Success!

For years I have lived under the curse of what I thought a homemaker ought to be. You know what I mean, don't you? She spends the day in a lovely, starched, white apron - her hair perfectly coifed, and no stress on her face no matter what the day offers. Oh, and of course, she's baking all day long without breaking a sweat. Delicious goodies, scrumptious delicacies, and naturally, fresh, warm, fluffy bread to nourish her family.

This warped sense of someone's reality inspired more than one attempt on my part to produce piping hot rolls, fresh loaves, and melt-in-your-mouth cinnamon buns. Each attempt was nothing short of a disaster. I'm no idiot. I can follow a recipe. Yet, each and every time I tried one that sounded simple enough to accomplish, hours and hours of work ended in something that tasted lovely but weighed a ton!

Not fond of failure - or at least deciding there were better things to spend it on - I succumbed to the realization that perhaps bread baking was a skill that really needed to be passed down from someone well-versed in what "knead until smooth and elastic" really means. I must be doing something wrong, but even after consulting several experienced bakers, I'm at a loss to determine what.

Panasonic to the rescue! We decided to try a bread machine. I searched the Epinions available and determined that the Panasonic Bread Bakery was the way to go. Still, a woman with eight children doesn't have a lot of extra cash lying around so I found one on eBay and purchased it for about half the retail price.

It took only three days to completely spoil my family!! This machine produced such wonderful bread - whole wheat, spicy cheese, pepperoni, bran, potato, oatmeal, applesauce, and more! - that when I spent Saturday shopping instead of playing with my new toy, my husband complained, "Honey, it's been days since you've made any bread!"

I've never seen anything so simple! It really is "dump and bake." I measure in the flour, salt, water, butter, etc. - then put the yeast in the special compartment - select the baking mode and push the "start" button. Three to four hours later, I'm pulling out a steaming, tasty loaf of bread! Three minutes work is all it takes!! And the smell is heavenly! My husband says it smells "cozy" in our home, now. ;o)

Panasonic's special yeast compartment allows the machine to add the yeast at the same time you would if you were making it by hand (you, not me!). The recipe book is full of wonderful breads to bake and also, dough recipes if you choose to be creative: bagels, croissants, pizza dough, doughnuts, and more! Even the liquid measure included is easy to read and use - and cleanup is nothing short of a breeze! In fact, it may be the easiest thing to clean of all that I own!

We are so happy with it, we are even considering getting a second one so we can make twice as much! I highly recommend it - whether you are an accomplished baker who desires more product than you have time to make yourself - or whether you are all thumbs in the baking department like I am. You will have fantastic bread with virtually no time invested at all - and none of the mess either! Thank you, Panasonic!! Now, if I could only find an affordable white, starched apron.