milk glass

atop the mantle piece is my milk glass collection

soothing me

with white soft light whispers 

exhausting me

brash red, green, orange and blue enamel teapots gone

for now

a gift from my girl kat..because i love chooks

photo bombed by sourdough baguettes! 

it has 'avon' on the base but i don't hold that against it

large cake stand (too big for the mantle piece)

my bread needs to get over itself!

dried fig and chestnut sourdough

it's the autumnal equinox

crisp leaves flutter along gutters

crackling indecipherable whispers

the tick tock of the seasonal clock gently pulsates

and the big hand softly softly guides

the precious orb we call home through celestial space

last autumn i made a similar loaf but this time i added chestnut honey as well as chestnut flour to the dough and instead of incorporating the figs throughout the dough i made a filling of unsweetened chestnut puree, dried figs and chestnut honey and i spread this on the rolled out dough..i wanted a versatile bread so i purposely didn't make it very sweet

fig and chestnut sourdough

tea with hazel

ingredients

levain

1 large tablespoon (tbs) active starter
100 gms organic bread flour
125 gms filtered water

filling

8-10 organic figs cut small

2-3 tbs unsweetened chestnut puree

1-2 tbs organic chestnut honey

dough

250 gms levain
250 gms organic bread flour
100 gms wholemeal biodynamic flour
50 gms chestnut flour
1 tbs organic chestnut honey
1 1/2 tbs crushed murray river salt (less if using conventional table salt)
filtered water


method

levain

~ mix all ingredients, cover, and leave for 12-14 hours

filling

~ place the figs, chestnut puree and honey in the bowl of a food processor and pulse the mixture briefly without pureeing the figs and until the mixture just forms a cohesive paste

dough

~ place levain, flours and honey in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix adding enough filtered water to make a shaggy dough
~ autolyse for 20 minutes
~ add salt, mix briefly, rest for 5 minutes, then mix again for about 30 seconds
~ remove bowl from stand mixer, cover the dough with oiled cling film, and leave to prove until doubled
~ remove the dough to a lightly flour dusted bench, divide in two, and do two stretch and fold cycles with a 5-10 minute rest intervals
~ roll each piece of dough into an oblong and spread the dough with the filling leaving 2 cm borders free of filling
~  roll the dough and pinch seams closed
~ dust with flour and place seam side up in flour dusted bannetons
~ cover loosely with cling film and leave for 2-3 hours to prove or until a finger pressed into the dough leaves an impression
~ invert the dough onto a wooden peel, slash, slide onto baking surface (i use a cast iron plate) and bake with steam at 250 deg c for 15 minutes, reduce heat to 215 deg c and bake for a further 20 minutes or until cooked

san daniele proscuitto, holy goat brigid's well 

and dried fig and chestnut sourdough

gone are the hot days of summer..mornings are dewy and cloudy skies tantalising with a promise of rain..i'm happy..very happy..x

yeasted vasilopita

a greek new year's eve is about getting together with family and friends, playing trianta ena (the card game 31) and cutting the vasilopita or basil pie at midnight..vasilopita is a type of yeasted bread or cake with a coin baked into it and tradition has it that the person finding the coin will be blessed for the rest of the year..

vasilopita is named after basil the fourth century bishop of caesarea in cappadocia in asia minor..the tradition of baking a coin into a loaf is said to be based on the coins st basil baked into sweetened bread as a way of distributing money to the poor..he's also recognised as having been the first person to establish a children's orphanage, a christian hospital and to have been one of the most wise and compassionate clergymen in the history of the church..his feast day is observed on january 1st at the beginning of the new year and the epiphany season..the orthodox church, in recognition of his contributions to the church and to humanity, combined the new year with the birth of christ and the epiphany, into the vasilopita observance..the vasilopita observance is the midnight tradition of cutting and distributing the bread among family and friends with a piece being set aside as a symbolic gesture toward the disadvantaged in recognition of st basil's work with the poor..

yeasted vasilopita recipe 

adapted from 'flavours of greece' rosemary barron

makes 1 large loaf
enough for 20 people

ingredients sponge

225 gms tepid full cream organic unhomegenised milk

1 teaspoon yeast (tsp)

100 gms plain flour 

ingredients dough

200-300 gms plain flour

300 gms wholemeal flour

1/2 tsp crushed mastic 

1 1/2 tsp mahlepi

6 eggs

225 gms honey

140 gms castor sugar

125 gms butter melted and cooled

4 tablespoons light olive oil

1 tbs finely cut candied organic orange peel (i used homemade)

1 tbs finely cut candied organic lemon peel (i used homemade)

2 tsp salt (i used murray river salt)

ingredients glaze

1 egg

2 tsp castor sugar

2 tbs milk

extra for decorating

blanched almonds and/or sesame seeds

method sponge

~ mix yeast into the milk, leave 10 minutes, or until foaming

~ mix in the flour, cover, and leave for an hour or until it has become sponge-like

method dough

~ into the bowl of a stand mixer beat eggs, honey, sugar and salt until light and frothy

~ add 200 gms plain flour, wholemeal flour, sponge, mastic, mahlepi, butter and oil and mix adding enough of the remaining plain flour, if necessary, to make a soft smooth dough

~ remove the bowl from the stand mixer, cover with greased cling film, and leave to prove for 2 hours or until doubled

~ turn the dough out onto a lightly floured bench, gently knead in the peels, and shape the dough into a round

~ place the dough in a large baking paper lined round dish and leave, loosely covered, for an hour or until a finger pressed into the dough leaves an impression

~ mix the glaze ingredients together, brush the top of the dough, and using the almonds write the numbers of the new year and sprinkle with sesame seeds

~ bake at 190 deg c for 20-30 minutes, cover with foil, and continue to bake for another 20-25 minutes or until cooked

baking notes: 

i found:

a) the dough too sweet so next time i would reduce the castor sugar to 100 or 80 gms 

b) the mastic/mahlepi ratio was unbalanced so i would reduce the mastic to 1/4 tsp and increase the mahlepi to 2 tsp

c) the bread needed a stronger citrus flavour so i'd increase the peels to 2 tbs each 

d) the dough was over hydrated (as i did when making tsoureki from the same book) so next time i would change the method and rub the butter into the flour rather than melting it thereby hopefully reducing the hydration level

e) the rising times slow so i'd consider increasing the yeast to 2 tsp (the original recipe called for 2 tbs) or retarding the dough overnight in the fridge (my preferred option)

greek coffee and vasilopita..yamas (cheers)!

kali xronia (happy new year)

banana buns to go

my daughter has over an hour's drive to work every day and she makes a coffee and takes breakfast with her to consume on the journey..probably not recommended in the healthy lifestyle dietary guidelines but that's what works for her..it works for me too because i get to make things that are easy for her to eat..nothing worse than drips and crumbs in the lap or down the front of one's freshly ironed top..i made up the bit about the ironing..she doesn't iron either so i guess ironing aversion must be heritable..

forget those horrible liquid breakfasts in boxes which incidentally remind me of the sort of thing that's whizzed up for fractured mandible patients and looks gluggy, grey and pre digested..get the idea? no..these buns have the good stuff in them but they're not slurped through an oversized straw..there's fruit, milk and complex carbohydrates and you need teeth to eat them..i read somewhere that there's a link between satiation and chewing so they work in that department too..

banana buns to go

tea with hazel

ingredients dough

200 gms organic white bread making flour

100 gms organic wholemeal spelt flour

2 ripe bananas mashed

15 gms butter melted and cooled

200 mls (approximately) low fat milk (i used 1/2 low fat milk and 1/2 whey from draining yoghurt)

1 large tablespoon (tbs) organic candied orange peel (i used homemade) finely diced

1/3 cup currants

2 teaspoons (tsp) honey

2 tsp cardamon

2 tsp salt

1 tsp yeast

2 tbs active sourdough starter

extra milk

ingredients glaze

1 tbs sugar

1 tsp gelatine

1 tbs boiling water

method dough/glaze

~ place flours, banana, butter, peel, honey, cardamon, yeast and starter in the bowl of a stand mixer and mix adding enough milk to achieve a shaggy dough 

~ autotolyse for 30 minutes, add salt, mix briefly, rest for 10-15 minutes, mix again briefly

~ cover dough with cling film and leave until well risen

~ remove the dough to a lightly floured board and gently knead in currants

~ divide the dough into 12, 70 gm pieces, shape into rounds, and place on a baking paper lined tray

~ cover buns loosely and leave until well risen or until an impression is left after a finger is pressed into the dough

~ brush the tops of the buns with milk and bake at 230 deg c for 15 minutes, reduce oven temperature to 200 deg c, cover the buns with brown paper, and cook for a further 10 minutes or until cooked

~ brush the tops of the hot buns with the glaze (see glaze method below)

method glaze

~ mix the gelatine and sugar with water and stir until dissolved placing the bowl over a saucepan of boiling water if necessary

grab a banana bun, butter it, and go to work or back to bed with a cup of tea!

this post submitted to yeast spotting

i'm just mad about saffron bread

it was time to use some of the precious spanish saffron i'd been given..i'd hung onto it for so long it was in danger of becoming a relic..but would i be able to do it justice?

i'm just mad about saffron bread 

ingredients

450 gms organic white flour
50 gms organic wholemeal flour
300 mls organic unhomogenised full cream milk
2 tablespoons (tbs) castor sugar
1/4 cup sultanas
1 tbs very finely diced organic lemon peel (i used my own)
1 tbs very finely diced organic orange peel (i used my own)
6 tbs dark rum
approx 10 saffron threads
1 teaspoon (tsp) yeast
2 tsp murray river salt
filtered water (if needed)
extra 1 tbs milk

method

~ bring the milk to the boil, take off the heat, add saffron threads and leave until cool
~ bring the rum to the boil in a small saucepan, take off the heat, add sultanas, leave until cool, drain the sultanas and set the rum aside
~ mix the flour with the yeast, castor sugar, cooled saffron thread milk, rum, and extra water, if needed, to make a shaggy dough
~ leave to autolyse for 20 minutes or so, add salt, mix briefly, rest for 10-15 minutes and then mix again briefly
~ remove the bowl from the stand mixer, cover with a damp tea towel and leave until doubled in size
~ turn the dough onto a flour dusted bench and gently knead in the peels and sultanas
~ leave to rest covered for about 30 minutes, knead once more, and then shape to fit a large greased bread tin
~ cover and set aside until doubled or when a finger pressed in the dough leaves an impression
~ brush the top of the dough with extra milk, bake with steam at 230 deg c for 20 minutes, cover the loaf with brown paper, lower oven temperature to 200 deg c and continue to cook for a further 20-25 minutes or until done

mellow yellow!

do you find some edible gifts so special that you put off using them or save them for a special occasion?

redemptive burger buns

i made 3 dozen rolls on sunday morning for a birthday lunch for my son..they were a mix of slider buns and wholemeal spelt rolls*..i'd never made slider buns before but i practiced making the spelt rolls the week before because, while i'd added spelt to bread dough along with other flours, i'd not used it as the sole ingredient before..the practice spelt rolls were a bit heavier than a whole wheat based roll but they were acceptable so i felt reasonably confident that the rolls i planned to make on the day would be ok..

neither of them turned out the way i wanted though because they didn't rise much during their final proof and had very little oven spring..that happened because i didn't heed my own bread making instincts and instead i had a rare moment of 'follow the recipe'..i shouldn't have put dan on such a pedestal and made the erroneous decision to not only ignore the slider dough's heavy looking consistency but use it as a bench mark for how i made the spelt dough..but it's not dan's fault because i know only too well that flours vary considerably in the amount of fluid they absorb and i knew my doughs needed extra liquid..

as a redemptive gesture i made some rolls today..what i wanted were soft, pillowy rolls..the sort of roll that squishes together when you bite into it..the sort of roll that i wanted for the burgers i made on sunday for my son's birthday..i made these by following my instincts and they were just what i wanted..lesson learned..well, for now anyway!

redemptive burger buns

ingredients

400 gms organic strong white flour

100 gms organic wholemeal flour

7 gms yeast

1 tablespoon (tbs) active sourdough starter

1 1/2 tbs crushed murray river salt

3 tbs full fat cream

2 egg yolks

1 cup organic full cream milk

filtered water

method

~ in the bowl of a stand mixer mix flours, yeast, sourdough starter, egg yolks, cream and milk with enough filtered water to make a shaggy dough

~ autolyse for 30 minutes, add salt, mix for 30 seconds, rest for 10 minutes and then mix again briefly

~ remove the bowl from the stand mixer and cover dough with a damp tea towel until doubled in size

~ turn dough out onto a lightly dusted bench and divide into 8 pieces each weighing approximately 125 gms

~ shape into rounds and place on a flour dusted tray and leave, loosely covered, until doubled

~ sieve the rolls with flour and bake with steam at 220 deg c for 15-20 minutes

note: * my son's girlfriend has a wheat intolerance so i made spelt rolls so she could have burgers too..

pita bread

until yesterday i'd never made pita bread but as i was cooking a greek meal for my children i thought it was time to give it a go..i didn't start making the dough 'til quite late in the afternoon and it was really cold but fortunately i had a fire going so i was able to cosy the dough up on the hearth to prove..

pita bread

adapted from here

makes 8

ingredients

125 gms organic wholemeal flour*

250 gms organic white bread making flour*

1 tablespoon (tbs) honey**

2 tbs olive oil

1 teaspoon (tsp) yeast

1.5 tsp salt (i use crushed murray river salt)

filtered water

method 

~ mix all ingredients with enough water to make a shaggy dough

~ leave for 30 minutes and then mix again briefly

~ remove bowl from the stand mixer, cover with either oiled cling film or a damp tea towel, and leave to prove until doubled

~ tip dough onto a flour dusted bench and knead briefly

~ divide evenly into 8 pieces

~ shape into rounds and leave on the bench for 10-15 minutes for the dough to relax

~ place a baking stone or tray (i used a cast iron frying pan) in the oven and heat the oven to 220 deg c

~ roll each piece of dough into a thin round 

~ place the dough on the cooking surface of choice, cook for 3-4 minutes by which time the bread will have puffed up, turn over and cook for a further 2 minutes

notes:

*  i bought the organic wholemeal and white lauke flours from red beard bakery in trentham..they don't sell pre packaged bags of the wholemeal flour because of it's rapid deterioration rate but they kindly offered to bag up any quantity i wanted..as a result i don't know its protein level but the white flour has 11.5%..  

** i used manna gum honey that i bought from a local producer in trentham  

i served the pita with lamb fillet souvlakia, baked potatoes and olives in lemon and oil, a roasted capsicum, garlic, chilli and dehydrated tomato (my own) concasse and a home grown mixed green (cos and oak leaf lettuce, rocket, watercress, nasturtium and coriander and parsley leaves) and flower (cerise carnation petals, purple and white violets and yellow, white and purple pansies) salad with a pomegranate dressing..  

what's cooking?

barley malt syrup biscuits
these not too sweet but crunchy biscuits were made for an afternoon tea last week
i found the recipe on the label of the tin of syrup 

roquefort, prosciutto and quince paste pizza
the base is made with a mix of  00 flour, bread making flour and boiled potato
i cooked the base for 5 minutes at 275 deg c added the topping and cooked it for another 4 minutes
the cheese was too strong (i was warned that it would be but i didn't listen)
next time i will use gorgonzola 

chocolate custard
served in brown enamel mugs
made with my gran hazel's custard recipe with the addition of 1 tablespoon of cocoa

organic amaranth, sour cream and lyle's golden syrup bread
the amaranth gives the bread an interesting crunch
i'm going to plant some of the seeds because i've been on the lookout for amaranth seeds for ages
the greeks use amaranth leaves to make 'horta' and it's my favourite cooked leafy green 

i'm flying to sydney on monday and then my brother adam and i are spending about a week driving up the new south wales and queensland coast

my brother tim is going to fly in to join us somewhere along the way

my other brother david would have come too but he is overseas at the moment

it will be a very special trip

barley and lemon sourdough

i generally make about one sourdough loaf a week unless i have guests and i'd been thinking about adding barley to this week's loaf since i enjoyed it so much in a soup i'd made a while ago..i added lemon because i felt it needed an acid to balance out the richness of the other ingredients and because lemon barley water has such a lovely flavour..

barley and lemon sourdough

tea with hazel

ingredients levain

1 tablespoon (tbs) active starter

100 gms bread flour

125 gms filtered water

ingredients dough

225 g levain

300 gms white wheat flour

50 gms rice flour 

50 gms oat flour (i processed oat flakes until they were very fine)

100 gms cooked barley

1 tbs barley malt extract (i used saunders' barley malt extract)

1 1/2 tbs salt (i crush murray river salt flakes)

finely grated rind of 1 large lemon

filtered water

method levain

~ mix the levain ingredients, cover, and leave until very active (i refrigerated mine overnight, took it out in the morning, and it was ready to use by midday)

method dough

~ in the bowl of a stand mixer add flours, barley, malt extract and levain and mix with enough water to make a shaggy dough

~ autolyse for 45 minutes

~ add salt and lemon, mix briefly, rest for 15 minutes 

~ mix briefly again, remove the bowl from the stand mixer, cover with oiled cling film or a damp tea towel and leave until well risen

~ remove the dough to a flour dusted bench and repeat two gentle stretch and fold cycles with 15 minute rest intervals

~ shape the dough and rest until a finger pressed into the dough leaves an impression

~ slash and bake with steam at 250 deg c (conventional setting) for 30 minutes, reduce heat to 195 deg c and cook for a further 15-20 minutes

comments:

~ visually this loaf doesn't look very different to many other loaves that i've made but texture and flavour wise is a different story altogether..the crust is quite dense and crunchy and the crumb is open and soft but with plenty of body..even though i knew i'd added the lemon to the dough it came as a bit of a surprise when i first tasted it but, for me, it works..so far, of all the bread i've made, this is my favourite 

~ i wanted to add barley flakes to the loaf but i couldn't find any locally..next time!

roasted fennel and potato soup garnished with fennel leaves
and chilli oil

i think soup and bread is a perfect winter's meal..what do you think?

this post submitted to yeast spotting

quince paste

my neighbour checked with me a while back to find out if i wanted her quince crop once they were ripe..last week they were looking yellow enough so we duly picked them..unfortunately some were rotting quite badly at the stem end and most were riddled with codling maggot tracts but to my neighbour's surprise i was undeterred..i put them in a bowl to enjoy the scent permeating my house for a few days while i decided what i'd do with them..in the end i chose to make quince paste..i was keen to try making it again since the first and last time i made it was decades ago and i vaguely remember it not being a great success..

carefully arranged so the rotten bits are hidden from view

i made this loaf (with linseeds, chia and sesame seeds), yesterday
 especially to have with the quince paste

quince paste, la luna holy goat cheese and home made bread
straight from the oven

quince paste

tea with hazel

ingredients

organic quinces 

sugar
lemon juice

method

~ cut and core quinces leaving skin on and removing all bruised, rotting and codling maggot infested flesh and place pieces in acidulated water
~ drain water and place quince pieces in a shallow baking tray, cover with foil, and bake at 190 deg c for 1 1/2 hours or until tender
~ put the pieces through a mouli
~ measure the resulting pulp and place in a large saucepan
~ for every cup of puree add 3/4 cup of sugar and the juice of 1/2 small lemon to the pan
~ heat the pan slowly until the sugar has melted and then increase heat to medium
~ stir regularly until the mixture is deep amber and the spoon leaves a trail at the bottom of the saucepan
~ spoon the paste into a shallow baking paper lined tray and put aside for 24 hours to set
~ cut into pieces and store in an airtight container or wrap in baking paper strips and store in cellophane bags

notes:

~ i baked my quince pieces rather than boiling them as is usually done on the premise that the added water needed for boiling would extend the paste cooking time
~ i used a diffuser under the saucepan to prevent scorching and so that i didn't have to stir the pot quite
as often
~ cooking time varies considerably but my quince paste took about 1 1/2 hours..it can take 4 hours or so
~ for a sweeter product add a cup of sugar to each cup of puree
~ the few quinces i had made 24 pieces of paste and, not including the gas and electricity, cost $0.03c/piece

next time i see my former neighbours (who planted the quince tree
about 3 years ago) i will give them some quince paste from 'their' tree

verdict:

i'm so glad i had another attempt at making quince paste because it was such a satisfying experience..i loved the smell permeating my kitchen as i watched the magical process as the paste slowly changed colour from pale creamy yellow/brown to red amber..and i was so happy that it worked out well and that it tastes great..not too sweet with a bit of a tang..now it's almost hard to imagine that the paste was made from rotting and codling maggot tract ridden fruit..

lovage

last spring i bought a lovage plant, popped it into my herb garden, and then ignored it apart from watering it in the really hot weather..yesterday i picked some and tentatively added it to a soup and the resulting flavour provoked me to find out about this herb and write this post..

lovage is believed to have originated from south western asia and the mediterranean..it's an herbaceous perennial that grows hollow celery like stems to over six feet from a basal rosette of leaves..the flavour of the leaves is intriguing and i find it hard to describe but for me there are hints of celery and cardamon..

lovage (levisticum officinale) has a long history of having been used medicinally in medieval and roman times and in ancient greece, with, according to culpeper, the powdered root being used to treat gastric and intestinal problems and to promote diuresis and menses..the alternative name of 'lover's parsley' suggests that perhaps it was also purported to have aphrodisiac qualities..

the whole plant can be used for culinary purposes..the roots can be grated and eaten raw in a salad, cooked or grated and dried and used to make a tea..whole or ground seeds may be added to sweets, breads, cakes and biscuits, cordial, pickles and savoury dishes.. the finely chopped leaves can be added to a salad and the fibrous stems can also be eaten if they are first blanched or, like angelica, they can be candied ..

barley, lovage and lemon soup

tea with hazel

ingredients

3/4 cup pearl barley cleaned of grit and rinsed
1 large onion cut medium
2 cloves garlic cut fine
4 medium carrots cut medium
4 small potatoes cut medium
1 celery stalk (i used several small home grown stalks) cut fine
1 cup peas
2-3 cups mixed greens (i used stinging nettle, rocket, dandelion leaves, celery and lovage leaves and a few small yellow stalked rainbow chard leaves)
1 litre stock
water
pinch chilli flakes
salt and pepper to taste
lemon rind and juice

method

~ saute the onion, celery and garlic in a little olive oil until the onion is translucent
~ add the barley, chilli flakes, salt and pepper to taste and stock and water to cover well and boil for 30 minutes or until the barley is soft
~ add carrot and potato and when nearly done add the peas and the dandelion, celery, lovage and rainbow chard leaves and cook for a couple of minutes
~ just before serving add the stinging nettle and rocket leaves, stir, and turn off heat

to serve

garnish each bowl with the zest and juice of half a small lemon or to taste

sweet potato and quark bread

tea with hazel

ingredients

400 gms white bread flour
100 gms wholemeal flour
1 cup cooked sweet potato
1/3 cup quark (i used schulz organic quark from timboon)
unsalted potato water (from boiling potatoes)
2 teaspoons (tsp) honey (i used peppermint honey)
1 tsp yeast
1 1/2 tablespoons salt (i used crushed murray river salt)

method

 ~ mix flours, sweet potato, quark, honey and yeast with enough potato water to make a shaggy dough and autolyse for 30 minutes
~ add salt, mix briefly, rest 10 minutes and then mix again
~ remove the bowl from the mixer and cover with greased cling film and leave until doubled
~ remove the dough onto a lightly floured bench and knead lightly and rest 15 minutes
~ repeat the knead/rest cycle once more
~ shape the bread and leave to prove
~ score the dough and bake with steam at 250 deg c for 20 minutes, reduce heat to 200 deg c and cook for a further 25 minutes or until cooked

comments:

~after reading a bit more about lovage i've realised that i need to move my plant so that it has more growing space..

~ i bought a 500 gm packet of barley and 500 gms split green peas yesterday on special at the supermarket for $2..not each..both! ..i hadn't made soup with barley for years but it added such a lovely gloss (see the photo above) and richness to the soup that it's going to be having a renaissance in my kitchen..and not just in soup..i want to try using it in other ways too such as in salads or as a rice substitute..the addition of lemon was a welcome complement to the richness of the barley and the aromatic flavour of the lovage in the soup..without it the balance was just not right..

~ the bread was a bit of a surprise because at the same time as being moist it was also was very light..

cardamon, currant and candied orange peel loaf

after making cupcakes with cardamon, currants and candied orange peel the other day i thought a loaf of bread might work with these flavours..and i think it did..

cardamon, currant and candied orange peel loaf

tea with hazel

ingredients

200 gms bread making flour

50 gms wholemeal flour

1 tablespoon (tbs) full cream milk powder
1/2 tbs olive oil

1/2 teaspoon (tsp) yeast

2 tbs sourdough starter

1/2 cup currants mixed with 1-2 tbs water, left to soak, mixing occasionally and drained before use 

finely diced candied peel of one small organic orange (see here for recipe)

1 tbs sugar

2 tsp powdered cardamon

3/4 tbs salt (i use crushed murray river salt flakes)

cold water

1 tbs castor sugar mixed with 1/2 tsp powdered cardamon

method

~ mix flours, milk powder, yeast, olive oil, cardamon and starter with enough cold water to make a shaggy dough

~ autolyse for 30 minutes, add salt and mix briefly, rest for 15 minutes and mix briefly again

~ cover the bowl with cling film or a damp tea towel and leave until doubled

~ remove the dough from the bowl onto a lightly dusted bench and gently knead in the currants and peel
~ rest for 15 minutes, knead again gently, rest for 15 minutes
~ shape dough into a square the length of the tin and roll up pressing seams together
~ place in an olive oil greased tin and leave covered until well risen
~ bake at 220 deg c (bread baking function) for 20 minutes with steam, reduce heat to 180 deg c, cover the dough with foil, and bake for a further 20 minutes or until cooked
~ once cooked remove the foil and lightly spray the top of the loaf with water and sprinkle generously with the sugar and cardamon mix
~ with the heat off place the tin back in the oven for 2-3 minutes
~ remove loaf from the tin onto a cooling rack 

while still warm

the crumb once cooled 

this post submitted to yeastspotting

sourdough

just lately i've become a bit frustrated with my sourdough loaves..they just haven't been doing what i want..yeah..they taste ok but i've been finding them harder to slash and they've been cracking a lot on the bottom and not opening up on top properly so i've been doing a bit of pondering and a bit of reading and a bit more pondering..

yesterday i made a loaf where i changed a few things that i thought might be causing the problem..i've been making quite a high hydration dough lately so yesterday i lowered the hydration level of the dough and instead of covering the dough during its second prove i left it uncovered because i read somewhere that this helps the dough develop a 'skin' which makes slashing easier..the last thing i did differently was to bake the loaf using a conventional setting rather than using the oven's bread baking function (convection) because i read somewhere that fan assisted heat can dehydrate the surface of dough which i guessed might impact on oven spring (i use steam with both methods)..

whenever i make a loaf of bread i develop a case of 'baker's anticipation'..yesterday was no exception as i peered through the oven door and watched happily this time as the loaf sprung open beautifully..and i'm not sure why but the bread actually tasted a bit different too..not better or worse..just different..oh..and by the way it was a breeze to slash..

 oh look..it has an 'ear'

and a nice crust

and look at the holes

do i sound like a proud mother showing off her newborn?

food waste

as i wandered through the supermarket the other day i noticed a whole lot of people milling around some boxes of produce so i scurried over to see what all the excitement was about..i must have had a quizzical look on my face because without talking to me the supermarket employee pointed to the plastic bag holder..when i came back with my bag he nodded towards the boxes and told me for $3 i could fill my bag..i'm not good at bun fights so i hung back until the dust had settled accepting that i might miss out on the better produce..but it didn't turn out like that at all because i was easily able to fill my bag with quality produce such as new seasons apples and corella pears, lebanese cucumbers, a couple of heads of garlic (not the bleached imported variety), red capsicums, beetroot and organic bananas..admittedly there was a lot of poorer quality stuff in the boxes including rotting vegetation but my well honed urban foraging skills enabled me to find the better stuff among the dross..

i had a bit of a chat with the attendee while he was telling me to tie my bag securely (in case i stole a soft banana?) and as he put a bar code sticker on my bag..he told me that the same thing happens every day from 3-4 pm and that he has his regulars who come every day..i don't know that i will become a 'regular' because i buy my green groceries elsewhere but if i happen to be there at the right time i'll probably check out what's on offer again..

i checked out my bounty when i got home and the only thing wrong with the apples was the odd blemish but otherwise they were fresh and crisp..the other things weren't perfect either but there was nothing intrinsically wrong with any of it..there have been several stories in the media recently about the huge volume of food wasted annually around the world..among the doom and gloom there are good things happening though such as programs where producers, suppliers and restaurants donate food to charity..and i've seen a few television programs lately where, often for philosophical reasons, people engage in what's known as 'dumpster diving' where supermarket waste bins are raided for food..and the issue of household food waste is becoming a more salient issue in terms of media attention and educational programs..

i'm pretty sure the supermarkets' daily $3 'greens grab' is primarily motivated by money but i can see some positive aspects..the first is the economic benefit to the consumer and the second relates to waste reduction which results in reduced landfill, methane gas production and the associated effect on climate..and i get the sense that many of us, in reducing waste, respect ourselves more when we respect the hard won and precious life affirming commodity that's food..

a few articles addressing the issues i've mentioned

http://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/enterprisemelbourne/waste/Pages/OrganicsRecycling.aspx (food donation)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6933744.stm (eating and cooking food from supermarket
waste bins)
http://foodwise.com.au/food-waste/household-food-waste/waste-free-kitchen/ (household food waste)
https://www.oxfam.org.au/grow/2013/01/14/how-can-you-help-cut-down-on-food-waste/ (household food waste)

roast beetroot and taleggio soup

tea with hazel

ingredients soup

2 medium to large beetroot peeled and quartered*
2 small red capsicums cut into quarters*
1/4 small pumpkin peeled and cut into chunks
4 medium tomatoes cut large
1/2 large zucchini cut into chunks (i only used this because i was low in stock and i thought this watery vegetable would amp up the fluid volume of the soup without eclipsing the flavour i was after)
4-5 cloves garlic unpeeled*
1 litre stock
olive oil
2 teaspoons (tsp) salt
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp chilli flakes

ingredients to serve

1 tsp sumac per person
3-4 slices of taleggio per person
finely cut parsley and chives
extra salt and pepper

method

~ place the beetroot, capsicums, pumpkin, tomatoes, zucchini and garlic in a roasting tray and drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and chilli flakes
~ roast at 180 deg c until the vegetables are well browned and softening
~ once cooked remove the roasted vegetables to a saucepan, add stock, and cook until the vegetables are falling apart
~ puree the soup and pass it through a mouli

serving
~ reheat, adding water if it's too thick, and serve with slices of taleggio, chives, parsley and sumac

note * denotes 'green grab' produce

atta milk loaf

tea with hazel

ingredients

250 gms atta flour

250 gms white bread flour

approximately 250 mls full fat milk

1 tsp yeast

1 1/2 tsp salt

method

~ mix flours and yeast with enough milk to make a shaggy dough and leave for 10-15 minutes to autolyse

~ add salt, mix briefly, rest for 10 minutes and mix briefly again

~ cover with clingfilm and place in the refrigerator overnight

~ remove the bowl from the refrigerator the next morning and leave for an hour or two 

~ turn the dough out of the bowl on to a well floured bench, stretch and fold a few times, and then rest for 20-30 minutes

~ repeat the stretch and fold and rest cycle once more

~ shape the dough into a round, sprinkle with semolina, place top side down in a muslin lined colander (or dough proofing basket) and leave until well risen

~ slash the loaf and cook with steam for 20 minutes at 220 deg c (break baking function) and then at 180 deg c for a further 20-25 minutes or until well browned

i think the milk gave the loaf a tighter crumb than i've become used to
 but happily it wasn't heavy and it went well with the soup

yeasted blackberry and apple bread

i bought some apples a couple of weeks ago..i got excited thinking they might be new seasons granny smiths because for me new season's apples and pears herald autumn..the gentle season..the season of muted colours and even temper and clarity in the air.. but even as i bought them they didn't look quite right but i went ahead anyway getting ahead of myself and the seasons..

they sat lingering for ages until i cut one up to see if they were salvageable..inside they were streaked brown through out and looked momentarily as if destined for the compost bin..but me being me just couldn't do that so i cut them up and threw them into a pot with a bit of water and cooked them, mashing them occasionally, until they were soft..i had no idea what i was going to do with them at this stage but i was considering apple jelly..after straining the pulp for 24 hours i had a lovely not brown at all liquid that tasted delicious..

my apple juice thoughts danced here and there but the one thought that stopped me in my tracks was the idea of putting the apple juice in a loaf of bread..that thought was added to another and another..i had more blackberries from another foraging session with one of my daughters and i now had proper new seasons granny's..my thoughts settled and blackberry and apple bread was made..

blackberry and apple bread

tea with hazel

ingredients 

bread dough

400 gms strong bread making flour
100 gms wholemeal flour
apple juice (strained from poaching apples in a little water and lemon juice)
1/2 teaspoon (tsp) yeast
11/2 tablespoons ( tbs) salt (murray river)

filling

2 medium granny smith apples
1 tbs sugar
1/2 cup blackberries
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup freshly ground almond meal
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest

glaze

1 tbs blackberry jelly
1 tbs boiling water
1 tsp gelatine
1 tsp lemon juice

method

~ mix flour and yeast with enough apple juice to obtain a soft shaggy dough and leave for 10 minutes
~ add salt, mix briefly, rest for 10 minutes
~ mix briefly once more, remove bowl from mixer, cover with greased cling film, and leave until the dough has doubled
~ remove the dough from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface and do one stretch and fold then rest for 15 minutes
~ repeat the stretch and fold cycle twice more
~ dice small the peeled and cored apples and cook with the sugar until just softening
~ mix the bread crumbs, almond meal and lemon
~ roll the dough into an oblong, sprinkle with bread crumb mix, and dot with blackberries and apple
~ roll the dough up sealing the end with a little water
~ place in a greased bread baking tin and leave until doubled or until a finger pressed into the dough leaves an impression
~ bake at 220 deg c (bread baking function) with steam for 25 minutes
~ reduce heat to 180 deg c and continue to bake for a further 20 minutes covering with foil if browning too much
~ mix the glaze ingredients well until the gelatine is dissolved using a bain marie if necessary
~ glaze the loaf as soon as removed from the tin


notes:

~ i purposely didn't add any sugar to the dough or the bread crumb mix because i didn't want a sweet loaf
~ i cut the loaf way too soon so it looks a bit doughy in the photo
~ for me the flavours worked well..not too sweet with a lovely apple and blackberry flavour that wasn't eclipsed by the subtle but welcome hint of lemon

it doesn't feel like autumn here in melbourne with temperatures over 30 deg c for another week but it's not going to stop me celebrating its imminent arrival..

this post submitted to yeast spotting