Bread Machine Recipes

Getting to the Basics
Add 1 cup milk, 1 large egg, 3 tablespoons Crisco, 3 cups bread flour, 1 packet dry yeast, 3 tablespoons instant mashed potatoes, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons sugar to the bucket of your bread machine. Press the start button. Touch your finger to the dough after 8-10 minutes. It should be tacky and your finger should release free of dough. Add flour or water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to correct the dough's consistency while the bread machine is in the early stages of kneading.

Wheat Bread and Embellishments
Alter the above recipe by substituting 1.5 cups whole wheat flour for 1.5 cups bread flour. Once the bread machine has started the final rise, brush loaves with egg whites. Add seeds (sunflower, sesame, or poppy) or gently press raisins or candied fruits into the dough.

Pan Rolls
Process the above recipe (white or wheat) on the dough cycle of your bread machine. Press dough into a rectangle-shaped, buttered cake pan. Cut two lines lengthwise and three lines widthwise for a dozen rolls. Brush with melted butter, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until it doubles in size. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cinnamon Rolls
Roll white bread dough into two 10x8 rectangles and coat generously with melted butter. Combine 1 cup each of brown and granulated sugars and 1 tablespoon cinnamon. Spread over buttered dough. Roll into jellyroll and cut into 1-inch slices. Place in buttered cake pans. Cover, let rise, and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. (Option: add chopped pecans to sugar mixture.) Melt 1 stick of butter and 1 tablespoon of honey together. Brush over hot rolls.

French Bread with Flair
Using the dough cycle of your bread machine, make dough from 1 cup water, 2 tablespoons Crisco, 2.5 cups bread flour, 1 packet dry yeast, and 1 teaspoon salt. Divide dough in half, roll into 10x8 rectangles, brush with melted butter, roll up, seal edges, score 3-4 cuts diagonally into the top with a sharp knife, cover, and let rise. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.

For a touch of Italy, brush baked loaves generously with melted garlic butter, sprinkle with grated Parmesan or Romano cheese, and return to the oven for 1-2 minutes. This recipe doubles as a pizza crust. Remember to always test consistency in the early kneading cycle.