Ta-da!!!

Interesting. Would it get too technical to explain why glass is your material of choice?

AS I said....heat reverses the retrogradation of the amylopectins and reverses staleness.
For years and years I have been wrapping my yesterday's bread in foil and popping it into a 300 degree oven....the crust doesn't brown and it doesn't burn even without the glass.
I wrap fresh bread in foil and re heat...been posting about it on this site for years...
It's a good thing to find out for your self though....
Think of the angst you might have avoided had you stated your idea that in your first thread?
Linda c

"Posted by foodonastump , Ta-da!!! Interesting. Would it get too technical to explain why glass is your material of choice?"

I did consider many other materials:
Metal: it conducts heat too quickly and the top and the bottom of the bread get toasted before the crust has a chance to get crispy and the inside of the bread to have a chance to get hot.
Ceramic tiles: First, I am not sure of the chemicals in tiles; second, you cannot get the right size tiles; Third, porosity of the tiles is not desirable. I need all the moisture inside the bread to be retained while being baked.
Glass, in combination with aluminum foil, seems to have the right combination of heat transfer qualities. Glass is pure and retains moisture well.

"Posted by lindac ---- I wrap fresh bread in foil and re heat...been posting about it on this site for years... ------Think of the angst you might have avoided had you stated your idea that in your first thread? Linda c "

I respectfully disagree with you on both counts.
Yes, I have tried the wrapping with foil. You will get warm bread with hot leathery crust, no where near the end result I am getting. I am getting bread closer to fresh-baked quality with this method, not the same at all.
There was no angst whatsoever with what I did in the other thread. I had fun and I had a lot of quality positive learning and exchanging with many.

But I am thankful for your opinions.

dcarch

All I can say is... playing with food is fun; getting the results you want is priceless!

We all have our unique ways of doing things. As long as it works for us, that's what it counts!

Way to go, Dcarch!

Al

"I did consider many other materials:
Metal: it conducts heat too quickly and the top and the bottom of the bread get toasted before the crust has a chance to get crispy and the inside of the bread to have a chance to get hot."
If you conduct your experiments in a regular oven rather than a toaster oven, the bread is far enough from the heat source so that doesn't happen.
"Ceramic tiles: First, I am not sure of the chemicals in tiles;"
Mainly clay...kaolin if they are porcelain tile, many many people here use quarry tiles as baking stones.
"second, you cannot get the right size tiles;"
Tiles come in many many sizes....from 2 by 2 to 16 by 16 with all sizes in between, like 4 by 12 etc.
"Third, porosity of the tiles is not desirable. I need all the moisture inside the bread to be retained while being baked."
If you wrap the tiles in foil like you did the glass, why is that an issue?
"Glass, in combination with aluminum foil, seems to have the right combination of heat transfer qualities. Glass is pure and retains moisture well. "
How does glass retain moisture??

I suggest the process is of more interest to you than the product.
Have fun experimenting!

Looks to me like it would just be easier to bake a fresh loaf of bread!

Linda

["I did consider many other materials:
Metal: it conducts heat too quickly and the top and the bottom of the bread get toasted before the crust has a chance to get crispy and the inside of the bread to have a chance to get hot."
If you conduct your experiments in a regular oven rather than a toaster oven, the bread is far enough from the heat source so that doesn't happen. ]

This part of the experiment was designed with electric toaster oven in mind. Reason is electric toaster heating is primarily by infrared radiation, and is much quicker in being able to reach desired temperature. It is possible to design another way using regular oven, which is primarily heating by conduction. Toaster oven is more practical in the summertime not heating up the whole house.

["Ceramic tiles: First, I am not sure of the chemicals in tiles;"
Mainly clay...kaolin if they are porcelain tile, many many people here use quarry tiles as baking stones. ]
I too use quarry tiles to make pizza. I just have not done the research in the colors used in some ceramic tiles.

["second, you cannot get the right size tiles;"
Tiles come in many many sizes....from 2 by 2 to 16 by 16 with all sizes in between, like 4 by 12 etc. ]
Cutting ceramic tile to the right size requires a wet diamond saw. Cutting glass can be done by most people inexpensively.

["Third, porosity of the tiles is not desirable. I need all the moisture inside the bread to be retained while being baked."
If you wrap the tiles in foil like you did the glass, why is that an issue? ]
I have not rejected the possibility of using ceramic tiles. Except glass is so much easier, thinner and cheaper, there was no need for me to try out ceramic tiles.

["Glass, in combination with aluminum foil, seems to have the right combination of heat transfer qualities. Glass is pure and retains moisture well. "
How does glass retain moisture?? ]
Actually, what I meant was it retains the moisture in the bread while the bread is being prepared, and not retained in the glass.
[I suggest the process is of more interest to you than the product. ]
In deed, as it turned out, which I considered a bonus.

[Have fun experimenting! ]
Always.

Those are very good questions. Thank you.

dcarch

I am sorry and mean no offense, but given the news from Haiti, a bit of day old bread is priceless. I have a job and home and am thankful I remembered to buy bread. Creating "fresh" bread from fresh bread is a waste of time. And yes, I thought about what I just wrote.

Blast away at me.

yes, I am hitting submit.

Amen!
Let us not get too bogged down in trivialities.
If everyone who reads this sends $10 to Haitian disaster Relief, or the Red cross or your church's Haitian relief or my church or your temple...
Then steps in the right direction have been made...

"Posted by doucanoe
Looks to me like it would just be easier to bake a fresh loaf of bread!
Linda"
I know the whole story about how I come up with this idea is long, but the use of this method is ridiculously simple.
Here is what I had for dinner tonight just a little while ago.
I took bread out of the frig, put it in between the two sheets of glass, 15 minutes later in 350 degree toaster oven, I had hot crispy almost fresh bread.
No mixing, rising, kneading, waiting ------.
I assume you realize that the glass sheets are to be reused and not thrown out each time.

dcarch

" Posted by pkramer (My Page) -----
I am sorry and mean no offense, but given the news from Haiti, a bit of day old bread is priceless. I have a job and home and am thankful I remembered to buy bread. Creating "fresh" bread from fresh bread is a waste of time. And yes, I thought about what I just wrote.
Blast away at me.
yes, I am hitting submit."

No offense taken. Given the news from Haiti, throwing away old bread is a crime, for which this method is designed, you have misunderstood that it was to be used for fresh bread. Furthermore, I have said before, neither is this method meant for those who enjoy eating stale bread.

dcarch

Peppi, you're right, and LindaC, I've already donated to Doctors without Borders and the Red Cross.

I don't have a toaster oven, it's just another appliance to take up counter space so I guess I'll just have to keep baking fresh bread. If I make a batch of dough on Monday and put it in the fridge (or this time of year in the garage!), I can take a piece out on Tuesday and it will rise while I do other things, I don't just sit and watch it, waiting for it to rise. It's ready to bake by the time I make other preparations for supper.

I've also found that unbaked bread dough freezes well for a month or so, not much longer than that, so I can freeze individual rolls or whatever I want, take them from the freezer at lunch time, go back to the office and by the time I'm home it's thawed and risen, ready for the oven.

Since I've already dropped and broken a glass, a coffee mug and the glass plate inside my microwave this week, plus a bottle of A1 sauce that never made it into the house from the grocery store, I could never be trusted with two pieces of glass, not even glass wrapped in foil. (sigh)

You know those blasted glass plates for the microwave are $25 or $30 to replace, plus shipping? The whole darned microwave only cost me $40!

Annie

"Posted by annie1992 ----Since I've already dropped and broken a glass, a coffee mug and the glass plate inside my microwave this week, plus a bottle of A1 sauce that never made it into the house from the grocery store, I could never be trusted with two pieces of glass, not even glass wrapped in foil. (sigh)

You know those blasted glass plates for the microwave are $25 or $30 to replace, plus shipping? The whole darned microwave only cost me $40!

Annie "

LOL!

I have actually considered using food-grade silicone for people like you who do not have luck with glass. silicone can take up to 500 degrees. But someone out-bidded me on eBay. I think I may try that in the future.

dcarch

The thrift stores all have those round glass plates from the microwave that has gone to "appliance heaven"...or perhaps to Microwave he!!...
Usually cost about $2.
I like to bake pizza on a stone....the stone absorbs moisture and makes a crisp crust.

Dcarch, would you by any chance be an engineer? LOL

"Posted by beverlyal (My Page) on Thu, Jan 14, 10 at 22:28

Dcarch, would you by any chance be an engineer? LOL "

Science is my religion (kidding) but I am not an engineer.

Why did you ask?

Are you trying to imply that I am a lousy cook?

dcarch :-) :-)

Annie, I second the idea to check your local thrift store for a replacement glass plate. I see them all the time.
If you can't find one, lemmee know............ I can mail it to you cheaper than $40 by far!!!

Dcarch: I really admire the spirit in which you have taken criticism, advice, compliments, etc.!! Well done.
I'm one of the least picky eaters on the planet (I also do not own a toaster oven) so I probably won't try your method, but that's not the point!

I'll just keep nuking my leftover bread or toasting it and giving thanks that I've got some. :-)

Deanna

Posted by dgkritch ----------------- Dcarch: I really admire the spirit in which you have taken criticism, advice, compliments, etc.!! Well done.
I'm one of the least picky eaters on the planet (I also do not own a toaster oven) so I probably won't try your method, but that's not the point!
I'll just keep nuking my leftover bread or toasting it and giving thanks that I've got some. :-)
Deanna"

Thanks Deanna, You are very kind. I am hoping everyone will remember and have learned the lesson of what had happened in this forum recently.
BTW
I am very pleased with the end result of this idea. It works much better than I expected. I hope you will have a chance to try it out.

dcarch

I have a question, but it's not really about your particular technique. It's about the bread itself. It looks like you bake in a bread machine that produces a horizontal loaf, similar to the Zojirushi I have. Are you happy with the crust?

I ask because although I love using the Zojirushi for kneading and rising, I do not like the end results when I've baked in the machine. To me, the side and bottom crust comes out dark, thick & leathery, right out of the machine, while the top crust is very pale, almost underdone. As a result, I bake loaf breads in my oven.

I've spoken with the Zojirushi folks and the King Arthur folks about this issue, and haven't gotten any real help. I've also read reviews and this seems to be a common problem. The crusts I get from a machine-baked loaf look exactly like the one pictured in your demonstration. How do you feel about the crust quality of your machine-baked breads?

Good question shambo.

I have done my reaserch. I think there are many people who are happy with Z, But I felt Panasonic would do a better job for much less price.

It actually is a vertical loaf. crust settings of L, M & Dark all come out very uniform all around. I realy like the texture of the crust, thin and crispy, but not hard and abrasive to your gums.

The one shown in the photo is a wheat bread, the color may not be accurate.

dcarch

dcarch, when you use bread that is frozen with freezer burn and dried out, does it really end up tasting like right out of the oven? I don't like to be wasteful either but I find myself giving the freezer burn bread to the birds.

Thanks for sharing an idea.

"Posted by natesgram ------dcarch, when you use bread that is frozen with freezer burn and dried out, does it really end up tasting like right out of the oven? I don't like to be wasteful either but I find myself giving the freezer burn bread to the birds.
Thanks for sharing an idea."

And thanks for viewing this thread.
First, taste is subjective, thats why I gave a 1 to 10 scale of my subjective tasting definition.
Second, how the bread is going to turn out may also depend on the recipe. I have not tried this method on all bread recipes, so I cannot say for sure.
Yes, freezer-burned dry up bread can be very edible based on the second procedure (steam first to re-constitute missing moisture) of this method.
Sorry birds. No more bread for you guys :-)

dcarch

LindaC, I've checked both the local GoodWill stores and the one second hand store in the county with no luck, I'm still looking. In the meantime, my microwave plate is still in the microwave, kind of functional. I broke it right smack in half, so I push the two halves together, put it on the little plastic holder and hope it doesn't fall apart too many times.

Good thing I use the microwave mostly to make a cup of tea or to warm leftovers...

Give me something unbreakable, please. This week was particularly bad for breakage but I can't tell you how many dozen eggs ended up broken somewhere between the farm and home this summer!

shambo, I agree on the bread crust, I just don't like it in the bread machine, so I only use the machine to knead, then I bake in the oven. The crust is too "steamed" or something, whether I use my Zojirushi or whether it got baked in Dad's old GE or the boss's whatever-she-has. So I bake in the oven.

Annie

Natesgram, I freeze a lot of bread and have never had a problem with freezer burn. I wrap mine in paper towels and then into freezer bags. And I think Linda wraps hers in plastic wrap and then foil with great results.

I usually take it out of the freezer and let it defrost but if I'm in a hurry I will leave it wrapped as it came out of the freezer and zap on the defrost setting just long enough to defrost it. No bread is going to be as perfect as it is the day it is baked, but I would say that mine comes darn close.

I'm wondering if there is a difference between bread bake in the oven and bread baked in a bread machine.

As much as we all love bread hot right out of the oven, that isn't when bread is at it's best. It really at its best once it has cooled. If you are seeing a deterioration in your bread, from a rating of 10 dropping to 8 in just a couple of hours I would be trying a different recipe or baking method.

Ann

I want to second what dgkritch wrote:
"Dcarch: I really admire the spirit in which you have taken criticism, advice, compliments, etc.!! Well done."

And I also want to thank you for sharing your ideas with all of us, even though some seem less that appreciative.

And I also want to add that in my book, a toaster oven is hardly just another appliance taking up counter space. It is also a great energy saver. In this day and age, conservation is important in all ways. No way would I heat up a large oven to bake one or even 2 loaves of bread, or rolls for just one meal. I prefer to think, that when I finally get to leave this old earth, I will have done my part to insure that there will still be resources, such as fuel, electricity, etc, for my Grand children and Great Grand children to have.
Also, a toaster oven can be a time saver. It can be through with something in the time it takes a regular oven just to preheat.

Rusty

As posted above, dcarch likes the crust on the sides of a loaf baked in a bread machine, which is usually the objection to baking the bread in the machine...no crisp crust.
And no, Ann I no longer wrap in saran before the foil....forgot the saran once before heating in the oven....now I just wrap in foil....and reheat in the foil, about 20 minutes at 300 for a baton, longer for a boule.
Linda C

Rusty, conservation is important and I seldom/never bake just "a loaf" of bread, I put other items in the oven with it. Grandma used to tell me to "never bake an orphan".

Because I eat bread about twice a week, maybe, there's always something else in the oven. Last night it was a pork roast with potatoes and sauerkraut. The last time I baked bread it was a pot roast and baked beans. Sometimes it's a batch of cookies for the kids, sometimes it's a week's worth of assorted items for the week's lunches to take to work.

With some planning and organization, I never have a dinner roll in the oven all by itself. I know some members have the toaster ovens and love them but I've never touched one that I really like. The one at work isn't big enough to bake a loaf of that "bread in a can", it rose up and touched the top of the toaster oven, burned there and set off all the fire alarms, which was kind of fun and a diversion in the middle of a long day at work, but still...

If you are talking conservation, think about the raw materials used to make yet another appliance that I won't use often, and in today's disposable society, it's going to last a couple of years and then be thrown away. Amanda got one as a wedding gift that worked for a little more than a year and it never got used for anything except frozen pizza rolls. The office is on it's FOURTH oven in the last 7 or 8 years and again, it's mostly frozen pizza, etc. We've had a Black and Decker, a Hamilton Beach, a T-fal that the boss brought in that also had convection. I just checked the one currently in the office, it's a white Sunbeam. The t-fal worked the longest but it always blew a breaker if you tried to use it while making coffee, LOL. Brands don't seem to matter very much.

Remember when you're talking conservation, take into account the raw materials that are used to make an additional appliance as well as the energy used to run it, the resources used in the packaging, the petroleum used to ship it. It'll take a while to "pay for itself" in terms of energy, and by that time it needs to be replaced.

Plus, my oven runs on natural gas. The toaster oven runs on electricity which is largely produced through coal fired plants, thus polluting the environment more than my gas oven, which adds a whole 'nother dimension.

Annie

Linda, I think Ann meant you had success freezing bread in saran then foil.....

And Ann, there is a WORLD of difference when bread is baked in a machine vs baking it in the oven. I am not talking about using the machine to knead it, I know a lot of people here and IRL who do that. I am talking about the actual baking process. Bread machine bread has a crust that is very reminiscent of the bottom and sides of a commercially made loaf that comes in the plastic bag with the twist tie on the end. Some people do prefer that, so I am not disparaging buying bread - my kids are on a kick where they will only eat white air bread. But it is very different from any sort of bakery or home made artisan type bread with the chewy/crispy crust. I understand that some people dont like having to chew a good crunchy crust, but I, for one, will be taking extra good care of my teeth so I can chomp that chewy crunchy delish crust until I am old!

Alexa

This sounds like a great science fair project, but I'd just bake a new loaf. I'm not much for freezing vast quantities of anything.

And if you don't eat a whole loaf very quickly, why not just make smaller loaves? I don't use bread pans, and making a little round loaf for me and my husband is pretty quick. I hate having food hanging around, making me feel guilty.

I've had two bread machines (one several years ago whose brand name I cannot recall and my present Zojirushi), and both machines produced a darker and very thick & tough crust on the sides & bottom. The tough, thick layer of crust was chewy and had some crispness to it but not in the crackling, crunchy way that many people enjoy. I've also read enough reviews on different brands of bread machines (and seen pictures of bread machine loaves) and think the crust results are common. That's why I prefer to bake the dough in my oven.

As others have pointed out, I've also had good results with freezing bread. I make a lot of sandwich/hamburger buns and keep them all in the freezer. The same goes for dinner rolls and biscuits. When it comes to loaves, many times I cut a loaf in half and freeze one of the halves for use later. I've found that heating the frozen bread wrapped in foil works fine with just a few minutes on the baking stone to crisp up.

Regarding panned loaves, I saw an interesting concept on the King Arthur site. They took dough that normally would go into a 9x5" pan and divided it into two pieces. Rolled the dough pieces into big rounds and placed them next to each other in the greased pan and baked as usual. The resulting loaf had two large sections that could be easily divided for serving on separate occasions, making sandwiches, freezing, etc. Saves the need for buying smaller loaf pans.

Dcarch, you are probably a fabulous cook. Not implying anything except that you have an engineers mind. Science 'splains things. ; )

"Posted by shambo --------------------. I've also read enough reviews on different brands of bread machines (and seen pictures of bread machine loaves) and think the crust results are common. That's why I prefer to bake the dough in my oven. -----"

In general, bread machine is for consistence and convenience, and not for top quality. If you set the machine correctly, nothing can go wrong; you will get identical results every time. Baking bread in an oven gives you more flexibility to tailor to your taste.
My Panasonic seem to have very good results with the crust, as long as I take the bread out as soon as the light starts to blink, as the instructions indicate. The crust is so crumbly crispy that it gets crumbs all over the dinner table when I am cutting the slices.

"Posted by lindac
As posted above, dcarch likes the crust on the sides of a loaf baked in a bread machine, which is usually the objection to baking the bread in the machine...no crisp crust. "

Please see above.

[Posted by therustyone " I want to second what dgkritch wrote:
"Dcarch: I really admire the spirit in which you have taken criticism, advice, compliments, etc.!! Well done."
And I also want to thank you for sharing your ideas with all of us, even though some seem less that appreciative. ]

Thanks.
Dogs and cats eat because they are hungry. People in the Cooking Forum are here not because they are hungry. I believe they are here because they are interested in the refinements of food preperation. I will have to assume that they are fine people with grace and intelligence, otherwise they are no different then animals.

"And I also want to add that in my book, a toaster oven is hardly just another appliance taking up counter space. It is also a great energy saver. "

Based on the quantity of toasters around, apparently toasters serve a useful purpose. But you cannot bake a loaf of bread in it; neither would you fire up the oven just to toast a slice of bread.

"Posted by ann_t -------Natesgram, I freeze a lot of bread and have never had a problem with freezer burn. I wrap mine in paper towels and then into freezer bags. And I think Linda wraps hers in plastic wrap and then foil with great results. "

As I understand it, freezer burn is unavoidable. A condition in physics called sublimation will take place in your freezer with your food if it contains moisture.

dcarch

"Posted by dcarch....As I understand it, freezer burn is unavoidable. A condition in physics called sublimation will take place in your freezer with your food if it contains moisture."

If you wrap your bread properly than freezer burn is avoidable. NOW, if you are freezing bread for a long period of time, I suppose it might get freezer burn. I don't know, it isn't a problem here. I make enough bread to last for a week or two or three. It would be rare that I would have a loaf of bread in the freezer that was older than three weeks.

Freezer burn, sublimination of the frozen moisture in the bread won't occur if the bread, or steak or whatever if properly wrapped...
Can't happen but in the presence or air. Wrap closely in a material which doesn't allow air to pass through and you have eliminated the problem.
And you can make your bread in a machine, measure the ingredients and even use the same brand of flour and it won't be consistently the same because the end product is affected by things like ambient temperature and humidity and even the quality of that individual bag of flour.
The best way to combat those elements is to introduce the human senses, the feel of the texture and the experienced cook judging the way the dough feels.

Freezer burn can easily be avoided with a good vacuum sealing. And bread can be sealed.

I enjoy freeze dried fruits. They are very nice for eating but they are very expensive and difficult to get. So I tried to make my own.

Actually, you dont need to freeze the fruit too much. I had a laboratory quality vacuum pump and a vacuum bell jar which I was using for some metal sputtering. I froze some fruits and drew a high vacuum in the jar. As you may know, water can boil at any temperature, depending on air pressure. When water is forced to boil by lowering pressure, it would start to freeze at room temperature and the vacuum would help dry out the fruit. It turned out that it took too long to make your own freeze dried fruits.

Thats when I started to take a look at what went on inside your freezer.

Food inside your freezer will dry out by sublimation, and the moisture of your food will collect and freeze inside your wrapping or the freezer compartment walls by a condition called deposition.

Yes, sublimation (freezer burn) can be prevented if you eliminate the surface on which deposition can occur, and that is a very good vacuum packing method, or freeze your food in a lot of water (as in some seafood packaging).

dcarch

It's true, you can't bake a loaf of bread in a toaster, but you can bake a small loaf of bread, pizza dough, a few rolls from dough, a small skillet of cornbread, a few cookies from freezer dough, and lots of other baked and roasted foods in a toaster oven.

That is why so many people have toaster ovens. In hot weather I very seldom turn on my big oven unless I'm baking several loaves of bread or a pound cake - and then, I try to plan my baking all at once on the weekend so the oven is on only long enough to get all my baking done back-to-back.

Teresa

No, freezer burn is not caused by the deposition of the ice crystals made from the moisture that has gone out of the foods, it is caused by the loss of moisture, not the depositing of that moisture on the inside of the container. You want to see freezer burn, try putting a dish of food into the freezer without a covering.
Well wrapped bread....with the foil pressed closely to the surface of the bread won't burn.
sublimination for any who don't know, is the process whereby ice turns to water vapor without first melting. It's the process that makes ice cubes shrink in the freezer compartment. The process happens faster with air circulation, or a wind blowing as with the ice on your sidewalk. The reason it deposits as ice crystals is that cold air can only hold a certain amount of water vapor, warmer air can hold more, so excess moisture in cold air turns to ice crystals again.
The main reason you can't make your own freeze dried fruits is that you don't have a way to freeze your fruits at 50 below zero.
Linda C

Very good, Linda C. You have a great mind. It helps to clear up concepts more precisely.

If you read again my simplified explanation, you will see that in fact, that we are in perfect agreement, again.

I said: freezer burn is caused by sublimation, (not by deposition) and deposition is the end result (also the reason why you need to defrost your freezer). Deposition is the reverse process of sublimation. [Off the top of my head again. It has been a long time since physics 101 :-) ].

Yes, moisture content in a given quantity of air is indeed a function of temperature, but also a function of atmospheric pressure. When you subject water to a vacuum environment, water vaporizes (boiling) quickly (BTW, the opposite of what happens in your pressure cooker). When water starts to boil in vacuum, the "latten heat of vaporization" will cause the water to freeze quickly, then the process of sublimation takes over. The phase change of water from solid to vapor without the liquid phase also involves lots of BTUs (joules), causing the temperature to drop even further. All these happen without the need of refrigeration.

Thanks for your elaboration. I just want to also very quickly to touch upon the concept of pressure cooker operation.

dcarch

BTW, you can hang your laundry to dry in freezing weather.

Seems I don't express myself very well.
And I also misunderstood some of the posts here.

I know that you can't bake a full sized loaf of bread in a toaster oven.
But it does make sense to warm it in one rather than in a full sized oven.

And as Teresa says, there are many small things that can be baked in one, much more economically than in a 'regular' oven.
I thought when some posted that they'd rather keep the bread dough in the refrigerator, and bake it fresh each day, they meant they were heating up a big oven for one small loaf, or a couple of rolls. Apparently that isn't what they are doing, thankfully. Sorry I misunderstood.

My toaster oven is an Oster that I bought in a Goodwill store about 15 years ago.
It was new in the box, have no idea why it was given to Goodwill. An unwanted gift, maybe?
But it has held up extremely well, still works a good as the day I bought it.
So I don't feel that the materials, etc, used to produce, package, ship and operate it are/were exessive or wasteful.
True, I don't use it every day, but often enough.
It's held up much better than some large applainces I've had.

Rusty

Surely you meant the "Latent heat of vaporization"....
When water goes from one state to another...like vapor, liquid and ice, it gains or releases energy....about 600 calories per gram.
When water becomes solid, the molecular activity is less and the energy is converted to heat energy...remember the law of conversation of energy?
Your pressure cooker cooks food faster because heat increases the pressure in a closed container and the higher the pressure of the air, the hotter the boiling point of water, and the more water boils and turns to vapor the higher the pressure and the hotter it gets inside the sealed cooker and the hotter, the faster water boils....until you release the pressure.....or it blows!!
Remember that freezing is an exothermic processes, releases heat, and boiling or sublimination, or melting is endothermic, absorbs heat ( if indeed heat can be absorbed...)

"Yes, sublimation (freezer burn) can be prevented if you eliminate the surface on which deposition can occur, and that is a very good vacuum packing method, or freeze your food in a lot of water (as in some seafood packaging). "

Eliminating the surface for deposition won't eliminate freezer burn. However, blocking the escape of the moisture ,as in wrapping bread well in foil, or a vacuum sealing in plastic will prevent freezer burn.
Linda C

OK, we have talked so much about this strange substance called water with such strange behaviors. I would like to point out one other strange behavior about water even its off-topic, because its about safety.

I am not going to give you many details. Please do your own research.

Water may not freeze at freezing temperature, thats called super-cooled water.

And water may not boil at boiling temperature, thats call superheated water. Under some conditions, superheated water can happen and it can explode and cause serious injuries.
Read your microwave manual and/or Google this information.

dcarch

I've enjoyed this thread and learned a lot. While reading, I began thinking about my microwave oven, my pressure cooker and the planetary mixing action that makes my KitchenAid stand mixer work so well.

Someone, at some point, was pondering how these things might work long before they ever went into production. I'm sure lots of pondering was/is done on a lot of junk that serves little purpose, too. But the big ideas start somewhere.

I would love to have a convenient-to-use gizmo that would provide me with fresh tasting bread for a few days from a loaf that I've taken time to prepare and bake. I've cut way back on carbs/starches, and it's not worth it to me to "spend" my daily allowance on anything other than bread that tastes fresh.

As this is a cooking FORUM, I think it's a place where everyone should feel comfortable posting their ideas and thoughts on anything regarding the preparation, presentation and storage of the foods we cook and bake.

It's fair to respond if you don't think a recipe or method suits your taste, but I'm sorry to pick up on a vibe that seems to have a chilling effect on someone who is excited about a new idea and wants to share.