Cost of baking bread

I used to but very seldom do now....I think if you add up the cost of baking it you might find its more expensive!

It depends on what type of bread. If you just get your basic sandwich bread you can get that for cheaper than you can make it. By the time you buy the yeast and flour you could of bought more than one loaf of cheap bread. I would say if you want a fresh baked loaf what I do upon occasion is here you can buy frozen bread dough. You just need to thaw it out for a day and bake it... It's absolutly delicious! Only problem is remembering to thaw it out so you can bake it.

I find that I can bake a loaf for about half what it would cost in the shop and, since I know and can choose what goes into it, it is healthier and tastier, too. The only problem is that it lasts less time than the store bought loaf because it is nicer to eat. I use a bread machine to make the dough because that is quicker and less trouble but I tend to shape the dough by hand and bake the loaf or rolls in the oven. This takes just a little longer (a bread machine will take 3 to 4.5 hours to produce a finished loaf but will produce dough in about 1.5 hours) but it gives me more control over the shape of the loaf and if I want to make rolls, it is the best way. I use various recipes but always use a strong breadmaking flour. American 'all-purpose' flour works nearly as well (it is stronger than the British 'plain flour'). A strong flour has more gluten and holds the bubbles that the yeast creates better and has a better bread-like texture.

For us, baking bread is slightly less than buying it at the store, mostly because store bought bread around here is expensive. We just make plain bread - it's very nice and warm. It doesn't really last though, so we make small loaves so that we won't waste any food.

I use a bread maker to bake my own bread and it's certainly cheaper than the shop variety and a good deal nicer as well. Nor does it have all of the additives that shop bread has. Apart from all the preservatives and so on, the salt in commercial bread is a big contributor to the overall and usually excessive salt consumption of the average person and excessive amounts of salt in the diet contributes to high blood pressure and heart disease.

Well if you buy the ingredients at low prices and are efficient in making the bread then yes it may be worth you while.If your time is valuable and you can't afford the amount of effort in making it and are bad at cooking and baking then you should buy your bread rather then make it yourself.The prices of bread are relativity low and you will not save a lot making it your self in the short term.I buy my own bread personally and think that is is better then all the time and trouble in making it my self.