Russell Hobbs Breadmaker with Fast-Bake Function 18036 - Cream

I have taken my time using this product before leaving a review. It's a great little machine. Easy to use, the recipes are simple to follow and as per the instructions if you follow the correct quantities and in the order they are stated in the recipes then it works perfectly fine. I use a good quality brand olive oil as in my experience in the past, cheap brands don't work the same. And I measure everything using weighing scales (ones that you can flick between oz/g/ml's) I can pop the bread tin on to and use the tare weight function. I find measuring this way the best. Using jugs, scales and measuring spoons you often find what says 200ml in a jug is different to 200ml on the scales. By using the same method for measuring the ingredients then the bread works great. Yes there is an annoyance when the paddle is stuck in to your bread and it does leave a hole but this is what you're going to get with most machines, There isn't much you can do about it, it's the design and set up. To be honest, it's a minimal inconvenience. The timer was a bit tricky to get my head around but I've mastered it now and don't often use it to be honest. I started on a basic wholemeal loaf but since than have made pizza dough, fruit loaf and white loaf. You really can't beat the smell of fresh bread in the morning. I have had bread machines before I just haven't used them as they have been cheap utter rubbish but I use this all the time. I love it and enjoy the methodical set up and it's resulting fresh bread smell, good for the soul.

So far I’ve made three loaves with this bread maker and they’ve turned out very well. It’s very easy to use having read the instructions once and so far I’m very happy with it and the lovely home made bread we’ve had. I want to try different mixes so we can have variety. I like the clear display which makes it very simple to start making a loaf. Other reviewers have commented on the hole that is left in the bottom of the loaf but getting the loaf out of the baking tin as soon as it’s baked and letting if cool on a wire rack means the hole mostly closes up so doesn’t cause a problem when slicing. I had a bread maker many years ago and the paddle was much larger and left big holes in the loaf but I’ve not had the problem with this one.My only minor grumble is that the machine is a creamy white rather than a bright white which I prefer. But that’s just a minor niggle, not affecting the bread (obviously) so I can say that I’m very pleased with my purchase and would recommend this to anyone wanting a bread maker without paying a fortune.

I bought this machine nine months ago - and, since I didn't like it, promptly gave it away - without having used it - to friends, who reported delight with their gift and with its output. I replaced it with my second Morphy Richards Daily Loaf 48330 Breadmaker, the smallest machine, makes just a 1lb loaf, no bells or whistles, ideal for the one-person home (or even the two-person home). See my review of that machine for the full story. But now Amazon have offered me the former machine again, to review, and I'm happy to oblige. But before you read on, there are a few things to bear in mind.This is the cheapest, full-sized, full-spec breadmaker to be found on Amazon, at £45, less than one quarter of the price of the dearest, of which there are plenty at or near £200. A great many of us don't want to pay that price (me included), but if you are going to buy the very cheapest available, you have to expect (a) some compromises, and (b) some risk. Around 18% of the 533 reviewers at the time of writing disapprove of this machine, and many advise us not to buy it, including some who were clearly not novices - however, there were still also around 4% of the 1,000 reviewers of the hugely popular and superior £100 Panasonic who said the same thing about that machine.Even identical breadmakers are not necessarily created equal, whatever they cost. My current Morphy Richards requires different handling to the previous identical example to creat the same quality of bread - it's just an extra 10ml of water for my standard packet breadmix, but it makes a vast difference. It seems we may all be lucky if we can still use exactly the same technique when buying a replacement machine, even if it's the same model - more so, no doubt, if we move to another brand.I use only proprietary bread mixes, mostly Wright's, which make superb bread whilst relieving one of all responsibility for observing the strict rules of breadmaking. My initial dislike of this model stemmed mostly from the fact that it requires an inconvenient 350gms of mix for its smallest loaf; mixes come in 500g packets, and my MR takes a convenient half packet, 250g, making enough bread for 2-3 days - which is as much as I want.So, with those cautionary words out of the way, I can tell you that whilst I recall thinking that the loaf tin of my first example was too flimsy, this one gave no such such impression. Likewise, the fiddly clips for holding it in - as shown in the manual - have disappeared in favour of a simple push fit - but you will need to take care in fitting it; get it out of alignment and you may risk bending the base holding clips. Mixing paddles in breadmakers either stick in the loaf or stick on the spindle; my Morphy Richards comes with a little tool for neatly removing the paddle from the loaf - this one doesn't - but it stuck on the spindle anyway, rather than in the bread.The display is far too small, with insufficient contrast, and initially I had difficulty in ascertaining where it was at - I needed a torch to read it at all on this dull day. And the list of programmes is printed in pale grey on paler grey... Pretty daft.Nevertheless, on test, my review model made an excellent 750g loaf straight out of the box, using a Tesco 500g "crusty white bread" mix. Inexplicably, the manual contains no advice on using packet mixes, so I simply followed the directions on the mix packet, whilst using the "dark crust" setting on the breadmaker. (You'll have to get used to the fact that on the display, "I", "P" and "H" mean light, medium and dark respectively...). Perfect bread was forthcoming, albeit not especially dark; see the photos. There is provision for extending bake times, however. So, despite the niggles, I therefore have to like it, because of the good bread for a very low price. But it could have been just that bit better for no extra cost, just some extra common sense - and there is a bit of risk.The reviews posted so far suggest that you will have odds of five to one on, in favour of your being pleased with this breadmaker. If you want odds of 25 to 1 on in your favour, you'll have to double your outlay. Much like any other kind of gambling...