. (Having said that, I didn't have the benefit of this board to give me useful suggestions on improving the quality of my bread in a cheaper machine)

My Breadman is on a par with the Panasonic, except it makes jam too (I don't know whether the new panny makes jam now tho) I bought it for about £66 from Argos, during the sale and it has paid for itself over and over .... and we don't eat as much bread now as we used to either, altho' nothing to do with it being HM )

This is what I've got and it looks a great price, however it's just the first link I found so you may be able to get it cheaper elsewhere)

make_life_easier

Do you still rate the MR fastbake though? or should I go for a more expensive one, it makes sense to get the expensive one if the the fastbake one isn't really that good

Ticklemouse

make_life_easier wrote: »

Do you still rate the MR fastbake though? or should I go for a more expensive one, it makes sense to get the expensive one if the the fastbake one isn't really that good

Hmmmm that's the "how long is a piece of string" question. There are those on here who love them and wouldn't swap. I have never used one but I have a friend who has and she only makes her dough in it

If you can afford a better one, then I would say go for it. When I got my Ultimate, the MR fastbakes were about £40 and full price on mine was around £100 which is why I got it in the sale I think on the whole, it's usually a case of you get what you pay for.

make_life_easier

Ticklemouse - I fully agree with you, I will now look for a good one in the sales now

kippers

I have a morphy Richards fastbake and i love it.

Amarillo

We had a cheap Hinari or Bakers Mill (I've forgotten what it was) originally. Used it for a bit but the loaves where like bricks. After repeated ravings from a friend about the Panasonic I weakened and bought one. It is fantastic and well worth every penny. Have no experience of the Morphy Richards so can't comment on that but have read enough good reviews of it to have bought one for my Mum for Christmas when I found it on sale for £30 in the summer.

earwig

thanks for all replys so it a fastbake or a panasonic i will go on price runners and see what the best deal is for them