If you read my posts, you know that I love gadgets. Cameras, computers, and kitchen appliances are all fun for me to use and experiment with.

I love discovering odd appliances that turn out to have practical uses. Case in point, vacuum sealers. Cast in point number two, bread machines.

Bread machines were the darling kitchen gadget of the early 1990s, but fell out of favor when the keto/caveman craze hit. People were not eating bread, so there was no need for bread makers. However, in 2026, many of us are back to more balanced diets. Personally, I believe in eating a variety of foods in moderation. I never gave up on my bread machines, and I’m still amazed at their versatility.

As we face inflation and the Trump tariffs, it becomes ever more important to find ways to save money, and cooking at home is one of them. Using a bread maker can not only save you money, it can also give you a better product.

Beyond loaves of bread, all bread makers can make dough to be used for a variety of foods, from pizza to breadsticks. With a bread maker, making dough is as simple as “dump and go.” Ninety minutes later, you have dough to shape and bake in your oven. The result is delicious homemade bread that will impress. All with a very low work-to-result ratio.

My son’s girlfriend came over for a casual weekday dinner. I was making a simple casserole and wanted to make the meal just a little more special, so I threw together some homemade dinner rolls. They were delicious, so let me share the recipe with you. This recipe is from the Betty Crocker Best Bread Machine Cookbook.

I measured the ingredients and put them into the bread machine’s baking pan in the order listed. I measure most ingredients by weight; for instance, one cup of flour is around 120 grams. I do use measuring spoons for lightweight items like salt and yeast. Measuring by weight is not only more accurate, but also easier. I place the baking pan on my kitchen scale, tare the scale to zero, and weigh my ingredient. Then tare again for the next ingredient.

The machine will mix, knead, and ferment the dough. This is what it looks like when the cycle is completed.

I’m not very good at eyeballing the dough into equal rolls, so I measured it and then divided the weight by the number of rolls I was making. This recipe makes 15 rolls; however, I only have one muffin pan that makes a dozen, so I made slightly larger rolls by dividing by 12. My math said each roll should be around 60 grams. I’m not going for precision, so this roll at 62 grams is just fine. Pro tip: I let the dough rest for about 10 minutes after turning it out of the pan onto a floured surface. This time relaxes the dough, making it easier to work with.

I flatten each roll as above. I’ll have a bit of flour on my hands so the dough doesn’t stick to them.

I drew the corners of the flattened dough into a ball and pinched it together.

I placed each dough ball into a greased muffin tin, pinched side down. Yes, these are not perfect balls. I’m a guy and a simple cook. They will still taste great. You may be concerned about the condition of this muffin pan. It has been used for over 30 years, producing thousands of baked goods. It works great, and I love it.

Place the tin in a warm, draft-free place and cover it with a light cloth. A clean cotton dishcloth works well. Let the dough rise for around 30 minutes. Preheat your oven to 375°F (190 °C).

The rolls after the rise.

Bake 12-15 minutes. These rolls were baked for 12 minutes. If you’re unsure if they are done, you can poke them with a food thermometer. if the internal temperature is 190F (85C) they are done. If you want to be fancy, paint a little melted butter on the rolls. I’m not fancy, so I didn’t.

I let the rolls cool for around 10 minutes and then gently took them out of the muffin tin. You can also make free-form rolls on a cookie sheet or turn them into Parker House rolls by dividing each dough ball into three balls and placing the triplet in a muffin cup.

We ate some rolls still warm. I placed the rest into a Rubbermaid container for the next day. They reheat well with a short round in the microwave.

There you have it. Very simple, yet delicious. As good as any bakery roll, but less expensive. A perfect accompaniment to just about any meal, and what smells better than bread baking?

Peace

Mike