Beautiful bread

 Daring Bakers February 2014

Blog - checking lines: Beauty surrounded the Daring Bakers this month as our host, Sawsan, of Chef in disguise, challenged us to make beautiful, filled breads. Who knew breads could look as great as they taste?

I made parsley and walnut pesto filled bread.

For the dough:
60ml warm water
180ml warm milk
1 egg
60gr soft butter
25gr sugar
1/2 tsp salt
450gr plain flour
8gr dry yeast

 50ml of milk to brush

Parsley - Walnut Pesto

100gr shelled walnut
bunch of parsley, chopped
50gr Pecorino cheese
1 garlic clove, chopped
100ml olive oil

Put all ingredients, except the oil in a food processor, pulse for a few seconds to combine, then drizzle the olive oil while the machine is running for about half a minute or until the oil is incorporated.

To make the dough:

Whisk the egg with milk, water, sugar, butter and yeast. In a separate bowl mix the flour with salt, then combine with the wet ingredients, kneed until you get a smooth dough. Leave in a lightly oiled bowl to double in size.

Preheat the oven to 240C/500F/gas 9

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, then divide into 4 parts. Roll each part into a 20cm circle. Spread  pesto over the first circle, place the second layer, repeat the spreading and then do the same with the third layer. Top with the fourth layer and brush it with melted butter.

Using a sharp knife make cuts that divide the dough circles into 8 triangles. Make cuts that go 2/3 of the way in the middle of each triangle.Take the tip of each triangle and insert it into the cut you made and pull it from the underside. Arrange the triangles on the baking tin, pinch the two angles at the base of the triangle together.

For the illustrated steps  please visit http://chefindisguise.com/

Brush the dough with milk, allow to rest for 15 minutes then bake for 5 minutes on very hot, then lower the temperature to 200C/400F/gas 6 for 15 minutes or until the under side is golden brown. 

Leave it to cool for few minutes then transfer to a wire rack.

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Kladdkaka

Swedish chocolate cake(s)

There is something about the imperfection in this cake, that makes it prefect. If I was going to bake it a conventional way, you would be presented with a round, thin chocolate/brownie/cake with a crispy, crackled top and sticky and gooey, but not a runny, centre. Sounds like a recipe for a disaster, does't it? And it would  have been in almost any other baking occasion; here, it's just what we are looking for to create perfection. Eight little pieces of perfection, in this case.

I made one small change in the recipe that had quite a big impact on the taste, and if you are not a big fan of cocoa, like me, try it this way - replace at least half of the amount of cocoa with hot chocolate powder, or real chocolate. (Then close the windows to stop the neighbours knocking on the door asking what's in the oven).

Kladdkaka

2 eggs 

275g caster sugar

50g plain flour

pinch of salt

4 tbsp cocoa powder ( I put 2, plus 2 hot chocolate powder)

125g  melted butter

1 tsp vanilla sugar

icing sugar for dusting (optional)

whipped cream to serve (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/gas 4 and grease a fluted muffin tin, or a round cake tin.

Beat the eggs and sugar until pale and fluffy, then gradually add the salt and flour. Stir the cocoa (hot chocolate) powder until well combined, then pour the mixture into the prepared baking tin. bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until crispy on the outside and a strewer inserted into the centre comes out sticky. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin.

Recipe adapted from " Baking recipes from around the World"

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Rustic apple cake

The rain finally stopped on Saturday. It was long overdue. After days, even weeks of rain, constant grey skies, storms and thunderstorms, (not to mention the danger of getting hurt as the wind was occasionally so strong that the threes were coming down and the roof tiles were flying around) I lost the desire to leave the house. The floods at the other side of London got worse, and I started listening to the weather forecast after a long time. The wind is still very strong, and  the long bridges over the Thames are more or less constantly closed. Officially the most depressing day of the year was the 20 of January; if they only knew what was coming, they wouldn't have rushed to announce the day of this year's greatest depression.

My mood of being reluctant to leave the house and to get out, out of necessity only finally disappeared on Sunday as the Sun came out, and I just felt the urge to walk around and to absorb the warmth and the light for hours.

The Park was surprisingly empty; over the past couple of months, I almost forgot how beautiful it..

and its wild life could be..

But the Sunday Farmer's market came alive. I was a bit sad not be able to find some of my usual favourites (amazing jam and chutney stall), but then discovered a new cheese seller; well, they are not new, as it turned out, but new to me, and I will tell about it in one of the future posts. I went to the market to buy the juicy, crispy and sweet Cox apples, but was too late, there were sold out, so I got couple of  Royal Gala (teehee, my daughters name!... Gala... not royal...) apples for the cake I realised I could  make instead, as I had some apple compote in the fridge.

But not before we went to the nearby charming French Boulangerie for our regular after the market treat - caffe macchiato with almond croissant on side. I was there a few days ago with my friend Chryssanthi and left a message for the owner to get in touch when he comes back from a holiday, as I am hoping to convince him to be a guest on these pages. 

It was Chrissanthi's mums recipe for an apple meringue cake that I was really keen to make with the Cox apples; it will have to wait now - until the next market, or until we have a desire for an apple cake again. 

Between walking in the park, shopping and chilling out on the Sun, I didn't realise what the time was...

 When you are relaxed and enjoy yourself, as we all know all to well, time tends to fly ....and the first street lights were a reminder that we should be heading home. I promised an apple cake for tonight and my hungry troops would not let me forget. They were promised a cake and they are getting a cake right in time for dinner.  

Rustic apple cake

150ml natural yoghurt
15g golden syrup
250g flour
230g sugar
7 gr baking powder
2 tsp vanilla sugar
dash of cinnamon
80 ml oil
3 large eggs
pinch of salt

For the compote and topping
2 red skin apples
600 ml water
200g sugar
juice of 1 lemon

Round spring-form  26 or 28 cm in diametar
Oven temperature 180 C/360 F/gas mark 4

To make the compote bring the water, sugar and lemon juice to boil, then drop slices of cored, then thinly cut apples. Simmer for few minutes, then take the apples out onto a  cloth to drain and absorb the excess liquid.
Turn the oven on. Cut one apple into 1 cm cubes and squeeze a bit of lemon juice over. Separate the eggs and whisk the egg whites with a half of the sugar, yolks with the other half. Combine flour with baking powder, salt and cinnamon. By hand,in a large bowl, now combine the apple with yoghurt and honey, add whisked egg yolks, oil, then add the flour mixture. When well mixed, slowly add the egg whites. Pour the mixture into a greased spring form, shake the pan to level the batter up, then put together 4-5 slices of compote apple slices to make flowers. Arrange them on the top of the cake. I made 9, one in centre, and around the edges. do not be tempted to push them deep into the batter, as they will disappear as the cake rises. Just press them gently to secure the shape.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, let it to completely cool down on a wire rack, then generously dust the  icing sugar over. Covered, the cake stays moist for few days.

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Ciabatta

Welcome Bread

Our world has become a richer place, thanks to a little baby girl, Tijana, born on 12 February! The new addition to our family was born in Novi Sad, with short, dark, bushy hair, beautiful eyes and a cute smiling face. 

So, before you start asking questions I better explain why I decided to celebrate her birth with a post about bread. It's in our tradition to mark every special occasion in our lives with a loaf of bread, Christmas, Easter, engagements, weddings, births... Although it goes centuries back, the custom is still very much alive, and if not that strong in the cities, definitely in towns and rural areas. And if I were there, I would of welcomed her arrival with a fresh bread loaf, so why not do the same from thousands of kilometres away? 

Ciabatta

For the starter

1/2 tsp dried yeast

150 ml water

3tbsp tepid water

1/4tsp honey

450g strong white flour

For the dough

1/2 tsp dried yeast

250ml water

1/2 tbsp olive oil

350g strong white flour

1 1/2 tsp salt

To make the starter - mix yeast with milk and water, leave for 5 minutes, then add the honey and flour. Combine well and leave overnight (or at least for 12 hours).

To make the dough - Mix the yeast with water, leave for 5 minutes and add it together with olive oil to the starter. Mix the flour and salt and beat with a wooden spoon to form a wet, sticky dough until it becomes springy and starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Cover the dough and leave to rise until trebled in size, for about 3 hours. Do not knock the dough back. 

Flour two baking sheets generously, divide the dough in half, scoop half of the dough on to one baking sheet. Using well-floured hands form a long rectangular loaf, dust the loaf and your hands again with flour. Repeat with the other half.

Leave the two loaves uncovered for 20 minutes to rest, they will rise more as well as spread out. 

Bake in a preheated oven (220C)  for 30 minutes, until golden in colour and hollow-sounding when tapped underneath. 

Leave it to cool on a wire rack.

Note:  One half can be divided into smaller pieces and shaped into bread sticks, as shown below.

Recipe adapted from "Bread", by E. Treuille and U Ferrigano
The heart shaped bread is made with Pain D'epi mixture

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Kahvalti

My dough odyssey - Turkish breakfast rolls

Ones upon a time, I thought that cakes were my baking niche.The name of the blog reflects this idea as I was sure that I will be only mixing sponges and glazes and trying to come up with the best cream since custard. The truth is that sometimes we don't know where our true ardour lies, and that very often by taking a journey with one aim in mind, we often find ourselves on new and unfamiliar territory. That was the case with me and dough. It was beyond my comprehension how so many different combinations of flour, yeast and water can yield so many different results. I used to mix those three magic ingredients equally unsuccessfully every time; that never failed me and I almost gave up on making dough all together. 

Strangely enough, I don't know what was the turning point and when it happened. I recently read a lovely post written by a fellow blogger in Serbia who is celebrating a blog anniversary and as my humble space in the big bloggers world is approaching its first anniversary, I started looking into it more closely and thinking of ways to improve it and give it a bit of a visual revamp. It was then that I realised that six out of seven of my most popular posts are dough and pastry related. So yep, I think that I got the title wrong. But, it's here to stay, I am not going to change it; the point is that this inspiring journey I started to share my passion for cakes, got me into a wonderful world of  yeast, flour and water (make no mistake - I am not giving up on cakes either).

These Turkish bread rolls with potato and feta cheese are my newest find.

Kahvalti

Makes 12 rolls
350g strong bread flour
1 tsp instant yeast
240ml milk, heated to the boiling point then cooled to room temperature
1 tsp salt
1 medium potato, cooked and mashed
100g feta cheese
1 egg white for egg-wash

Make a well in the flour, sprinkle some yeast and pour milk over it. Cover the well with flour and leave to rest for about an hour. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the cheese, knead until you get a well combined dough, which should be sticky. Allow to rest for 30 minutes then roll it into the crumbled cheese, place it in a bowl and leave to rise for 2 hours. Take it out onto a floured surface, shape into a sausage and cut into 12  pieces. Shape each piece of dough into a tight ball, cover with a towel and leave to rest for another hour.

Preheat the oven to 220C/gas mark 7, eggwash with beaten egg white mixed with a spoon of water and sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds if you wish. Bake for 20 minutes and leave to cool on a wire rack.

Recipe by Jane Mason

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Torta delle Rose del Garda

Italian Rose Cake or Why I bake

Someone recently asked me why I bake! Why do I restlessly search, experiment, read baking books and magazines, visit other peoples blogs, why did I swap my shoe collection for a collection of baking moulds, pin rolls, and chocolate, why I watch cooking channels, constantly looking for an inspiration and new things to try? Although it was potentially a very important moment in my life, I don't think I gave them a proper answer, a real reason; I just wasn't sure of what to say, except that I have that nagging urge to do it almost every day. But the question stayed with me and made me repeatedly ask myself - do I need an explanation why I do it, or a reason to do it? Of course I don't, but yet, why do I do it? 

But then, the moment I pulled this cake out of the oven I arrived at the perfect answer to that nagging question. This is why I bake: for moments such as this, for a moment of accomplishment when all your passions come together.  

I have seen many recipes for the Italian Rose Cake and it was on my to make list, but it didn't have a high-priority flag attached to it, so to speak. One day I came across a picture of beautifully baked pastry and soon realised that it was the rose cake in it's full glory. The recipe was of course in Italian and once again I wished that I moved from Italian for beginners class, although the knowledge wasn't totally useless. It got me to the point where I knew which ingredients to get and that there are several stages in making it, so my "I hate the Google translator attitude" took a small turn towards acceptable and once again Google came to the rescue (well, kind of!) All of us who rely on Google translations from time to time know only too well that we need to be equipped with a good working knowledge of the subject and with common sense, you need to be able to make an executive decision when the instructions say - remove from refrigerator, roll out the dough and incorporate 50 grams of butter giving three laps simple to browse. I am so pleased that my common sense didn't let me down this time. The recipe that follows is my understanding of the original Massari's recipe. It takes two days to successfully make it, but boy, you won't regret it!

Torta delle Rose del Garda

Starter dough:
4g dry yeast
50g strong white flour
25ml warm milk (I put a drop bit more)
Mix to make it smooth and homogeneous and let it rise until triples in volume.

Second dough:
Add 25gr of flour and 15 gr egg to the first mixture, mix thoroughly and let rise until tripled in volume.

Third dough:
10gr eggs
8gr egg yolks (I just added what was left of the egg used in the second stage)
7.5gr butter
7.5gr sugar
25gr flour
Combine the ingredients and mix with the mixture from the second stage to form a smooth dough.

Main dough:
400g strong white flour
125 g eggs (1 medium egg without shell in average weight of 50gr: egg yolk 20gr, egg-white 30gr)
75 gr egg yolks
100gr butter
80gr sugar
6gr salt
20gr honey
1 tbsp ground candied orange peel
zest of 1 orange
1 vanilla pod seeds, vanilla sugar or essence

to finish
150gr butter
100gr sugar
8 small panettone cups, or muffin cases

Syrup:
200gr sugar
200ml water
50ml orange liqueur

Cream the butter with sugar and eggs, add the rest of the ingredients, then combine with the third dough and kneed for about 20 minutes in a machine - or by hand - until very soft and smooth and it can pass the window pane test.

Cover the bowl and leave the dough to rise for 6 to 7 hours at room temperature. Deflate and put into a refrigerator to harden, then roll out and spread 50gr of soft butter, folding the dough into half 3 times. Make 3 turns, and keep the dough refrigerated for at least 15 minutes between the turns. After the third turn, place the dough back in the refrigerator until it hardens enough to be rolled out very thinly, not more than 5 mm, and spread evenly with a mixture of the remaining butter and sugar. Roll it up tightly; the roll shouldn't be more then 7 cm in diameter. Using a very sharp knife cut the roll into 8 pieces, each piece about 5 cm long.

Oil a 26 cm deep panettone tin, or extend the regular one using greaseproof baking paper, and place 8 small panettone or muffin cups at the bottom. Arrange them in a circle, leaving one for the middle. Fill them with the cut dough pieces, cover with light muslin cloth and place either in a kitchen cabinet, or in a fridge to prove over night (depends on a room temperature; it will take about 5 hours to rise in a warm room).

Preheat the oven to 180C and bake for 35 to 40 minutes. Cover it with aluminium foil halfway through the baking to prevent it from burning the top, although the highest peaks will be very dark in colour. Turn the oven off and leave for another five minutes before taking it out. Let it coll to a room temperature and brush with the warm syrup. For the syrup, bring the sugar and water to boil, simmer until it becomes thick, then add the liqueur. Dust with icing sugar and enjoy rose by rose!

Keep the leftovers wrapped in cling film.

This post has been submitted to the bread and yeast dedicated blog Yeast Spotting

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Limoncello Pebble Cake

I call it a cake purely because I gave it a cake-like shape, but  it's actually Struffoli, a traditional Italian (Neapolitan, to be precise) dessert with a "twist". Visually, it resembles monkey bread but is essentially different since there is no baking involved whatsoever. It's fried and that is what makes it so special, because there is no way to know it  by the way it tastes. Frying gives you the lovely orange-lemon tasting dough which is slightly crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, covered in limoncello liqueur and white chocolate cream.  The best way to serve it (personal opinion) is to put it on a share plate and  to nibble your way through to the last crumb. In the (very unlikely) event that you end up with some leftovers, wrap it in cling film and refrigerate. It will last for a few days, although the dough will absorb the moisture and it will be less and less creamy by the day.

Limoncello Pebble Cake

(the name given by my husband, otherwise known as

Strufolli a la Creme de Limoncello)

The cake is made over the course of 2 days.

For the Struffoli:
500g plain flour
80g sugar
5g baking powder ( 1 1/2 tsp)
7g vanilla sugar, vanilla pod, or essence
zest of 1 orange
zest of 1 lemon
50g unsalted butter
5 eggs
oil for frying

For the Limoncello cream
250 ml  double or whipping cream
100g or 1/4 cup glucose syrup
1 vanilla bean, scraped
300g white chocolate
50 ml Limoncello liqueur

Day 1

Mix all the ingredients  for Struffoli  in a food processor or by hand to make a smooth dough, wrap it up in a cling film and refrigerate for 12 hours (best to make in the evening and leave it in the fridge overnight).

Now prepare the Limoncello cream, as the cream needs to be chilled for at least 12 hours.

Bring the double cream, glucose and vanilla seeds to boil and melt the chocolate separately. Remove it from the heat and slowly, one spoon at a time, combine the chocolate with the hot cream. At the end, pour in the liqueur, stir thoroughly and place in a fridge for 12 hours (or overnight) .

Day 2

Remove the dough from the fridge and, working on a cold surface without dusting with flour, roll using your hand only a few long ropes 1 cm or less in diameter, making only one at a time (the rest of the dough should remain covered). 

Dust with flour and cut the rope into small pieces, about 3mm long. Set aside covered in flour, while you work with the rest of the dough.

Heath the oil in a deep pan to 180C. Sift the dough piece to get rid of the excess flour and fry for 3 to 4 minutes, or until  golden brown. Leave to drain on absorbent paper. Make sure that you toss the dough pieces while frying from time to time, as the process produces a large amount of foam that tends to escape the pan.

Once the Struffoli are at room temperature, add limoncello cream, mix and put into a mould of your choice. Leave to set for couple of hours and then start nibbling!   

Recipe adapted from "The new Pattissiers" by Thames and Hudson

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