The New Bread Maker

So, we have decided to try and get back to the basics. We're cutting foods with artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, and general gross and unpronouncable items from our diet. I feel really good about it. The kids are cautiously optimistic about it and Chris is completely on-board with the whole thing.

Domestic--I am not. Somehow I have managed to make it through 15 years of motherhood and three children, without ever really getting into the whole cooking and baking thing. I am sure it has something to do with my saint of a husband who could whip up something out of ketchup, baking soda, and freezer-burned lima beans if need be.

That being said, I am pretty sure he enjoyed the stranger in his kitchen that he came home to this evening! Armed with a bread maker I found at the good will for the bargain basement price of $5.99, and several natural recipes, I was on a mission. I had even managed to find the manual for my second-hand b-maker online. By 7pm, I had all the ingredients in the machine and home made bread was less than 2.5 hours away.

In another part of the kitchen I had *whipped* us up macaroni and cheese from scratch and it was cooking in a crock pot. (Mind you, I don't really go into the kitchen and *whip* anything up--ever.) Add to that, the quadrupled batch of dry ingredients I mixed together for our own homemade pancake mix (we should have enough to last us until G Graduates in 2012), I think I made more *homemade* items tonight than I have altogether this millenium (sad but true).

The macaroni looks as though it was a success. The bread finished up an hour ago and the house smells soooo good. I let the bread cool for this entire time and have made several attempts to slice the bread into sandwich slices--as my original intention when I bought the machine was to never buy store bread again.

The first few times I went to slice it, I managed to slice of the ends. Those wouldn't be good for sandwiches--and I had to make sure it tasted okay, didn't I?? So of course I ate both of the *butts* off my yummy loaf of bread. I decided it was just too warm to cut, because it was soft and squishing as I tried to cut it.

I waited 20 more minutes and tried again. I managed to slice off one slice that was not even really a slice. Way too thin and not even a whole slice. What would anyone do with such a small piece. Waste-not, want-not. I ate that too.

Not wanting to repeat my blunder, I sliced off a thicker piece but it was way to thick for a sandwich. This bread was not cooperating!! Still too squishy and somewhat warm. And thhis last piece was so crooked, it was an embarassment to see. I was sure I had better slicing skills hidden away somewhere within. I needed to get rid of the evidence. So--I ate that slice as well.

So now I have roughly 1/2 of a loaf of bread left. I don't want to leave it out to go stale. Not my beautiful bread :-(. I am bewildered as to how to go about making it into sandwich slices, though.

Ebay! Now if ever you need something, but aren't quite sure what it is, ebay is just the place to go. I have found countless items that I didn't even realize I was looking for on there.

I found several bread knives, but I seriously doubted they were superior to my own. After all, its practically never been used (on bread at least). I may have used it once or twice to cut some windows out of cardboard box houses once. And quite possibly, in a pinch, on some carpeting. But that is it.

After a very short search, I realized what I needed was a bread slicer. Good old ebay. I knew I wouldn't be disappointed. I have seen these at Panera. They are very quick and efficient. Thin, thick, tailor sliced to your exact specifications. Never crooked. I can hardly contain my excitement. And some of the cheaper countertop models started around $500! I saw a used full-sized model that stands on the floor, but wherever would I put it?? Let's be reasonable:-)

So, to recap before I head off to dream about my wonderful healthy, preservative-free bread: I found quite a bargain today with the breadmaker, but I ate half a loaf of bread, and I now all I *need* is a $500 bread slicer.