The smell of fresh baked bread

[Chantal]

I have many times read about people extolling the wonderful smell of freshly baked bread. I have a bread maker which I set on timer to finish baking around 6am, this gives the bread just enough time to cool before I cut it for sandwiches.

The problem is that the smell of the bread baking makes me feel very very sick. It's only when it gets to the last half hour of baking, but I wake up with my stomach roiling and it takes hours to wear off. I'm still feeling queasy and the bread's been cooling for an hour and a half.

I close the kitchen door, always have the bedroom window open, stick my head under the duvet but the damn smell permeates everywhere.

Any suggestions?

[richard p]

buy bread for a week or so, see if your early morning symptoms stop. if they do, stop making bread, or do it in the garden shed. if the symptoms dont stop, start worrying about something else, what else causes morning sickness.... bye richard

[Granny]

My daughter, who has a 6 month old baby, says that the early smell of the breadmaker is very reminiscent of a small baby's dirty nappy! Something to do with warm yeast, she thinks. You could try baking the bread later in the day when the smells can be disguised with other cooking smells. I do this and the bread is still very fresh in the morning. And toast made from last night's bread is wonderful.
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Granny

[Chantal]

As there is no way on earth that I could be pregnant I think I'll try the Granny way and bake the stuff in the evening to see if this makes a difference.

However, I do have power in the greenhouse and already use the food dehydrator in there so that's worth a go.

Thanks guys

[alan refail]

I was going to suggest not using a bread maker, but I suppose that having invested in one, you'll want to carry on using it. We were once given a loaf made in a bread maker and vowed never to eat another.
Baking later in the day is a good suggestion.
For what it's worth, our "easy" breadmaking is done with Wrights breadmixes - readily available in most supermarkets - and baked in a bread tin in the oven.

http://www.wrightsflour.co.uk/

Ffon y bywyd yw bara
Bread is the staff of life

But you knew that already.

Cofion gorau

Alan

[Compo]

Chantal I am so sad that you are not able to enjoy this fantastic smell, definitely unlike baby's nappies me thinks!!

I would love to wake up to that smell!! It is delightful!!

And as far as quality goes, if you get it right Alan (use good quality flour) Home Made bread a wonderful product

[Granny]

Alan, we had our first taste of breadmaker bread some time ago and like you, vowed never to eat it again. Then a friend gave me some of hers which was made with organic stoneground wholemeal flour and it tasted fantastic. We think the other loaf was made with a bread mix, although I note that you use bread mixes - probably a better quality one. I agree with Compo - with good flour, breadmaker bread is wonderful.

Compo, my daughter only meant when the bread was warming up, not the fantastic smell you get when it's actually cooking. I think she was particularly sensitive to smells as she was pregnant with said baby at the time.
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Granny

[retropants]

goodness me, baby's nappies? Oh dear!
I set my breadmaker to bake early in the morning too, and really love them smell. Unfortunately, as I work full time, I just put a cover over it and leave it to cool whilst I'm at work. I would prefer to be able to snaffle a bit while its still warm! I use only organic flour, usually Dove's Farm. I've only ever had one disaster! The bread is delish! Emma.

[Jenny Green]

The smell of my bread make cooking made me feel sick when I was pregnant too! I had to give up homebaked bread until after having the baby. So I can sympathise with someone reacting to the smell in the same way, but I have no problem with it now.

[Tigger]

One of the things that affects the smell of bread from a breadmaker is the 'instant' yeast.

Bread made with fresh yeast or with ordinary dry yeast that is activated before adding to the flour doesn't give off the same smell.

I used to use a breadmaker, until OH decided he could make much better bread, quicker, by hand (and the Kenwood). Who am I to argue? He now makes a week's worth of loaves and rolls each weekend and freezes them. The trick is freezing them as soon as they are cold - don't leave them hanging around - and they don't benefit from long term freezing either.

I think the test for whether the bread's any good could be measured by the number of times he's asked to make some for friend's parties or the Village Hall events!

[Johnboy]

Hi Tigger,
I still make my bread by hand, without a Kenwood,
and somehow think that bread making machines are cheating. I know it is not but I am really so mean that I give myself reasons for not buying a machine. As for the smell, well, I think it is the most wonderful smell in the world. When I have been away for a few days the first job for me is to get tomorrows bread on the go.
I feel so sorry for you Chantal that for you it is so upsetting.
JB.

[Chantal]

Thanks everyone.

I use Hovis flour, which I presume is good quality and curiously enough, when I smell the stuff in a bakery or supermarket, I like it. This morning was particularly bad and I felt queasy until after lunchtime, but it happens every time I cook bread on the timer for early morning baking.

I've made garlic & rosemary foccacia bread using a Wrights bread mix and I'm fine with that.

I do enjoy making bread by hand but it's the time waiting for it to rise that gives me a problem when I'm on a working week; that and finding somewhere warm and clean that Rosie won't want to sit on. The breadmaker is easy and we do like the bread.

I think I'll try the greenhouse and then the whole neighbourhood will wake up to the smell of fresh bread.

[Compo]

I know about pregnancy and smells, I was not allowed to go to the loo indoors whilst my wife was pregnant and was confined to the outside loo, but when the boy was born, his nappies did not bother her. She also went off garlic and alcohol and struggles with both even eleven years later. Sorry if I sounded off before but even when the bread is proving it is difficult to associate that smell with babies nappies.

However, I think some kind of neurological reversal goes on in in pregnancy hence the cravings and changed sense of smell and taste, I would love to know what nature's intention is with this change, something to do with the hormones I guess???

Compo

[Chantal]

I'm really, really not pregnant

I did however on one horrible occasion whiff a nappie bucket and it didn't remind me of bread, that's for sure.

[John]

Hello Chantal
Several months ago I stopped using sugar in my bread machine recipes. I don't think that there's any need for it with the easy-bake yeasts that are used in these machines. I read somewhere that its just included to improve the keeping quality of the loaf but our loaves are finished by the end of the day! The point of all this though is to say that there is still a great smell to the bread without sugar as it bakes but we noticed that it's distinctly different. Try to vary your mixtures to see which ones you can cope with.

John