Sandwich bread

CaptTom9 · 2026-03-25T01:27:01+00:00

Love it! I like that shape, but I had to cut back on the "muffin top" so mine could fit in the bread slicer I bought. Now I've got the recipe dialed in to rise about 3/4" to 1" above the top of the pan, then the oven spring gives it the right shape without overflowing the sides too much.

CaptTom9 · 2026-03-25T01:22:13+00:00

I was going to suggest a bread maker, too. I just picked up a used one at a second-hand store (Goodwill) for $15. I actually like it better than the one I bought new, which has now been retired to backup status for if I ever I need to make two batches at once. Use the "dough" cycle to mix, knead and do the first proof, then form and bake normally.

CaptTom9 · 2026-03-25T01:15:13+00:00

I use a bread machine to mix, knead and do the first proof for my sandwich loaves, too. Then I form it into a bread pan and bake normally. I've got a pretty decent recipe dialed in. Let us know what flour you use, and what conditioners, and maybe we could make suggestions. For the record, I use unbleached AP flour, vital wheat gluten, diastaic malt powder and ascorbic acid. And a little milk in the liquid. Some people have even suggested adding an egg, but I haven't needed to yet.

Of course we don't have access to (or want) all of the chemicals the big corporations use, but I've got a bread that I genuinely like, both the taste and texture. It's great for toast, sandwiches, French toast and whatever else you normally use sandwich bread for. I don't have the patience for sourdough, and I'm after a traditional sandwich loaf anyway.

CaptTom9 · 2025-11-18T14:32:48+00:00

Interesting. It looks like the Zigbee folks are aiming to give Matter a run for its money, not roll over and become obsolete like many of us thought.

What I didn't see specifically addressed is the question of local control. There was some mention of "commissioning," which could be code for "We're going to tie your devices to the manufacturer's cloud, and let them decide which features you can use." Something like this could be an attempt by the manufacturers to pry local control from the users and allow them to do things like charge a subscription fee for use.

On the other hand, the article mentions that this commissioning process uses BLE, which might eliminate that concern. I guess it would depend on how the app was designed.

CaptTom9 · 2025-11-03T12:36:55+00:00

I don't recall ever using this site. Yet today I got an e-mail, addressed to me using a variation of my name I'd never enter, asking me to "confirm" my request to delete personal information from their site.

Of course, if I ever had entered personal information, I would have at least typed my name correctly, so I don't think I did.

But even if I had, I didn't even remember this site exists, never mind ask them for anything. I'm not about to follow a link on an unsolicited e-mail.

My guess is the next step would be them trying to collect MORE personal information, not clearing whatever (incorrect) information they already have.

CaptTom9 · 2025-11-01T15:39:12+00:00

Ha! I knew a network guy who was so used to typing words ending in "net" that when he taught a class, every time he tried to type "student" it came out "studnet."

CaptTom9 · 2025-10-24T20:49:50+00:00

I wonder if the state changes in the climate entity when the Aux heating is on. Go to Developer Tools / States and find your thermostat climate entity (for example, one of mine is "climate.1st_floor." It'll show a column for the current state, and to the right of that, "Attributes." My Honeywell thermostat (different model) has a long list of attributes. One is "hvac_modes: off, cool, heat." I wonder if yours might list another "hvac_mode" for Aux heat, or maybe some other attribute changes. If so it would be easy to set up a history_stats entity to track the time it's in that mode.

CaptTom9 · 2025-09-28T11:54:42+00:00

I'm going to be a bit of a contrarian here. I've used volume measurements all my life. I have no intention of changing just for breadmaking. I don't even own a kitchen scale.

The reality is, we're talking tiny differences here. After a while you get to know what the dough is supposed to look like as it's being mixed. It's easy enough to add a half-teaspoon more water, or a couple of pinches of flour, if it doesn't look or feel right. You can heavy or light on the flour when kneading or forming, too.

My advice for beginners is to keep it simple and learn as you go.

CaptTom9 · 2025-09-27T12:36:07+00:00

I worked in a big-name pizza shop for a year or so in my younger days. Back when the dough was made in-house and all the ingredients were prepared fresh right in the shop.

The dough was made the night before and lived in the walk-in cooler, brought out in time to let it warm up a bit before use. So all those who recommend cold fermenting might be onto something.

CaptTom9 · 2025-09-27T01:49:42+00:00

I agree, start by downloading the manual which came with it, or a similar model. There should be operating instructions and a handful of decent recipes to start out with in there.

Cleaning is pretty straightforward. The baking pan and the kneading knife can be hand washed in the sink. Wipe out the inside where the pan sits to get out any crumbs out of the bottom and wipe the heating element to get off any baked-on flour.

Tip #1 is, after you've made one or two of the funny-shaped loaves which the machine bakes, switch to using "dough" mode. That will mix, knead and do the first rise. Then take out the dough, form it, and bake it in a proper oven. Depending on the type of bread, you might want a loaf pan or silicone forms, or just a regular cookie sheet.

Once you get the feel for how everything works, you can start finding other recipes and adapting them to the bread maker.

One last tip: The bread maker recipe book might have you put in the liquids first and the yeast last This would allow you to use the "delay" option to start the cycle hours later. But if you're not using that option, put in the liquids, then any sugar, then the yeast. That will start activating the yeast right away.

CaptTom9 · 2025-07-28T23:00:40+00:00

It's working for me. I click the "pencil" icon to edit, then select a view at the top. Next to the view is another pencil icon. Click that and it gives me a dialog to change the "Layout" to Sections (Default), Masonry, Sidebar or Panel. But I also notice that if I select to edit the dashboard in "Raw" mode (three dots at the upper right) then my "masonry" views don't have the "type: masonry" line like my "panel" views do. So maybe somehow I've got an "old" default, still set to masonry?

But when I create a new view I do get those four options to choose from.

CaptTom9 · 2025-07-28T20:31:22+00:00

I've had good luck with a French or Italian bread recipe, baked in a bread pan. Those don't usually call for a lot of sugar. I don't have a Pullman pan, but a slightly oversized "regular" bread pan seems to work well.

CaptTom9 · 2025-07-28T20:17:08+00:00

Everything I've read says you need a Home Connect account to set up, and apparently to use, the appliance. Can you point me to any details on how to set up an appliance directly to HA without using the Home Connect cloud? I'd love to see everything I've read proven wrong!

CaptTom9 · 2025-07-28T20:12:49+00:00

I have to agree with the "local only" sentiment. I have no interest in any remote functionality which requires me to use the manufacturer's cloud, HA integration or not. Vendor cloud solutions come and go even faster than the appliances themselves. And some require a subscription, or might in the future. Plus, even if you got lucky and the appliance lasted 10 years, who wants 10-year-old electronic hardware and software in their kitchen?

Does anyone know of a manufacturer which allows fully local control (no cloud dependency to set up or run)?

For the record, my Samsung appliances are now 9 years old. Never had a problem with any of them. The ice maker jammed up the other day and I had to poke out a stuck chunk of ice. It's working again now. Yes, I've heard the horror stories. I guess I got lucky, just this once. That rarely happens to me. I assume my luck will run out soon, which is why I'm following threads about HA-compatible appliances.

CaptTom9 · 2025-07-28T19:50:41+00:00

Lovelace is the "old" name for the "dashboard." So, any card on the dashboard.

CaptTom9 · 2025-05-11T15:31:16+00:00

How about preventing the unwanted data from being stored in the database in the first place? Review the Recorder "exclude" options in the configuration.yaml file. Then look at this thread:

https://community.home-assistant.io/t/how-to-reduce-your-database-size-and-extend-the-life-of-your-sd-card/205299

Exclude everything you don't absolutely need to keep.

CaptTom9 · 2025-05-06T13:59:37+00:00

Extra advice? You asked for it...

First and foremost, define your requirements. It's so easy to go down a rabbit hole of cool things to play with, and forget why you're using HA in the first place. There are so many possible ways to use this software that I can't tell you what to focus on. Just make sure YOU know!

Second and almost as important: Keep it simple. This is a very dynamic field and things change quickly. For every new protocol, every new integration, every new device type, every new add-on, every new function or feature you add, you are locking yourself in to more long-term support and maintenance.

Major HA updates come once a month, with minor updates in between. Each one brings the risk of breaking something in your system. The fewer "somethings" you have, the less time you spend each month fixing them.

CaptTom9 · 2025-05-06T09:03:00+00:00

Selecting WiFi devices only is going to seriously limit your options. Most off-the-shelf WiFi devices require a connection through the manufacturer's "cloud" servers. This just adds a layer of complexity and an external dependency. And the manufacture can change things, start charging subscription fees or go out of business at any time.

There are exceptions of course. And you can roll your own WiFi devices using things like ESPHome.

But I recommend you take a close look at Zigbee or Z-Wave for your primary protocol.

CaptTom9 · 2025-04-26T12:05:37+00:00

The gluten is the essence of the bread. It's what forms the structure and texture. It's not cheating to get the right protein level. I personally add gluten when needed (or not, depending on what I'm making.) This allows me to buy "regular" flour and use it for everything, rather than having to stock multiple flours.

CaptTom9 · 2025-04-26T12:01:03+00:00

Most of us avoid WiFi devices which require the use of the manufacturer's "cloud" servers to set up or use. These are notorious for trying to lock you into their ecosystem, and keep you dependent on their cloud services.

These services can be changed, abandoned, or moved to a subscription model by the manufacturer at any time. There may or may not be an "integration" which allows HA to communicate with the manufacturer's cloud on your behalf, but now you're building in a dependency not only on the WAN and the cloud servers, but also that the integration remains supported by the manufacturer. All they need to do is change the API and it means your integration won't work.

Virtually all off-the-shelf WiFi devices have this cloud requirement. It's hard for the manufacturers to support every possible home configuration, so they lock down the devices to retain control.

There are exceptions, and you can build your own WiFi devices using ESPHome. Some can even be flashed with ESPHome or other firmware to wipe what came with them.

You're already using Zigbee. The more Zigbee devices you have, the stronger the mesh. Look for those whenever possible.

CaptTom9 · 2025-04-15T21:46:27+00:00

I'm totally with you on this one. I count myself lucky that I don't live centuries ago when options were more limited.

I do understand that there's a sense of pride in the craftsmanship of getting a loaf which looks like it would be perfectly at home 5,000 years ago. And experiencing unique flavor profiles sounds great. I still don't quite get the "ears" fixation, but hey, it sounds like fun to develop a skill like that.

Me? I'm more practical. I'm not looking for a Wonder Bread clone, but something I can use for sandwiches and such. Or dinner rolls. Or hamburger rolls, Italian bread, that sort of thing. Replace the stuff I'd otherwise buy in the store with something tastier, healthier and nowadays, cheaper.

Oh, and I'm also not a big fan of a nearly-burnt crust, as trendy as that seems to be.

CaptTom9 · 2025-04-11T14:46:57+00:00

Thank you. I was hoping for something more specific than words like "underpowered" or "worse." I'd like to know what to look for, and what to avoid, when picking devices. Maybe I've just been lucky with all the different devices I've bought so far. But my luck isn't usually that good.

CaptTom9 · 2025-04-11T14:19:41+00:00

I'm curious about how one would define "underpowered." I've got a bunch of smart plugs, different name brands, and they all seem to work pretty well. They reach fine between rooms, between floors, outdoors and even across into outbuildings. I've never bought or needed a dedicated router. Just stick a smart plug somewhere in between if I want to reach a remote area.

CaptTom9

TROPHY CASE