Bread machine. You've got one, right?

We love pizza and we eat a lot of it but before talking about the pizza we make, I'd be remiss not to mention our bread machine.

Bread machines were all the rage a number of years ago and if you got one at the time, smart move. If you didn't, chances are good you can find a cheap one at a 2nd hand store or a garage sale. I bought ours for $5 from the lady around the corner at the cottage. Cookbook included. And she could verify it worked.

Some bread machines have a lengthy delay to allow the ingredients in the canister to warm to room temperature before starting. This can be annoying when all you want to make is pizza dough. Thankfully the machine we have doesn't do this and the dough cycle is only 50 minutes. In contrast, my friend's machine takes 2 hours to make the same thing. Not the end of the world but it definitely takes more planning on her part.

I use our bread machine at least once a week. I have a book of recipes and some of the breads are especially good and different enough from the varieties I can get at the local store that they're worth making. It's a nice treat to have a loaf of cornmeal bread at dinner when we're having a heavy soup that night.

Making bread is not about saving money. The local bakery and the whole wheat breads available around here are not expensive. Making bread is all about variety and nothing beats a fresh, warm loaf of sweet bread, not to mention the aroma in the house.

But making pizza dough is about saving money. It's fast, simple, cheap, and it beats paying $2 for a bag of dough at the store that you have to use shortly after buying. And if you make the dough yourself, you can add oregano to the ingredients, or make it with whole wheat flour added. I've never seen whole wheat pizza dough for sale and I'm sure I never will.

So if you don't have a bread machine, I'd highly recommend getting one. Losing weight the simple way and keeping your household healthy has a lot to do with taking control over what you feed yourself and your family. And a bread machine is a good weapon to have in your arsenal.