Bread Machine Tips

Dear Home Ec 101,

So I’ve finally garnered the courage to break out the 10 year old, given as a wedding gift, but never used Bread Machine. I’ve used it twice to make whole wheat bread. I’m not doing a good job at this. I’ve learned that the ingredients MUST be room temp (not straight out of the freezer like I did) and that the salt and yeast need to be kept apart. But how do I do the 2nd part? I put the water in, then the flour and stuff, and yeast on top. But it starts kneading it ASAP so is there a trick to adding either of these?
Signed,

~Baffled in Bakersfield

Heather says:

If you are not using the delay setting, it really doesn’t matter much as long as the ingredients are added quickly. If you are using the delay setting, the order of ingredients is: water, oil or butter, sweeteners such as sugar or molasses, salt, dry milk, seasoning, wheat flour, bread flour, white flour, yeast. Obviously not every recipe calls for each of these, just follow the general order for your recipe.

When using kitchen appliances such as bread machines or slow cookers the best advice I can give is to read your manual for specifics. Since you said your bread machine is ten years old, I am assuming the manual may be missing. Look up the manufacture and model on Google. Many times the companies have links to the manuals in pdf format.

Good luck!

Submit your question by sending an email to helpme@home-ec101.com

The economy: What are you doing about it?

Ivy says:

The times, they are a-changin’ and not necessarily for the better. I have a lot of hope for the future of the economy, but I’m also taking a very cautious view of things. I think now is the time for us to buckle down and really take stock of our spending. We need to cut expenses where we can, and start doing things for ourselves when possible.

Seems I’m not the only person feeling that way, either. Money Saving Mom writes about the price of wheat going up and how that will affect a lot of things:

While I’m not one to jump on “the-sky-is-falling” hyped-up bandwagons, I have heard from multiple reputable sources that wheat prices will be increasing substantially very soon. This price increase will likely have a strong trickle-down effect since so many things one normally buys at the store contain wheat.

How much flour is in the stuff we eat? A lot, unless you or one of your family members have Celiac Disease. It’s not just in bread, but it’s in your Fruit Loops and your gravy and cake and cookies and, well, you get the idea.

If gas prices also rise as have been predicted, your $3-4 box of cereal may start being a $6-8 box of cereal. What to do? Make your own Fruit Loops? Start teaching your kids about how wonderful oatmeal is? How far are you willing to take it? And if we stop buying cereal, what happens to the people who are employed at the cereal companies? Do we think about ourselves, or think about the bigger picture?

I think the key answer to this goes back to my  “nothing is absolute” post. I could sit here and tell you to grow your own wheat and get some goats for milk, but if you don’t have the space, time and/or knowledge to raise goats and wheat my solution isn’t going to work for you. I can tell you to buy Fruit Loops with a coupon at Publix when they have buy one get one free day, but if you don’t have a Publix, that doesn’t help either.

I think now is the time for us to be making plans of what works for our own families.  Home Ec 101 will be here with advice and suggestions. But start making your plan now. Have hope for the future, but start planning now.

Ask the Audience: Frugal Fun

Heather says:

It is only Wednesday and I am looking forward to the weekend. With three kids under five and a husband that works rotating shifts, weekends of the traditional sort are a rarity around here.  Still, we try to keep weekly traditions for the kids.  Friday night is movie night; after the kids are bathed and in pajamas, I pop a big bowl of popcorn, and settle in.  We rotate who chooses, to relieve ourselves from having to watch CARS 52 times in a row.

Saturday is typically pizza night, but we rotate with other kid friendly or simple fare.  Pizza nights we gather in the kitchen, eating as the different pizzas finish baking.  We turn on music and it’s pretty much chaos as one kid chooses his topping and the other channels one super hero or another. Eventually we will master the pizza toss.  Other nights we do a “floor picnic” which is little more than using a picnic blanket in the living room, but for them it’s magic.

No, it’s not wild or crazy, but it is easy, comforting, and budget friendly.

What do you do by yourself or with your family for cheap, easy fun?

Normally we love funk, but not THIS kind of funk

Dear Home-Ec 101,

Say one had a habit of boiling things over on the gas stove top. Say one had been lazy about cleaning such things. Say one’s husband has a liking for splattery meat and a strong aversion for cleaning. What toxic substance would be necessary to get the black gas stove top clean again?

Thanks,

Sloppy Stovetop

Ivy says:

We have a running family joke that we’re not just functional, we’re funky! That kind of funk is awesome, but stovetop funk, not so much.  The good news is, it won’t take horribly toxic chemicals to remove the funk. I’d use Bar Keeper’s Friend and elbow grease.

I’d sprinkle some Bar Keeper’s Friend onto the stovetop and then take a damp rag and start scrubbing. Anything that is really stuck-on, I’d use a nylon pan scraper to  scrape it up. This may take several different cleanings and a whole lot of elbow grease to get completely clean. Take heart- once it’s finally clean, you can keep up with cleaning it and you’ll never face this much funk again.

It’s Our Birthday and We’re Throwing a Party

Heather says:

We are turning one on Saturday! It’s hard to believe a year ago the Internet had not heard of the wonder that is Home Ec 101. In this time, we have shared ways to rid your life of every bodily fluid you have dared mention, shared well over one hundred recipes, doled out tons of advice on cleaning and motivation, and added over fifty frugal and homemaking bloggers to our aggregator. In honor of this auspicious occasion we’re holding a contest.

You ask, “How do I enter?”

Simply comment below. If you have a blog please write a post to spread the news. If you do not have a blog, how retro is that, share the news via email or just shout it from the rooftops.

Here is the list of prizes:

• A can of Bar Keeper’s Friend
• 5 Martha Who? t-shirts
• A $50 Gift Card to Home Depot
• A Hamilton Beach 3-in-1 Slow Cooker*

The contest begins today and runs through 12am EST on Saturday. The drawings will be held through random selection and announced on Saturday. When commenting be sure to use a valid email address to ensure we are able to contact the winners.

Get ready, get set, comment!

*Only US and Canadian residents are eligible for the slow cooker, overseas shipping is not in the budget.

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