Hearty bread with leftover oatmeal

There are only a few things that annoy me more than having to throw away food that the children refuse to eat. So for the past few weeks I have made some healthy home made bread out of the leftover porridge that our youngest one decided not to eat. I made three slightly different loaves and this is the first recipe and the only one that has added syrup to give the bread a little sweetness. (for future reference, no added sweetness needed. In my opinion much tastier without the syrup, although this was utterly delicious anyway!)

Wholegrain oat bread (1 round loaf)

1 portion of leftover cooked porridge (this had a little apple purée mixed in it)
2,5dl of hot water
1 sachet of dry yeast
2dl plain flour
30grams poppyseeds
0,5dl olive oil
2tbsp honey
0,5dl dark syrup
pinch of salt
wholegrain wheat flour (did not measure the amounts, just enough so that the dough isn't too sticky and easy to knead)
+large rolled oats on top

1. Place the leftover porridge into a bowl, add the hot water, honey, olive oil, syrup, salt and the plain flour that has the dry yeast mixed into and let it sit for 10mins or so until it starts bubbling a little.
2. Continue by adding the poppy seeds and the wholegrain flour. Whether you are using a kitchen appliance or good old fashioned elbow grease, keep adding flour until the dough reaches a nice pliable consistency, soft but not sticky. Cover the bowl with a damp tea towel and place in a warm place to rise for about an hour.
3. Tip the proven dough onto a floured surface and give it a good knead for about 10mins. Shape it into a round loaf (or whatever shape tickles your fancy) and place it onto an oven tray lined with parchment and cover with a tea towel. Let it rise for another half an hour, while preheating the oven to 200degrees.
4. Brush the top of the loaf with some water and sprinkle with large rolled oats. Bake it for 20-30mins (depending on how hot your oven is) until the bread is brown and has a hollow sound when tapping at the bottom of it.

Simple and delicious!

Lovely afternoon coffee break!

    

Meringues

Our younger son turned four last thursday and I wanted to make something quick and easy for him to treat the other children in his group at the nursery. Unless you suffer from an egg allergy, these are pretty safe for almost everyone. (Obviously not very tooth friendly, but these are treats after all.)

Basic meringue recipe

4 large egg whites
2,5dl granulated sugar

Whip the egg whites until slightly frothy, then start adding the sugar a little at a time. Continue whisking until the meringue is stiff and glossy. (Add food coloring if desired, I had Wilton's royal blue)

Pipe the meringues onto a baking tray lined with parchment and bake for 1h 15mins at 90degrees. You will end up with a dry and crunchy meringue.

Winter Wedding

My dear friends got married last week and on Saturday it was time for the blessing of their marriage and to join them in the festivities. The celebrations went perfectly and the entire day and night was a delight to be a part of. I was absolutely chuffed to bits when my friend a year ago asked me to bake the wedding cake for their special day. Together we decided on a rich chocolate sponge cake, filled with a chocolate - baileys mousse. The style we had in mind, was elegant and simple. Here are some snaps of the cake and the evening. 

Simplicity

 

Time to taste

Pure Joy!

Utter decadence!

more for the guests

Dairy- and gluten free treat

The beautiful bride and the baker

Perfect wedding flowers

Cream Cheese & Chives Scones

The third scone recipe comes here. This is a very delicious savoury scone and it goes perfectly together e.g. with a spicy soup or simply as a snack on its own.

Cream cheese & chives scones (6 large or 9 medium)

60grams butter, cold and cubed
1cup plain flour
half a cup of rolled oats
half a cup of wholegrain flour
pinch of salt
1tsp baking powder
1tsp bicarb of soda
1tsp brown sugar
185grams cream cheese (natural or with chives)
150ml buttermilk, cold
+handful of chopped chives

1. Start by mixing the flour, oats, leavening agents, salt and sugar together in a large bowl.
2. Take the cold butter and quickly rub it into the dry ingredients. Using a knife or your hands (I was hands on!) keep rubbing (without over working it and softening the butter too much), until it is a sandy crumb like mixture. Add the cream cheese and chives firstly and then the buttermilk. Give it a good mix, but do not over mix, that will only make for hard scones.
3. On a floured surface, knead the dough a couple of times, then pat it into a plump rectangle piece of dough and using a metal cutter, make the scones. (for nice high scones, make sure not to twist the cutter when cutting out the scones, just press down once.)
4. Place the scones on a lined baking tray, brush them with some milk (only the tops, not the sides) and bake for ~15mins at 175-200degrees, until golden and fluffy. Cool the scones on a wire rack and once cooled, keep covered.

Cranberry Scones

I made these scones with dried cranberries and oats, mainly because I wanted to try different combos and to keep things simple. The scones with lavender, were fragrant enough as is and adding more flavour would have just been an overkill in my opinion. Both the lavender and cranberry scones are on the sweet side, but I think they are an ideal choice any time - for breakfast, high tea with friends or just simply with your favourite hot beverage as an evening snack.

Cranberry Scones (6 large ones or 9 medium ones)

80grams cold butter, cubed
250ml milk or cream (this recipe uses half and half)
300grams plain flour
0,5dl rolled oats
0,5-1dl dried cranberries (these ones were sweetened with apple juice)
1tbsp brown sugar
1tsp baking powder
1tsp bicarb of soda
+milk to brush the tops

1. Start by mixing the flour, oats, cranberries, leavening agents and sugar together in a large bowl.
2. Take the cold butter and quickly rub it into the dry ingredients. Using a knife or your hands (I was hands on!) keep rubbing (without over working it and softening the butter too much), until it is a sandy crumb like mixture. Add the milk and/or cream and mix, but only just to bring it together.
3. On a floured surface, knead the dough a couple of times, then pat it into a plump rectangle piece of dough and using a metal cutter, make the scones. (for nice high scones, make sure not to twist the cutter when cutting out the scones, just press down once.)
4. Place the scones on a lined baking tray, brush them with some milk (only the tops, not the sides) and bake for ~15mins at 175-200degrees, until golden and fluffy. Cool the scones on a wire rack and once cooled, keep covered.

Mmm!

Lavender & Vanilla Scones

I finally got to do some relaxing baking to bring a bit of comfort to these cold winter days. It really has been busy, with the little ones not feeling entirely well and the bigger boys going back to school and nursery. I fancied something homely to start the new year off with and here is the first recipe out of three.



Lavender and Vanilla Scones (6 large or 9 small)

80grams cold butter, cubed
250ml milk or cream (I had half and half)
300grams (2cups) plain flour
1tbsp brown sugar
1tsp baking powder
1tsp bicarb of soda
2tsp vanilla extract (actually had some homemade this time)
1 tsp dried lavender buds
+milk to brush the tops

1. Start by mixing the flour, leavening agents and sugar together in a large bowl.
2. Pour the milk/cream into a jug and add the vanilla extract and lavender. Leave it to infuse while continuing with the dough.
3. Take the cold butter and quickly rub it into the dry ingredients. Using a knife or your hands (I was hands on!) keep rubbing (without over working it and softening the butter too much), until it is a sandy crumb like mixture. Add the vanilla and lavender infused milk&cream and mix, but only just to bring it together.
4. On a floured surface, knead the dough a couple of times, then pat it into a plump rectangle piece of dough and using a metal cutter, make the scones. (for nice high scones, make sure not to twist the cutter when cutting out the scones, just press down once.)
5. Place the scones on a lined baking tray, brush them with some milk (only the tops, not the sides) and bake for ~15mins at 175-200degrees, until golden and fluffy. Cool the scones on a wire rack and once cooled, keep covered.

Happy New Year 2013!

I want to wish all of you a very happy and fulfilling new year 2013! It has been a wonderful year, full of good times and unfortunately (even in the past week) very sad times. I am still looking forward to another exciting year with my family and friends!