Even with the rising price of flour, having a breadmaker can be a very frugal thing, provided that you use it well. Of course, you can save lots of money by making your own breadmaker, but I personally find that it is a good investment because it really helps me fit home made bread and even freezer cooking into my busy day. Here are some tips that well help you make your breadmaker work for you.
First of all, if you have a breadmaker, use it. There is nothing worse than an idle appliance. Be realistic. If you don’t use the breadmaker and don’t see any use in the very near future, then go ahead and sell it. It isn’t working for you.
Second, stay away from those fancy breadmaker mixes. Many people believe that this is the only way to make bread in a breadmaker. Instead, invest in a good bread machine cookbook, ask friends for their favorite recipes or check out the food blog for recipes. Making your own bread from scratch is still relatively inexpensive. Using a mix, though, can sometimes cost you more than just buying a loaf of bread in the store.
Third, take advantage of your breadmaker to prepare meals for your freezer. One easy way to do this is to put up a number of pizza crusts. I do this almost as if I am doing laundry. In the morning, I add the ingredients to the breadmaker and let it do its work to make the dough. When it is done, I shape the crust and par bake them for a few minutes. let them cool and then add them to the freezer. Alternatively, you can make and freeze the dough for pizza (or rolls). You can also make bread and freeze it.
Use your breadmaker for alternate kitchen tasks. Many breadmakers will allow you to make quick breads, cakes, jam and even butter. Just a few ingredients added to the machine is less work on your part than even driving to the store to buy something.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
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