Kitchen appliances, asking for advice.

That somewhat depends on the bread. If you bake with pure yeast, it quickly gets hard (I would really only recommend fresh rolls for that) - we have now experimented with sourdough - that usually lasts 3-5 days; it even got better over time (my wife says it was perfect on the third day). Bread machines are just messy and energy guzzlers.

In general, I find it nice to bake yourself, because you can say what goes in and what should be included - for example, we grind our own flour and bake nothing else in except yeast, salt, and water (and a splash of honey).

Sourdough + cracked wheat soaked in water. Just like in the old days, that keeps the bread moist for a few days. Besides, bread also needs a proper crust, as it helps prevent drying out.

I have been thinking about getting a bread maker for quite some time.

I also advise against it: I had one once, a hellish machine in terms of noise, then the unappetizing shape of the finished bread with the hole, no proper crust... What I ended up using it for was mixing and proofing the dough, baking was then done in the oven.

Get yourself a good kitchen machine that can knead the dough for you longer than you can, let it rise on a hot water bottle or by the window in the sun (or on the floor in front of the underfloor heating manifold ) You can also bake smaller loaves then. I am not a fan of the Thermomix - but if you have one of those, apparently you can also proof the dough well in it.

Hot water bottle - thanks for the tip! I've now always placed it in front of the window, but I'm afraid it never reached 30 °C there.

Hot water bottle - thanks for the tip! I've now always placed it in front of the window, but I'm afraid it hasn't reached 30 °C there.

When you go out for the first time, you can also heat the oven to 45 degrees and wedge a pot holder in the door gap. However, the oven has to be preheated at some point.

What do you think about built-in steam ovens? I only have an external device so far, unfortunately also made of plastic. But it was good enough for getting started with steam cooking. I either want to get one made of stainless steel, also external, or maybe a built-in steam oven. What speaks in favor of a built-in steam oven?