Zojirushi BB-HAC10 Home Bakery 1-Pound-Loaf Programmable Mini Breadmaker, White

My new "Mini Zo" just arrived today, January 5, 2007, which was amazing since I had just ordered it in the afternoon of January 2! I have enjoyed my two-pound loaf Zojirushi since I purchased it from Amazon in 2002 and will still use it for larger loaves, but this will be the perfect size for just the two of us and for special breads that we may want for one or two meals. The loaf I made today was for "soft" white bread. This interested me since there is a setting for "regular" and "firm" bread as well, but I thought I would see what the "soft" would be like--this takes three hours rather than the longer time for the other syles (we wanted it for dinner). The loaf could not have been more perfect! The texture was wonderful and the taste excellent! The bread came out of the bread pan perfectly. There is also a "Quick" setting which requires two hours or less, depending on the light or dark crust selected. This machine fits very nicely on the counter taking up only a little more space than a blender. The carrying handle on the machine makes it very convenient for moving it to a storage area if you do not have much counter space. I look forward to many wonderful loaves of bread from this machine. I have a wonderful book of bread recipes that I got several years ago entitled The Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook by Tom Lacalmita, 1993. It has about 200 pages of recipes with measurements for both one pound or two pound loaves. This will add to the choices that come with the machine. This book may still be available at Abe Books or other used book sellers. Bread Machine Baking by Lora Brody and Millie Apter, 1993 also has many recipes for small (one pound/2cups flour) loaves. Happy bread making with the Mini Zojirushi! Update (April 26, 2013).... My breadmaker is still working beautifully after more than 6 years of two uses per week! I replaced the paddle about six months ago, as it was losing it's non-stick ability. I still make the "soft" recipe from the Zo booklet; however, I substitute 1/2 cup of the 2 cups of bread flour with semolina flour, which I purchase at a health food store (Bob's Red Mill Semolina Flour). The difference it makes to the texture is quite amazing. I also use this substitution (1/2 cup) in my (2 cups of all purpose flour) pizza dough, which is wonderful. I use the recipe from "The Bread Machine Magic Book of Helpful Hints"--2nd revision--by Linda Rehberg and Lois Conway, which is a wonderful resource for all things related to bread machine baking. I tried this idea based on a pizza dough recipe I saw at King Arthur Flour that used beer and some semolina flour, which is also excellent. One more change I have made over time is that I now use bottled water rather than city water, just to eliminate any reaction to the chemicals in the tap water.

I have been living on my own since I was 23 (I'm 27 as of the time this review was written;). It was hard to get adjusted to having to have a full time job while still maintaining an apartment. One thing that was a little tricky was getting used to cooking for myself. Since I live alone, and live 30-45 mins away from work, I usually prepare simple things like salads and sandwiches because I didn't find a reason to make extravagant, time consuming meals for just myself and well... I am also extremely lazy lol, I am a successful young professional but lately the domestic housewife in me has been slowly coming out. However, my limited cooking skills and experience, as well as my busy life (and ok.. LAZYNESS TOO lol) were still nipping at me. Being able to bake my own bread was something that "Domestic Danielle" always wanted to do, but "Clueless Baker Danielle" showed me a flash into the future and all I saw was my kitchen covered in flour and a cage match between me and a lump of dough trying desperately to knead that thing and then having it jump on my face and start to consume me like the blob. OK.... not a pretty sight I know!! There was only one way to satisfy both of my desires, and that was a BREAD MACHINE!!! My sister has a bread machine and she loves it. When we would get together for family gatherings she would bring a loaf and it was always so delicious, and that too inspired me to start researching them. When I came across the mini Zojirushi, I knew it was love at first sight and absolutely PERFECT for me!! It makes a nice and small 1 pound loaf, which really can last you a couple days if you make small slices. It is also incredibly easy to use and the manual that comes with it is great because those recipes were made strictly for that bread machine. I also love the timer option on it! a couple times I have dumped the ingredients in either before I go to bed or before I go to work and set it so that I can have fresh bread when I wake up or when I come home from work (and waking up or coming home to that wonderful smell is ALWAYS a bonus hehe). And probably the best thing about this machine is that it does EVERYTHING for you!! It kneads and rises and bakes it all in the same cute contraption! As long as you measure everything as it is supposed to be measured then your bread will come out fine. I have made several loaves and they always come out great! The only word of warning is that you might become like me and become a bake-a-holic. Since its so easy to do and since its so cute to watch it in the machine (I love the little window on the top hehe), you might find yourself becoming bake-crazy! Lately I have been experimenting with the recipes in the book and have been baking loaves for work or baking loaves for friends and people I associate with. I am thinking about baking one for my personal trainer and her family, because I mean what says thank you for helping me attain a hot body like a gift of an adorable bread loaf lol!! Bottom line is that this is a great product that makes great bread! I am THE bread winner and this bread machine is a winner too!! Its just win-win all around!! I am also psyched to try out the dough function and try to make my own pizza and soft pretzels!! The possibilities are endless!! Uh oh world watch out!!! DOMESTIC DANIELLE IS TAKING OVER!!!

About a year ago, I decided to makeover my meals to eat as healthy as I possibly could, with a goal to eliminate added preservatives, colors, sugar, fat, salt, and chemicals. It has been a phenomenal change and my body thanks me for it, as I am healthier than I've ever been. I have so much energy and feel great all day, every day. Personally, I was tired of buying store bread at astronomical prices. When the price of bread exceeded $4.00 a loaf, I had to wait for it to go on sale at 2 for $4, buy 2 loaves, freeze it for future use, then ration it along the way to make it last until the next sale. As I was thinking of how to avoid buying fresh bread at a bakery every few days, which could also get expensive, I remembered my friend Helen who lives in CA. She had a bread machine and used to bake fresh bread all the time. It was so good that her husband, kids, and I couldn't wait for it to be done and would devour it the moment it hit the cutting board. So, I set out on my search for the perfect bread machine....sturdy construction, small footprint, extremely reliable, and produces excellent bread. Yes, I wanted an overall high-quality machine that would not have issues right out of the box (which is a huge complaint among other brands), wouldn't sound like a train was passing through my house, wouldn't dance off the counter, and would actually produce a beautiful scrumptious loaf every time, not the fallen/sunken loaves and hard bricks I've read about in horror regarding other brands. Truthfully, I was willing to pay more for superior quality just to avoid the hassle of all the disappointing problems and having to return it. I read hundreds of reviews from many different websites, as I always do before buying anything important. "Ladies and gentleman, we have a winner.......the Zo it is!" So, in November 2010, I bought myself an early Christmas present! Woo-hoo! I've had my Zo for six months. It is my new best friend. From the very first use, every loaf has turned out perfect and soooooo good! I have made white, whole wheat, and honey wheat. I have used the recipes in the Zo manual, and Beth Hensperger's book: The Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook. There's also a great website for recipes. Just google "Bread Machine Digest". It will take you to the website. This summer I will be venturing into new breads like cranberry walnut, cinnamon raisin, zucchini walnut, apple cinnamon, cheese breads, and a host of others. I'm confident they will all turn out fabulous! The Zo is phenomenal! In my opinion, it really is the best bread machine ever! My family, friends, and neighbors love my bread. The compliments and praise just keep coming. They always ask me to make them a loaf when they visit. I've given fresh loaves as gifts, and will continue to do so throughout the year. I put them in plastic bags and tie a bow on them. Voila! A healthy gift you can eat! Seriously! You could save a ton on gifts, as each loaf costs about 55 cents! I must stress the importance of using quality ingredients. The flour and yeast must be fresh. I use King Arthur Flour (premium), and sometimes Bob's Red Mill. Pillsbury bread flour is good too as a back-up and cheaper alternative. I use SAF instant yeast instead of active dry yeast. Trust me, it makes a huge difference! (I've tried both) For wheat bread, vital wheat gluten is essential for a lovely shaped, higher rise, and softer texture loaf. You don't need VWG for white bread. Since some recipes call for sugar and salt, I use sugar in the raw and sea salt to keep it healthy. If you've been contemplating buying the Zo, don't hesitate! Run, don't walk to your computer! Order yours today before everyone else discovers what all the fuss is about! Grab yours before it's out of stock! Amazon's shipping is fast and it was packed very well. Not one spot of damage on the box! The Zo mini is perfect for me right now. But, when I am expecting a crowd, I make a few batches on the dough cycle in advance and bake the extra loaves in the oven. When I get married and have children, I will be upgrading to the full size Zo. But, I'm still keeping my Zo mini! I love it too much! It now holds a sentimental place in my heart. Wishing you all a healthy lifestyle! Happy bread making! Cheers!

I’ve had my Zojirushi mini-breadmaker for almost 5 years, which I use alternately with a much older Breadman Ultimate. I bought the mini because the Breadman doesn’t make small (1lb) loaves very well. I usually make bread at least once a week, and the mini’s small loaf works very well when there are just two of us. Overall I like the mini, with some reservations. First, the good: Sturdy and solid, the best built of all the machines I’ve owned. A bit heavy as a result, but the nice handle makes moving the machine easy. The small size and good handle makes storage easy and counter use minimal. Very quiet compared with others. The add ingredients and end signals are also very quiet, nice if you are sleeping, although very hard to hear from a room away. Makes good bread, but not without some experimenting. See below. As with all bread machines, careful measurement of ingredients is key, as is placing them in the right order in the bread pan. Because the mini makes small loaves, measurement is even more important for good results. I haven’t found the non-stick coating on any bread machine pans to be very sturdy. Metal or other sharp utensils, and anything abrasive will damage the coating, making bread removal increasingly difficult. I’ve learned the hard way to be very gentle, touching the pan and paddle with nothing except a clean wet sponge after a short soak with soapy water to loosen any debris. The mini’s pan and paddle coating are no better or worse than on my other machines, although the casting is considerably heavier and thicker than most. The bad: The mini consistently over-cooks the bread. I wish the cycles were programmable the way the Breadman’s are, so I could shorten the bake time. On the cycles where the crust color is an option, I always choose light, and then I remove the bread 10-15 minutes early, depending on the recipe. I set an extra timer to remind me. The pan is hard to remove the bread from when hot without coming into contact with the hot wire handle. And because the pan is thick and heavy, it stays hot for a long time, and tends to be awkward to hold on to while shaking the bread out of it. Leaving the bread in the pan to cool will tend to cook it more, and will make the crust moist. The instructions are a jumble. It’s not really clear what the three main cycles (soft, standard and firm) are best used for. The included recipes are basic, but the ones I’ve tried work well (except for the tendency to over-cook). The cycles tend to be longer than other machines, primarily because of a lengthy built-in initial rest time. I wish I could customize the programs and leave the rest time out. The basic French recipe and cycle makes a good tasting very, very crusty bread. Again, I find that taking it out 10-15 minutes early improves the result considerably. For my own recipes, I usually use the soft or regular cycles. Although better built and higher quality than many other machines, it is in some ways flawed and less versatile. The quality build warrants a somewhat higher price than the average cheap bread machine, but given it’s limitations, the Zo is still overpriced. It pays to experiment with any bread machine to get good results. Tinker with the recipes and the cycles. Adapt recipes from other bread machine books, or from standard bread recipes. I’ve made good cinnamon rain bread, brioche, and good whole wheat from my own customized recipes Here’s a recipe for buttermilk bread that I often use in the Zo: 3/4 cup Buttermilk 2 Tbs canola oil (or softened butter) 2 Tbs honey 1 tsp salt 1 tsp sugar 3/4 cups bread flour 1 and 1/4 cup + 3Tbs all purpose flour ¼ tsp baking soda 1 1/2 tsp yeast Put the liquid ingredients in first, with the yeast in last. I use the soft cycle and remove the bread 12 minutes early.

Like many others, I already own the Zo Bread Machine for 2lb loaves -- and I use it at least 4 times a week for bread and quick breads/cakes with great success. Now that it's just me and my husband at home, if I make a 2lb loaf of bread that is the right size/height for toast and sandwiches, it is far too big for just 2 people to eat before it goes stale. If I decrease the recipe and make a 1lb loaf in the huge pan, then the loaf isn't tall enough for regular sandwiches or a toaster. The loaf in this "mini" machine bakes up to normal height -- but slices into only a few pieces (about 8 thin slices, or 6 "Texas Toast"-size pieces.) No chance of bread going stale, no wasted bread, and every other day we get a fresh, warm loaf. The bread machine I owned /before the big Zo-2lb, used only 1 mixing paddle and a smaller format pan than the Zo-2lb; this was excellent for kneading pasta dough -- something I really enjoy making. The big Zo-2lb machine, with its huge pan and 2 paddle system was a complete failure at pasta dough. This little machine not only gives me back my fresh pasta and makes bread the right shape and size for 1 or 2 people, it also has the "delay" feature, mysteriously absent from the big Zo-2lb, that lets you add ingredients to the machine just before going to bed -- and then bakes the bread in time to be hot and fresh for breakfast (or lets you add your ingredients in the morning before you leave the house, and then bakes it to be ready for dinner.) Absent from the Mini-Machine however, as noted by many reviews, is the ability to program the machine manually. The name on the machine says PROGRAMMABLE, but it means you can program it to delay the start of the pre-sets -- NOT that you can select specific actions (mixing, kneading, resting, baking etc) and program how long that action will operate before going to your next selected action. This is a big difference between the 2 machines. The little one lets you delay start time (the 2lb doesn't); the 2lb machine lets you create custom programs (the mini-machine doesn't.) Being able to create a "bake only" program with the paddles removed lets me use the 2lb pan and prepared dough to create things like monkey bread, cobblers with a biscuit crust, or braided loaves. It is also possible, with the Zo-2lb machine, to use the dough-setting to mix things like meatloaf -- then remove the paddles from the pan, pat the meatloaf-mixture down into the pan, and re-program the machine for a specific bake-only time. (I learned this when my oven went out.) The bread pan makes a casserole-for-2 (or 4) and bakes it as well as any big oven could. Lasagne, tamale pie, mac and cheese, chicken pot pie, tuna-noodle cassarole, au gratin potatoes, quiche, spinach souffle, baked cheese grits etc. I've even set a couple of baking potatoes down in the pan (wrapped in foil,) and had excellent baked potatoes. I suspect with a little experimentation, it would work equally well for a small boneless beef roast or pork tenderloin with veggies. Maybe even a small chicken! At its heart, a bread machine is just a small, self-contained oven, so using the programming feature that lets you just bake for a specific amount of time is a great tool for 1 or 2 people. All these custom programs for other foods are not possible with the Zo-Mini. And explains why both are now in my kitchen. Small, fresh loaves for breakfast and pasta dough are enough of a reason to have both. I'm a little curious why Zo (or some other clever company) doesn't make a bread machine with more than 1 pan. Other companies have tried (and failed) to make a machine with one mixing/kneading pan that could be traded out for a choice of baking pans before the rise and bake cycles. I've even seen one that would bake (or try...) small individual loaves. There is an idea here that should be picked up and at least tried. These 2 Zo machines will eventually stop working (though my last one baked for nearly 16 years) and I'd love to replace them with a single, more-options machine. One note of caution about both the Zo machines. The non-stick coating on the interior of the pan and on the mixing paddle is very easy to scratch. Enough scratches, and your breads and cakes begin to stick and become more difficult to remove from the pan (cakes tear up into a pile of cake crumbles.) The pans are available to be replaced, but they cost about half the price of the whole machine (which is a lot for just a bread pan!) So -- best to just be very careful with the one that comes as original equipment. No metal utensils, no scrubbies or even soft bristled brushes -- just a good soapy hot water soak and a sponge.

I've tried to make bread in the past, it never turned out well. Perhaps I'm too impatient for all the rising, punching down, kneading, whatever, but it just wasn't good. Then I had a chance to pick this little thing up. First off, I should mention that I read many reviews and it seemed most of the bad ones referred to poor bread made from the recipes in the owners manual. Armed with this knowledge, I didn't try any of these. What I did was try some of the best reviewed recipes I could find on the net and I must admit, after owning this thing for about 48 hours, I feel like a master baker! Here's what I've made - Straight out of the box I made Jo's Rosemary Bread. This was a winner right from the start, the dough rose perfectly and the bread was soft and luscious. I gave it a 9 out of 10 (will be a 10 once I've messed with this thing a bit more). Next up was a basic white bread, this one was so-so, still rose very nicely and tasted good, but the crust was a bit thick. I like my white bread super soft, so I'll be trying this on the "soft" setting, but for this attempt I gave it a 5. Then it was on to a banana quick bread. So easy and fast on the cake setting and popped right up with some baking powder and soda. Came out juicy and tasty with a perfect crust. I gave this a 7 (I like my banana bread a bit sweeter, so I'll have to play with the recipe a bit). Ok, time to try out the jam setting. Had a couple pears that were getting a bit ripe, so I chopped them up, followed the instructions for apples in the manual, and was enjoying some wonderful fresh jam on my white toast the next morning. Only complaint here is that the cleanup was a bit more involved as the sugar hardened on the pan a bit. But making it was so easy, the clean-up was worth it. The coup de grace was the french bread. Threw the ingredients in, hit the dough setting, and 1:45 later I had a beautiful dough ball. Punched it down, rolled it out, rolled it up and 30 minutes later it was in the oven. When it came out and hit the dinner table it was the most luscious french bread I've ever had. I gave it a 10! Perhaps I've had a good experience right out of the box because I avoided the recipes in the manual. I've got the Betty Crocker's Best Bread Machine Cookbook: The Goodness of Homemade Bread the Easy Way coming in the mail shortly. Excited to get going on the recipes in there and start learning how to play around with my ingredients. It really is amazingly easy with this thing, which is great because I want fresh bread, but don't want to spend an entire evening in the kitchen. Very happy with my purchase... (and shipping was crazy fast even though I opted for the free super saver!)

I need a maker with a small footprint due to space constraints. Initially, I purchased the Cuisinart compact model. Pros to that model is it can make a 1, 1.5 and 2 lb loaf while still a small footprint. Nice! It made decent bread. The price was much nicer. However, the dough cycle browned the dough. Given that was a mode I would frequently use instead of replacing that model, I selected the Zoji. The footprint is similar on the Zojirushi, however, the Zoji is limited to only a 1 lb loaf. The size of the pan seems dinky. However, it is just for my husband and I so enough bread for 2 days and less being tossed due to staling. Since it is so small, even small missteps in measuring ingredients can impair the final result, so weigh those ingredients. This unit has a handle so between it being light weight and the handle it is super easy to store in a cupboard and pull out when in use. Huge advantage. Recipe book has more than enough options to get your started and their website offers recipes optimized for the unit as well. The different modes are plentiful enough. I do wish it had an automatic option for adding in ingredients such as nuts or chips, but not a deal breaker. Good quality pan and housing. Super easy to clean. I suspect after a year or two of regular use the coating will wear off the pan, but that would be true with any model. The price. UGH. I purchased this exact model for my sister 2-3 years ago for a gift. It was $100 or so on sale. Flash forward to this purchase and I paid $172 for a "nearly new" model. At the end of the day though, look at it like a math problem. 1 loaf of my husband's favorite bread (Daves) runs $7 or so, and we toss nearly a third regularly because he can't get through it fast enough. I can make the same amount for $2 and in 2 different loaves so there is no waste. I am estimating between my bread choice and his we will average $5 a week savings so in less than 10 months this device will pay for itself. If you are an artisan bread buyer you will save a lot that way too. If you need a special diet such as my sister (salt free), gluten free) then you will really use the heck out of the machine. Overall, you can spend 5 minutes or less in the morning loading ingredients. Then you come home to fresh baked bread. If you end up not loving the vertical loaf shape it is easy enough to reshape and bake in the oven. It makes it super fast and easy to make bread, rolls, buns, pasta, cookie dough, etc. I have never made jam in the maker, but that is also an option. Happy with the purchase and hope to get years of use out of it.

I'm a little concerned that right after I bought this Amazon posted a reported issue. I've made about or 5 or 6 loaves so far, and the only issue I've had has been a result of user error. The basic recipes in that come with the Zo are surprisingly very good. My favorite is the chocolate cake. It's super yummy and I plan to make a couple of loaves to give to others today. I've purchased a bread machine recipe book (to be delivered in a few days) and have been successful in finding several good recipes online as well. The mistakes/flops, so perhaps you can learn from my errors were 1st, putting the yeast in something other than a dry ingredient. DO put it into the flour and DO NOT let it touch a liquid ingredient. I failed at this directive when making some banana bread. I let the yeast mix into the banana and it was a throw away to be sure. The other mistake (super goofy) was forgetting to reinstall the mixing blade. I wash the machine after each use and I forgot to put that little piece back on. Don't do that! :) One thing I note that other reviewers seemed to have a different experience with was cleaning. I find you have to thoroughly clean it each time. This includes removal of the mixing blade so you can clean not only that piece, but the crevasses beneath it. It's not hard, but it's necessary. I also always seem to end up with "debris" (i.e. ingredients that are tossed out of the baking pan during kneading) in the unit. It's pretty easy to wipe out. I've also sucked it out with the vacuum attachments a time or two. Loaf size is smaller than some, but I think it's a great thing. Used it for holiday dinners and made several varieties and didn't have any waste. It's the perfect size for a small family. It makes about 6 very thick slices per loaf. And, btw, in my opinion, if you have a nice bread knife, a slicing mechanism is wholly unnecessary. I looked into buying one when I bought the machine and am now happy I didn't waste the money, or moreso space it would take in my cabinet. Overall, I like the machine. It's very easy to use. Just follow the instructions. Very small footprint. Wish it was stainless steel, but this unit still looks expensive (because it is! lol!) and high end. I'm happy with my purchase and would definitely suggest to others.