Poppy Seed Bread Rolls

I really don't know if bread gets any better than this. As you know by now I am a carbaholic. I sometimes wish bread was never invented. But then I would never have got to eaten poppy seed bread....I AAAADORE this bread. I could eat buckets of it. It truly is my all time favourite bread. Trust me when I say homemade is waaay nicer, it honestly has no comparison to store bought. This, friends, is the real deal!

I actually really love baking bread. The only set back is it never lasts in my house.....ever. It's gone within a few hours and if you weren't an early bird. Tough! You have missed out! Seriously,I can't tell you how many times my sister (Hi Jacq!) has called over after seeing a post only to hear "Ahhh sorry they're gone". We are bread people.

This is a basic white bread recipe and I chose to make large bap sized rolls. I got about 4 out of this recipe but they were quite large/huge! Realistically I should have halved them to get 8 good sized rolls. It also makes a pretty good sized 2lb loaf. I was super generous with the poppy seeds because, you know, I love them! But these could be topped with pretty much any and every seed (Let the experimenting begin). I always use a mixer when baking bread as I haven't mastered the art of kneading just yet. I can never get it smooth enough which leads to really dense bread from over kneading. Sigh!

Recipe for Poppy Seed Bread Rolls

Makes 8 good sized rolls

Ingredients

• 7g sachet fast action dried yeast
• 300ml lukewarm water
• 1tsp sugar
• 450g strong white flour
• 1tsp salt

Instructions

1. Pour your water into a jug, add your fast action dried yeast and sugar. Leave stand for 1 min. This is not really necessary with fast action yeast but I always do it. You will see the mixture starting to bubble and froth ever so slightly......don't freak out. This means its working.
2. In a large bowl add your flour and salt.
3. Pour your yeast mixture into your flour and salt.
4. Gradually mix the mixture together (using a dough hook if using a machine) to a soft dough. Add a drop of olive oil little by little if you feel it is not coming together.
5. Knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. This takes about 5 mins on a low speed. If you're not sure, stop the machine and have a look. It should look smooth and have no cracks and lumps. Remove from bowl and place into a clean,well oiled bowl. Set it in a warm place for 1 1/2hrs until it has doubled in size.
6. When risen, knock back the dough (basically punch the dough two or three times).Remove from bowl. You should see strands of the dough trying to cling to side of the bowl, this is a good sign. It means the yeast has done its job with the flour and helped form these gluten strands. This is what makes bread light and airy. Divide your rolls into eight and place on tray. Cover with oiled cling film and leave to rise in a warm place for 30 mins or again doubled in size.
7. Pre-heat oven to 200°C (fan-assisted oven). Brush with water and sprinkle with poppy seeds. Bake for 15-20 mins or until golden brown. If unsure tap the rolls underneath, they should sound hollow.

You can then indulge in a bite of carby heaven. FYI these are sensational toasted and smeared with butter!

Enjoy!

Shirley x

Red Onion And Sage Focaccia

Bread.......my love!

I made this focaccia to go with a pasta dish we were having for dinner, I do believe I'm Italian at heart.

I made it ever so slightly different. Instead of flattening it out like my Garlic and Herb Focaccia.I just left it in its lovely loaf form, quite large, quite chunky. It still had its soft airy inside and slightly crunchy chewy outside. Perfect for mopping up sauce!

Recipe for Red Onion and Sage Focaccia

 

Makes 1 Loaf

 

Ingredients

• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 sachet (7g) dried yeast
• 210ml luke warm water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 350g strong plain white flour
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 red onion, cut very thinly
• 1 tbsp sage

Instructions

1. Dissolve sugar and yeast in warm water in a large bowl and let stand for 5 minutes until it looks frothy and bubbly. This is the yeast being activated.
2. Stir in salt and add flour, stirring to form a soft dough.
3. Knead dough until soft and elastic. This usually takes about 5 minutes in a mixer.
4. Place dough in large bowl coated with olive oil, cover with cling film and let rise for 45 mins  in a warm place.
5. Place dough on a baking sheet coated with oil. Sprinkle over red onion, the onion will shrink so don't be frightened to over sprinkle. Scatter over Sage. Cover and again allow to rise for 25 mins in a warm area.
6. Preheat oven to 180°C. Use your fingertips to create small indentation on focaccia. Bake for 14 mins or until lightly browned. We ate this warm, it was only ok cooled in my opinion but my folks couldnt get enough of it.

I wish I had gotten a better photo but because we ate it warm out of the oven, impatience got the better of me!

                                                         Hope everyones having a great week.

                                                                               Shirley x

Garlic And Herb Focaccia

 

I love bread. I love making it, baking it, eating it. I honestly can't tell you how much I eat but lets just say its A LOT! I am a sandwich fiend, more often than not i will have a sandwich while waiting for my dinner. Bread really is my downfall when I'm trying to knock off a few pounds. It is the carby love of my life!

If you too are a bread obsessive then you MUST try this recipe. This bread is amazingly good. It has an amazing crust, its not crunchy but has that great chew factor. Its is not like sourdough, where your jaw aches in fantastical delicious way, it is just somewhere in between. The bread itself is light and airy with little pockets of oily garlic goodness. It is the perfect bread for placing on the table to tear off chunks and share.

Recipe for Garlic And Herb Focaccia

 

Makes 1 Loaf

 

Ingredients

• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 sachet (7g) dried yeast
• 210ml luke warm water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 350g strong plain white flour
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 tbsp of chopped herbs

Instructions

1. Dissolve sugar and yeast in warm water in a large bowl and let stand for 5 minutes until it looks frothy and bubbly. This is the yeast being activated.
2. Stir in salt and add flour, stirring to form a soft dough.
3. Knead dough until soft and elastic. This usually takes about 5 minutes in a mixer.
4. Place dough in large bowl coated with olive oil, cover with cling film and let rise for 45 mins  in a warm place.
5. Meanwhile heat your oil in a small pan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 5 mins or until fragrant.Remove from heat and remove garlic slices.
6. Place dough on a baking sheet coated with oil and pat into a 12x8' rectangle. Brush your garlic oil over dough and sprinkle with herbs, I went for thyme. Cover and again allow to rise for 25 mins in a warm area.
7. Preheat oven to 180°C. Use your fingertips to create small indentation on focaccia. Bake for 14 mins or until lightly browned. Leave cool on wire rack.

I have made this on numerous occasions and it has always been fantastic.

Hope you enjoy!

Shirley x

Wholemeal bread

Bread! I cannot live without bread in my life, I honestly can't remember a day when I went without it. I have tried to cut back once or twice to realise I don't really eat much else. I love bread and as I started to bake more, I feel in love with even more breads. Seriously I have it with everything from soups to salads to pasta! I'm the kinda gal that needs bread at the end of a meal to mop up sauces with.

Hi My name is Shirley and I'm a breadaholic!

I have made bread a few times and it's not that difficult,you just need patience.

Recipe for Wholemeal bread.

 

Ingredients

• 375g strong plain wholemeal flour
• 75g strong plain flour
• 2 tsp salt
• 7g sachet fast action yeast
• 300ml lukewarm water

Instructions

1. Place both flours,salt and yeast in a large bowl. Using a dough hook mix on minimum speed,gradually adding the warm water to form a soft dough. I have also made this by hand,put your hand in a claw like position and gradually bring the dough together.
2. Knead for 4 minutes approx until smooth and elastic. This will take longer if your doing it by hand. Cover the bowl with oiled clear film and leave to rise in a warm place for about 1 hour or until it has doubled in size.
3. On minimum speed gently knock back the dough for 30-40 seconds.If doing it by hand be gentle no body wants tough as old boots bread! Transfer to a floured surface and shape into a ball. Knead from sides to the centre, then turn over and place on a floured baking sheet.
4. Cover with oiled clear film and leave to rise for about 30 minutes, until doubled in size. Sprinkle with flour. Meanwhile preheat your oven to 230°C.
5. Using a shape knife make 3 or 4 cuts across the loaf,then again at right angles. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce oven to 200°C for 20 minutes, or until the bread sounds hollow when tapped on the base. Cool on wire rack.

Enjoy!

Shirley x

Pizza,Pizza,Pizza!

As I mentioned before,I'm a lover of Italy and all things Italian. So what happens when a baking enthusiast and an Italian lover collide? Homemade Pizzas!! I started making pizzas at home a few years ago and now its a bit of a tradition,everytime my family come round for a bite to eat,they know they're getting pizzas. Ireland were playing against France in the Rugby Six Nations on Sunday evening soooo out came the pizza trays!

Recipe for Pizza

Make three 9" pizzas

 

Ingredients for roasted tomato sauce

• 450g (1lb) tomatoes,halved
• 3 cloves of garlic,peeled and kept whole
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• Salt,ground black pepper
• 1 tsp caster sugar

Ingredients for pizza dough

• 350g (12oz) strong white flour,sifted
• 1 level tsp salt
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• 1 x 7g sachet fast-acting yeast
• 2 tbsp olive oil,plus extra for brushing
• 175-200ml (6-7fl oz) warm water

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 220°C.
To make the roasted tomato sauce,place the halved tomatoes in a baking dish. Add the garlic cloves randomly,drizzle with oil and vinegar and season with salt,pepper and sugar to taste. Cook in the preheated oven for a bout 20 minutes until soft and blistered in appearance.

 

Liquidise! You can put it through a sieve but I don't bother,the sauce needs to be made thick enough to cover the back of a spoon. If it needs thickening,put in a saucepan,bring to boil and reduce to thicken. I always have lots of sauce left over so I freeze it for next time.

For the Pizza dough

 

1. Place the flour,salt and sugar in a large bowl and mix. Rub in the butter,add the yeast and mix together. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients,add the oil and most, but not all, of the warm water and mix to a loose dough. Add more water or flour if you need it.
2. Take the dough out of the bowl and place on a lightly floured surface,cover with a clean tea towel for 5 minutes. Then knead the dough until smooth and slightly springy to the touch,I do it in a food mixer for about 5 mins using the dough hook,by hand it'll take about 10 mins and muscle power! Leave rest for another 5 mins.
3. After relaxing, divide your dough,depending on what size pizzas you want,I usually divide it into 3,this makes about a plate size pizza.You can do these ahead of time and keep in the fridge,just brush them with olive oil and cover with cling film.

So now we have the sauce and pizza dough done, it's the fun part.


Turn your oven up as high as you can,I don't use fan assisted for the pizzas as the outside will burn.Roll out your dough on a floured surface,place on a pizza tray or a baking try,put on your sauce and toppings.

We went for mozzarella,ham,pineapple and salami. I love adding grated Parmesan (Parmigiano-Reggiano). Into the oven for 8-10 mins depending on your oven and voila!

Enjoy!

Shirley.