Sunday 24 June 2012

Another Day, Another Disaster

After my sourdough problems, I thought that a return to my old favourites, bread wise, would be a good plan.

I brought some multigrain flour, as I hadn’t made a brown loaf for a while, and tried the Sandwich loaf recipe that I’d done many times, using Honey, Lard and milk.
Well when it came out of the oven, it looked and smelt good, but on cutting, I found a huge hole in the middle, all the length of the loaf. I think that I didn’t shape it properly, or maybe the dough developed a skin on rising, that ended up in the middle and didn’t join together.




So I used it in a bread and butter pudding.



 The day out in Heligan was amazing, we both find the place so inspirational, It feels timeless and to me has such an atmosphere of peace (apart from the noise of the other visitors) It also gave me a good chance to try out Georges Camera.





















We also visited Tessier Gardens in Torquay, which had a different sort of atmosphere, very cold and restrained, but a very friendly squirrel.




Yvonne has been busy with the jewellery, now she is trying freestyle rope beading, the camera has trouble coping with close-up work but I think you can see how good it is.





Now back to the cooking.



Twice Cooked Potatoes.

Here’s an idea that I had when faced with a pan of cooking juices from chorizo and veg, (Aug 25th last year) because, having enjoyed the flavour, I didn’t really want to just throw it away.
So, thinking of dauphinoise style potatoes, I decided to use the liquid as a stock.
I sliced potato into the stock and cooked at 150 degrees for about 90 minutes, until the potato was soft. I then put them into an oiled roasting tin, sprayed with oil and baked for 30 minutes.

Potatoes Poaching in Stock


Ready to Bake

Yum!


Meanwhile I fried up a mixture of Onion, pepper and Mushrooms with Balsamic Vinegar, and of course some sausages.



Talking of Potatoes, it was time to harvest the first earlies, should be nice with Roast Beef.




We have enough Rhubarb in the garden now for a crumble, with the addition of some of last years Blackberries and the last of the bottled apples.





We are both very partial to a snack, and have recently discovered Honey Roast Peanuts, by a well known manufacturer. Being averse to spending a fortune on these unless I have to, I have tried a version of my own.

500g mixed raw nuts
250g Icing Sugar
10g Smoked Paprika – or to taste
10g Sea Salt – or to taste

Wash and drain the nuts, and mix the other ingredients together in a bowl. Mix in the damp nuts and stir together until well coated. Place on a lined baking sheet in a 180 degree oven for about 10 minutes. Leave to cool, break up and store. Will keep until the football (or decent movie) is on.

Washed Nuts

Coated

Baked

Ready.



Olive Oil Crackers.

A basic yeast-less dough of Oil, Water Semolina and White Flour, rolled out very thin and baked. These go with soup or cheese, and can be topped with herbs, or salted. If anyone wants the recipe, e-mail me.


Dough Ready to Roll 




Mint Sauce.

I make a lot of this for people that I work with, and as the mint grows like weeds in our garden I’m never short of a supply. No recipe needed, just put the leaves in the processor, add just enough vinegar (Malt, Balsamic or Whatever) to enable chopping, and a small amount of Brown Sugar.






I feel that his post has been a bit disjointed, there is a lot going on here, if I can sort my head out normal service may be resumed.

5 comments:

  1. Hello there

    You have been busy; We used to camp at the Lost Gardens of Helligan before it was turned back into the garden. We used to stay at Pengrugla which half of the lost garden covered and during the time we used to go there they were researching all the plants and planning out what they proposed to do to them. Used to be wonderful for camping. Loved the photos. May I please have your recipe for the crackers? I also put down the mint for the winter months as it is also very prolific here. We often make a home made curry and chop the fresh mint into yogurt which makes a refreshing accompaniment to the curry; or how about some mint and chocoloate ice cream or a mousse. Keep up the good work as I love to drop in to see what you have been up to.

    Take care

    Pattypan

    x

    ReplyDelete
  2. Good Morning,

    Here is the recipe, I found it ages ago online and modified it slightly.
    Olive Oil Cracker Recipe
    Adapted from a recipe I found ages ago on the web.

    250g semolina flour
    190g Strong white flour
    5g sea salt
    235g warm water.
    80g olive oil
    Mix together the flours and salt. Add the water and olive oil and mix and then knead for about 5 minutes. The dough should be just a bit tacky. If you need to add a bit more water (or flour).
    Next, shape the dough into a large ball, rub with a bit of olive oil, divide into fist sized pieces and place on a plate. Cover with cling film and let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
    Preheat your oven to 220 degrees. Using a rolling pin, roll each piece out into a thin sheet of dough. Cut into whatever shape crackers you like. Put the crackers onto a floured baking sheet, poke each piece with a fork to prevent puffing, and put the sheet into the oven.
    Bake until golden, about 10 minutes and let them cool on a wire rack.

    Enjoy.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you for that; my OH is seriously addicted to cheese and crackers and home made pickled onions. This recipe will do very nicely.

    If you would like to pop along to my blog onhttp://tarragonnthyme.blogspot.co.uk/ there is something for you to collect if you so wish. I thoroughly understand if you do not want to take part. Equally if you want help in acquiring the same you can always contact me on fluffupyourfairy@hotmail.co.uk

    Kind regards

    Tricia (aka Pattypan)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hello, I came over from Patty Pan, nice to meet you!

    Your dogs are adorable and I was interested in your bread making, as this is something I want to try.
    blessings, Kath

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi and Welcome,

      I have just found out that Yvonne has been reading your blog
      (and http://talesofsimpledays.blogspot.co.uk/) for a long time, small world isn't it.
      Good luck with the bread,
      Blessings to you, Moontide.

      Delete