Pour water into the bread machine pan. Sprinkle flour and oat bran over liquid. Add sweet potatoes over flour. Add butter, sugar, salt, and non-fat dry milk in separate corners of the bread pan. Make a shallow indentation in the center and add yeast.
Snap bread pan into machine and set it to basic setting. Press start.
Remove kneading paddle after final kneading**.
When rising cycle is almost complete, just before bread starts to bake, brush the top of loaf with a little water. Sprinkle sliced almonds over the top of the bread pressing the almonds down very gently with your palm.
When bread is ready, remove from the pan and cool on a wire rack.
Notes
**Removing the paddle prevents a big hole when you have to tear it out from the loaf at the end of the baking cycle.