I've been wanting one forever! I did do the math one time though and it actually cost more to make than buy the kind I use. (target's whole wheat is only $1 or so a loaf). However, I'm sure the maker would taste better so maybe I'll get myself one for Christmas!

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A woman is like a teabag. You never know how strong she is until she gets into hot water.-Eleanor Roosevelt

I know that luvmysoldier doesn't use a bread machine. Since I don't buy store bread, I have to use the bread machine in the summer or we would suffocate in this house. I do plan to use the dough cycle and then bake in the oven during the cooler months. I will have to check out the family bread recipe at Hillbilly Housewife. Sometimes I will make 2 loaves in one day and freeze one loaf until we are ready for it.

I must admit that I didn't use mine as much as I should have and got rid of it a couple of years ago. Now I am kicking myself as I really want one. I know it would pay for itself. DS eats a lot of bread and I like the idea of knowing what is in it. We buy organic bread right now and it is very $$. I can get mostly organic ingredients though and they are not that much more than traditional well unless I were to buy the 25 pound bag of flour. I know I would save money and think I will be investing in one in the next few months. I used to make the dough for pizza and rolls in mine and they were so good. The bread wasn't bad either. Right now it is just too hot to bake a loaf of bread in the oven.

I am using mine today. I love it for dough but I don't like the way the bread slices for sandwiches.

How do you know when to take it out of the maker to bake it in the oven? I didn't even know you could do that.

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I made my first official loaf today using the wheat bread recipe from the Kitchen Chatter forum and it turned out great! To all you experts...do you tend to slice as you go or do you slice up a whole loaf at one time?

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Pain is temporary, quitting is forever....

I slice as I go. I have a really sharp knife to use that helps cut them pretty thin. I'm so glad it worked for you!

We've saved alot just in making our own pizzas. The dough is awesome and soooo easy to make!

I make bread without using a bread machine, I bought a book called "The Easy Way to Artisan Breads & Pastries" and in it the author recomends a stand mixer for kneading which cuts down on the amount of work I have to do. All I need is to let the bread rise and rest . I try to do one large baking day a week and then freezing the loaves or dough for the rest of the week so our house isn't a continual oven.

Absolutely we've saved money! We bought our new sunbeam 5891 on amazon.com for $37.00 with free shipping and now it's 99.99 without free shipping! Amazon.com: Sunbeam 5891 2-Pound Programmable Breadmaker: Electronics

I bought a 50lb bag of flour at Costco for $17 and a big tub of yeast for about $3 at costco as well so figuring that we were spending $48 a month on bread alone, this has definitely saved us money. So for many, many, many loaves of bread, we spent a total of $57.00. I really don't know how many loaves 50lbs of flour make LOL

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OK, you ladies are making me want to get down our bread machine out of the top of the pantry and get baking!!!

Our family loves bread and I think it would be working overtime (it only bakes 1-1.5 pound loaves), but if I can make something better than store bought, and cheaper, it's worth a go!

I noticed the whole wheat bread I buy at WalMart just jumped in price from 1.34 to 1.98!

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SAHM of 4

August food budget (groceries/take-out): $500.00/$75.00
Total spent: $238.97/$14.12

July budget/spent: $500.00/$650.00