DesignIf you’re drawn to the soft pastel colours of Smeg and KitchenAid appliances, avert your eyes. Panasonic’s machine is only available in utilitarian black, albeit with a token glint of rose-gold trim. But looks aren’t everything. Overall, the appliance is smart and compact. At 34cm it is on the tall side but its relatively small footprint of 30cm x 24cm means it won’t take up too much space on the kitchen counter. Just note that the height may mean it won’t fit beneath some wall-mounted units, and it does need to sit on a heat-resistant surface while in use. You’ll also need to ensure there’s enough space around it to enable hot air to vent effectively. The dinky footprint also means smaller portions. You’ll be able to make 400-500g loaves of bread and around 350-400ml of ice cream, making the appliance ideal for smaller households rather than lavish dinner parties. Ease of useOut of the box, everything is simple to set up and I found the instructions easy to follow. The main unit comes with both a bread pan and a freezable ice cream container, which can be easily swapped in and out of the machine. There are attachments for churning ice cream, sorbet and more, as well as those for kneading different types of dough. The attachments just slot onto the base of the relevant container, so everything really is fuss-free to set up. A recipe menu is also included, with options for basic bread and ice cream mixtures as well as those for jam, cake, panettone and more. There are even vegan-friendly and gluten-free recipes. Plus, the appliance comes with a measuring cup and spoons set, to make it straightforward to measure out the correct amount of each ingredient. The yeast and nut dispensers will add the ingredients automatically during the baking process (Angharad Moran/The Independent)When it comes to adding the yeast or extra ingredients, such as raisins or nuts, the top section of the appliance’s lid can be opened to reveal two dispenser compartments, so everything can be added to your dough automatically at the optimal time during baking. Once you’ve got everything set up, the minimal control panel is straightforward to navigate. Use the up and down arrow buttons to select the menu number that corresponds to the recipe you’re following; choose between light, medium and dark finishes for your crust (if you’re baking bread); set a delayed start with the timer controls, if you want to (again, this only applies when baking bread), or just hit the start button and let the machine get to work. PerformanceFor this review, I followed Panasonic’s recipes for a basic white loaf and simple vanilla ice cream. You can’t beat freshly made bread, and I’ve previously baked countless loaves in traditional ovens as well as in my slow cooker. With a bread maker, however, the process is made much simpler and less time-consuming.After you’ve added the ingredients into the bread pan and popped some yeast into the dispenser, Panasonic’s appliance does all the proofing and kneading for you. You don’t need to get involved again until it’s time to remove your baked loaf from the machine. The device’s timer can even be set for up to 13 hours in advance of when you want the bread to be ready, giving you more flexibility. You can makes loaves of about 400-500g (Angharad Moran/The Independent)I opted for ‘medium’ browning on the crust, and it came out perfectly golden-brown after four hours, but you can also choose to have a lighter or darker finish. Once baked, the white loaf I made had a good crumb structure, a fluffy texture and it tasted delicious. The only thing to note is that, as the bread is baked around the kneading blade, this does create a cavity at the centre of the loaf. While making bread in the appliance went without a hitch, serving up some ice cream took a little more trial and error. The instructions say you should keep the ice cream container in your freezer for 8-16 hours before use. This freezes the liquid held between the two walls of the container, so that it’s cold enough to turn your refrigerated ice cream mixture into a scoopable dessert after just 25 minutes of churning in the machine. Call me impatient, but I tested the ice cream function after eight hours of freezing the container. While the liquid held within its walls was certainly frozen after that time, after 25 minutes of churning in the machine, my ice cream mixture was not. Resigning myself to the fact I wouldn’t be enjoying dessert that evening, I then froze the container overnight, so I could give it the full 16 hours before trying again.This time it worked, and my liquid mixture was transformed into soft-serve ice cream. I used Panasonic’s own simple recipe for vanilla ice cream, which consists of milk, cream, vanilla extract and honey. While the overall texture and taste of the ice cream was good, the addition of honey seemed to create a slightly odd residue on my teeth, which wasn’t particularly pleasant. However, you can, of course, use any chilled ice cream mixture in the machine, so I’m keen to try using it again with a traditional custard base.My ice-cream needed further freezing for a firmer texture (Angharad Moran/The Independent)Both the bread and ice cream functions were quiet in operation, so it’s a nice touch that the control screen shows you what stage the programme is at, to reassure you that everything is running as it should. The machine also beeps to let you know when the programme has finished, but I found this a little too muted and polite. I’d prefer the foghorn approach, to ensure I can’t miss the programme coming to an end. For that reason, I’d say it’s worth setting your own alarm, to avoid coming back to melting ice cream if you miss the modest beeps. Value for moneyWith a price tag of £200, this appliance is on the pricey side. While you are essentially getting two machines in one, you may be able to pick up separate bread and ice cream makers for a little less. For example, Panasonic’s standalone mini bread maker will set you back about £110 (Argos.co.uk), while a top-rated pre-freeze ice-cream churner such as the MagiMix le glacier costs about £60 (Amazon.co.uk), so you’d be paying about £170 in total for the two appliances. However, if you’d prefer to avoid racking up too many devices and want to keep everything neat and tidy with one capable, do-it-all machine, it could well be worth paying a little extra for Panasonic’s bread and ice cream maker. Key specificationsDimensions: 34cm x 30cm x 24cmSettings: 34, including different types of bread, mochi, ice cream, sorbet, frozen yoghurt, jam, pasta dough, cake and moreTimer: Up to 13 hoursWatts: Up to 392W, depending on the setting