Polynesian Sweet Bread takes only minutes to prep and you let the bread machine do the rest of the work. The crust is perfectly tender and flakey and the inside is light and soft and the secret ingredient is the key to the amazing flavor!
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I have a long standing love affair with my bread machine. When we got married it was one of those things that I registered for that I thought there was a good chance I wouldn’t actually really use. Boy was I WRONG! Although I do tend to go through phases I have used my bread machine much more than most gadgets in my kitchen.
Once you make your first loaf and taste how wonderful the result is and see how it takes almost zero time to get that fresh loaf of bread…. oh it’s trouble. Big trouble. Do not attempt to own one of these if living the low carb lifestyle is your thing, because it is WAY to easy to use and the taste of fresh bread, well, there is not much in the world that compares. I have a machine very similar (older model) to this bread machine. However if I was going to buy now, I would get either one like this that has auto fruit & nut dispensing, because I really like to make hearty grain filled breads, or this one because my favorite part is the top of the crust and this has much more top area!
One of my favorite recipes is one that I have been making with my mom for years, and over time have tweaked and added a few special touches that make the taste really unique. The crust is always tender and the inside always soft. The taste of the bread itself though is just a touch sweet and thanks to the secret ingredient (lemon essential oil) it has very subtle citrus undertones. It is just enough to make you think “YUM– what is that flavor?!?!” but not enough to say, “yup… that’s lemon all right!”
To make the bread,
Combine the flour and sugar in a bowl.
Add the milk, butter, egg, lemon essential oil* and salt to the bottom of your bread machine pan.
Dump the flour mixture on top of the wet ingredients in the pan.
Pour the yeast on the top of the flour.
Set the bread machine settings to 2 lb loaf, light crust, and Sweet Bread and START.
Scroll to bottom for a FULL printable recipe.
For my machine this recipe takes a little over 3 hours to complete and comes out perfect every time. The house smells like fresh baked bread. A piping hot loaf is waiting to be devoured. Life is good!
If you don’t finish your loaf that day, my favorite tip is to slice the rest of the load into appropriate portions and freeze in a freezer bag. When you are ready for a slice you can pop one or more out of the bag and microwave or toast for that same fresh taste days later!
Love Lemon?? Here are more great recipes with my favorite secret ingredient!
Strawberry Lemonade Cake Cookies | Lemon Cupcakes with Blackberry Frosting |Lemon Cake
Low Calorie Lemon Cookie | Lemon Strawberry Swirled Bread |Raspberry Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
Lemon Poppyseed Crumb Muffins | Fruit Salad with Honey Lemon Dressing | Lemon Infused Sugar
Lemon Infused Vodka | Lemon Sour Cream Pound Cake | Lemon Meringue Pie Fudge
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See all of our recipes here or a few more of my favorite bread recipes by clicking on the images below.
Classic Thick Buttermilk Pancakes
***Not all essential oils are edible. Due to lack of purity, 98% of essential oils sold should NOT be ingested. An edible essential oil will be labeled “therapeutic-grade” and have a “Supplement Facts” box on the label showing the nutritional value – do NOT use just any brand of essential oil for cooking/flavoring foods. Be sure to use pure oils from reliable sources, not synthetic scents or flavorings.
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Polynesian Sweet Bread {Bread Machine Recipe}
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 drops lemon essential oil
- 3 cups bread flour
- 1/3 cup white sugar
- 2.5 teaspoons active dry yeast
Instructions
- Combine the flour and sugar in a bowl.
- Add the milk, butter, egg, lemon essential oil and salt to the bottom of your bread machine pan.
- Dump the flour mixture on top of the wet ingredients in the pan.
- Pour the yeast on the top of the flour.
- Set the bread machine settings to 2 lb loaf, light crust, and Sweet Bread and START.
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)
Pamela G. says
Hi there, two questions for you on the Polynesian Bread. By any chance does it taste anything close to the Kings Hawaiian rolls that are SO Good and are on the market now? Also, I don’t own a bread machine but my mom does, however, is there a way to do this bread by scratch and not use a machine? I would certainly think there would be but never having to convert any recipes I’m not sure what to change. Any suggestions? thanks!
Margarite says
Hi Kimber. I wanted to let you know I tried the Polynesian Sweet Bread recipe you posted in my new bread machine. Plus, I’m a newbie to bread machines/making. Well, let me tell you after two not so great attempts with recipes provided with my maker, which I followed to a “T,” your recipe was FANTASTIC. The bread was just what I was hoping and wishing it would be. Soft, springy, yay!!!!, VERY TASTY, smelled delicious, especially towards the last stages of baking, and made a delicious bread to not only eat plain (although I hesitate to call it that :), but also with butter, your favorite jams, jellies, sandwich toppings — endless. My fiancé loves this one and HE is very picky lol. Regarding the lemon essential oil. While I had all the ingredients except the lemon oil, I did take a chance and use half a fresh lemon squeezed in place of the oil. Also I added just a tiny bit (about half teaspoon) of minced lemon rind, minus the pith, of course. That was when I made the bread the first time and it turned out delicious. My next loaf, I added the fresh lemon, the lemon rind (same amount), and a little, orange rind (approx 1/4 tsp), again, finely minced. As usual, it turned out SO tasty! Even my Vegetarian 22 y/o daughter approves
Kimber says
I am so happy to hear that it worked so well for you! I love using my bread machine and often get asked by friends for my recipes so I thought it was perfect to share here. Thanks for taking time to comment. It made my day!
Adriane says
I’m attempting this recipe right now. I was curious if I can use whole wheat bread flour?
Kimber says
Wheat flour has a different level of gluten in it so you wouldn’t be able to change it 1:1, although you might be able to add a little to get the heartier wheat texture.
Sharlene Thornton says
My Zo does not have a sweet bread setting. Would I use the regular basic setting?
Kimber says
I would give the basic a try. I think it would be very similar since they are both probably based on a white bread recipe.
Lyshe Windy says
Hi, Thanks for sharing the recipe.
My bread is kinda dump :'(
During the rising cycle, it didn’t make significant difference on the size.
I was using Edmond’s Active Yeast Mixture (it said suitable for bread machine and has a bread improver mix on it), is that the main problem? The package said to use 1 tsp for each cup of flour but I was just using 2.5 tsp like written on the recipe (I added a bit more, maybe 2,75?).
And actually I forgot and left my bread machine alone, when I take out the finished bread, I believe it past almost 30 mins from the real finish time. Or maybe this is the problem?
I love the taste, so I just wondering how to make it rise like yours.
Thank you.
Kimber says
Hi Lyshe- I am sorry it didn’t come out as nice and pretty as you had hoped. It is hard to know exactly what went wrong. Here are a few tips in general-
1. Use measurements as exact to the recipe as possible. Bread machines can be fincky about this.
2. If possible use bread machine yeast.
3. Make sure your yeast is not old. Yeast is a living organism so it can get old and not be effective anymore.
4. Make sure you don’t put the yeast in water that is too hot. This can also kill it. It should be warm but not scalding.
5. Use bread flour not all purpose. It makes a big difference in the outcome of the bread!
Hope this helps a little and you get a better result next time!
Kelly says
Hi…Was looking at another recipe and ran across this.. I LOVE homemade bread but can’t make much any more, arthritis and bursitis. Any way, teaching my granddaughter to make bread and want her to appreciate the joy of kneading and watching the rises etc. I’m not good with converting recipes…Any chance you have the info or can you walk me thru it? Thanks Kimber!! Kelly
Kimber says
Hi Kelly! That is so wonderful. What a special thing to do with your granddaughter. I mostly only make bread machine recipes for yeast doughs so I am not much help but I would bet there is a convertor somewhere on the web. I will even try too look when I get home.
Melanie Corey says
I haven’t tried polynesian breads before. I guess this is a good time to start. Thanks for the awesome tips
Pam Doty says
Is this a light soft, loaf or is it more dense and heavy?
Kimber says
It should be nice and light!
Mary Chastain says
We love this bread! I didn’t have lemon essential oil, but I tried tangerine, and it was delicious! Highly recommend this recipe. Next time, I plan to try without essential oil. I think it will still be very good.