Banana Apple Sultanas bread - quick in the bread machine

Im sooooooo sorry I havent been here in so long. I've just been so busy at work, plus I am doing a diet (A serious one this time) and so is Ben so cooking has been a little bit out of the loop.

Anyways, Ben likes to go cycling, and he does...pretty much every tuesday and thursday he wakes up at 5:30 and goes out for hour and half or more.
So usually they go to a cafe place and have banana bread, but since we started a diet I've been making him some, a much lighter version.
This version is 4 PROPOINTS (New Weight watchers system) per slice and here is the recipe:

You will need
2 cups of flour
2 eggs
1/2 cup of sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp bicarbonate
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp apple sauce - no sugar
30g sultanas
1 banana large
1 apple or pear in small pieces, no skin

Method:
put everything in the bread maker and turn it on and let it stir for 5 minutes. you will get a sticky mixture. you dont really need more than 5 minutes.

Get a spatula and fix the top.

Choose the baking option from your machine and let it bake for around 1 hour (You will need to check if its cooked or need another 10 minutes in the end) and Ta dahhhh

If you slice it in 15 portions, 4 points each

BON APPETITE.

Multi Grain Bread Machine recipe - My best so far

Hiiii

Happy new year!!!
If you have a bread machine you know that sometimes the bread doesnt get fluffy as the one you buy in the supermarket right? At least mine doesnt. And then, gets a little bit crumbly...and Ben, my beloved hubby, complains.

I think I finally found the secret of making a perfect bread in the bread machine...kneading a little bit while the machine is doing its job. Sounds weird?
Well, its not even close to the work of really kneading a bread from scratch. I just opened the machine and used my fingers to break in the air a little bit (I think that's what happens when you need). To be honest I didn't even got my nails dirty.

Anyway: here is what I did (For a large Loaf, almost 2lb - 850 g)
1 1/8 cups warm water
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon margerine
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
4 tablespoons flax seeds
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 1/2 tablespoon sunflower seeds
1 3/4 teaspoons active dry yeast


Method: Put everything in the machine but the seeds. add them in the final kneading cycle. But before that, when the dough is already formed...use your fingers and knead it a little bit.

Here is the result:

Oh, have I mentioned I have an alarm clock in the kitchen? I love cook listening to music, and I use the clock itself to control my times. heheheheheh

Apple Pie Bread in the Bread Machine

Apple Pie?

Apple cake?

Pie or Bread?

You choose, you can always put a little bit more sugar, and make it more cake"ish" (sweeter).


Anyway, here is the recipe:


you will need

Apple BREAD! 

1 1/8 cups non fat milk 
3 tablespoons vegetable oil 
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar or honey 
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon 
1 1/2 teaspoons salt 
3 cups bread flour (Substitute for 2 and 1/2 of all purpose flower) 
1 1/2 teaspoons active yeast 
1 large apple -- peeled, diced 





Place the ingredients in the bread pan in the order recommended by your
machine's manufacturer. Choose appropriate cycle (preferable fruit / sweet cycle)

Add apples at beginning of second knead cycle. Apples add moisture to the
dough, so a little flour may have to be added to adjust the consistency. 

Baking soda, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder. So what's the story?

Since I bought my Bread machine I've been researching recipes and some of them ask for baking soda, other bicarbonate. So what's the story here? 

Baking soda and bicarbonate of soda are no more that different names for the same thing; in Australia, we mostly refer to it as bicarbonate of soda, but overseas, especially in America, it is referred to as baking soda. They aren’t interchangeable, but bicarbonate of soda and baking powder are both leavening agents. When included in a batter, the leavening agent causes air bubbles (produced by stirring, whipping or beating) to expand when cooked – causing it to ‘rise’.

Bicarbonate of soda is a pure leavening agent. It needs to be mixed with moisture and an acidic ingredient for the necessary chemical reaction to take place to make food rise. Because it needs an acid to create the rising quality, it is often used in recipes where there is already an acidic ingredient present, such as lemon juice, chocolate, buttermilk or honey.

Baking powder, which contains bicarbonate of soda, comes pre-mixed with the acidic ingredient for you – so all you need to add is the moisture. The acidic ingredient most often used in baking powder is cream of tartar. You can make your own baking powder: simply mix two parts cream of tartar with one part bicarbonate of soda. Baking powder has a neutral taste and is often used in recipes that have other neutral-tasting ingredients, such as milk.

In Australia, we usually just cook with self-raising flour when a leavening agent is required, unless the specific qualities of bicarbonate of soda are required. Bicarbonate of soda imparts a slightly different quality to that of baking powder when used in cooking. It can have a slightly “tangy” taste and it makes a lovely golden colour. It also makes a very specific texture not achievable with baking powder. It is very important to sift bicarbonate of soda well as it gets lumpy and to use very exact measures as the “tangy” taste can quite easily become bitter or soapy if too much is used.

Source: Ninemsn

My First Successful Bread Machine Recipe

We bought a Bread Machine.
Exciting exciting.
We bought it at ALDI supermarkets. It was very cheap, only $49 and figured we would give it a try.
Also I am becoming, or at least, trying to become more healthy, not eating meat (just fish for now), bla bla bla


Anyways, the LUMINA bread maker instructions are pathetic. There is no other words for it. And unfortunately when I called in to after sales support, after waiting more than 20 minutes in line, the lady was very nice but useless.  She tried, but she reafirmed that there is no more information of the one that comes with the machine.

Anyway, I've tried a couple of recipes that came in the booklet and its ridiculous. So I decided to try something different and the result was brilliant.

so I called this post my first successful bread machine recipe cause I'm planning to try more soon

Light Oat Bread

Ingredients:
1 and 1/4 cup of water - i use warm water that was boiled in a kettle
2tbsp margerine
2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1/2 cup of whole meal flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 1/2 spoon active yeast

Method:

I Put liquid first, then 1/2 of yeast
waited 5 minutes, add the dry ingredients and last, the other half of the yeast
Choose basic bread.

You should follow the instructions from your manufacturer, although mine says to put yeast in the end and I didn't. but that's me! :)

Enjoy!

Love,

Vic