An advantage of a bread machine is the ability to make a loaf of bread without heating up the kitchen by running the oven. In the south, that is a blessing.I have been using a Zojirushi Bakery Home Supreme for 14 or 15 years now, as it bakes a normal-looking 2-pound loaf.
With school out for the year, I have two hungry teens to feed all day long. Flour and yeast are cheap, and it is minimal work to make a loaf of bread in the machine.
I went for a more “gourmet” loaf today. The recipe I adapted from Zojirushi’s website doesn’t weigh the flour. I highly recommend you do – because it is more accurate. If you scoop and measure, watch it at the start; once it starts kneading, you may need to add more water. Every brand of flour is different in how it scoops
The original recipe called for fresh onion, but I thought about it, this kind of recipe dehydrated shines in, you just need to rehydrate it first. 15 minutes in cool water, and it is ready to go.
Bread Machine Cheese and Onion Bread
Ingredients:
- 1¼ cups water
- 2½ Tbsp unsalted butter, sliced up thin
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 tsp fine sea salt
- 4¼ cups flour (510 grams weighed)
- 2 tsp dry active yeast
Also:
- ¼ cup dehydrated diced onion, rehydrated with ¼ cup water for 15 minutes
- 1¼ cups grated cheese *Use what you like, I used cheddar and Parmesan blended
Directions:
Add the ingredients in order listed, ending with the yeast on top of the flour, not touching any liquid.
Set the machine for a loaf of standard white bread with a medium crust and, if needed, a 2-pound size.
Check during the first kneading cycle to make sure everything is mixing. The dough should be slightly tacky to the touch.
Listen for the beep when adding the onion and cheese; watch that it kneads in.
Remove after baking, and let cool on a rack.
Once fully cooled, store in a sealed bread bag and use within 2 days for best results.
Makes 1 loaf.
Notes:
Zojirushi bread machines warm the ingredients for you, where other brands of bread machines use warm water instead, at the temperature called for, usually around 110*, and stack the ingredients as called for in the manual. Follow your machine’s manual. Items with * should be warmed up if using a standard machine.
~Sarah