Processed food seems to be taking over our grocery stores. While this is the quick and easy option, it’s not the healthiest one. There are fewer local bakeries and more mass-produced bread items than ever before. A bread maker allows you to control the number of additives in your bread—choosing exactly what you add to your loaf, giving you healthier options.
This Hamilton Beach bread maker has many choices for baking bread and cakes. It will also prepare your dough—making it possible to bake artisan bread in a conventional oven.
The Hamilton Beach 29885 helps you create scrumptious bread from scratch. It takes the guesswork and inconsistency out of the bread making process, giving perfect results each time.
Affordable and stylish, this appliance will become your go-to piece of equipment for brunches and lunches, focaccias and croissants.
Features
Hamilton Beach has been producing kitchen appliances since 1910. Its products are very popular and can be found in many homes and commercial kitchens across the US.
The 29885 measures 16″ by 10″ by 10″, making it compact enough to fit neatly on a kitchen countertop. The stainless steel finish with black accents gives it a tasteful finish.
There are 14 programmable settings. These include a basic setting for white or premixed bread flours and a setting for French bread, using fine flour. There are options for gluten-free, whole grain, and sweet bread.
Other settings give you the chance to bake cakes, make jams, or prepare dough. The artisan setting ensures the dough rises slowly, for a perfect texture when baked.
You can choose from three loaf sizes—small at 1 pound, medium at 1.5 pounds, and large at 2 pounds. You can also select your preferred color for the crust: light, medium or dark.
There are express-cook settings for both the 1.5-pound loaf and 2-pound loaf. There is also a quick-cook facility for recipes which do not include yeast.
It has a delayed-timer function and a keep-warm setting. The appliance beeps to let you know when it’s time to add ingredients, such as raisins or nuts to your dough.
The LCD display makes program selection a cinch, and the clear glass window lets you see the progress of your baking.
The inner bread pan and kneading paddle have a non-stick coating and are dishwasher safe. This means easy removal of your bread and effortless cleanup.
The bread maker is supplied with a measuring spoon and measuring cup. You also receive a tool to remove the kneaded dough. The user manual has recipes created specifically for this machine. The unit comes with a five-year limited warranty.
This video shows a happy customer making a saffron loaf in the Hamilton Bread Maker:
Should You Buy It?
My family are very happy with the results from this bread maker. The loaves are consistent—and better than most options you will find at the store. The machine is also quiet while in operation.
The various settings offer lots of choices and the option to prepare dough for specialty bread is really useful. The programs are also easily selected from the printed information at the top of the machine.
I’m told that the gluten-free option produces a very good loaf from friends who have tried this method.
There are very few negatives when it comes to this appliance. It can move when kneading, especially on the 2-pound loaf option. This could be due to the weight of the machine as it only weighs 10 pounds.
I did find that the black plastic around the lid was quite flimsy, too. However, this doesn’t affect the machine’s ability to function.
Summary
This bread maker is a reliable, multi-purpose machine, giving many options for baking and preparing the dough. The knead-and-rise function for preparing artisan bread is a particularly good feature. You also have the option to use it to make jam.
Controlling the exact ingredients in your bread means you know it is free from preservatives and additives. As we become more health conscious, stepping away from processed foods seems to be an increasing trend.
Nutrition appears to have been at the forefront when Hamilton Beach created this bread maker. The company included options that cover many dietary needs.
If you’re looking to step away from commercially produced bread and make your own, the Hamilton Beach bread maker could be the one for you. Its budget-friendly price and versatility should meet the needs of most new and experienced bakers. It will have your home smelling of freshly-baked bread in no time.
