Although, as I said in my last post, making rye bread is easy, it does require a starter instead of baker’s yeast: a mixture of flour and water in which naturally-occurring yeast cells have begun to ferment and reproduce. Making a starter is not difficult in itself, although whether it is successful is, to some read more…
Years ago I bought Richard Bertinet’s book Dough. The book has acquired quite a reputation on the back of the ‘slap and fold’ technique of working dough, which Bertinet illustrates in a DVD that comes with the book. It is a useful method, although I would credit Bertinet with popularising rather than inventing the technique, read more…
About that multigrain loaf: while it’s a challenge to get out of bed most days, I have managed some baking over Christmas and New Year and have worked out, more or less, the recipe I used for the multigrain loaf I posted a while back. The first step is the sponge – this builds up read more…
I often adapt recipes, for all sorts of reasons. It may be that I just make a substitution for an ingredient I don’t have or can’t easily get hold of. Sometimes, if the recipe is a complex one, and I’m feeling lazy, I’ll approach it in a more reckless manner than usual, throwing together what read more…
I’ve always been a bit sniffy about crispbreads and wafers, but for a long time I had been meaning to try out Dan Lepard’s white bean wafers from his book The Handmade Loaf (one of my favourites). I recently got round to it just after having a sudden desire to make tapenade, something I hadn’t read more…
Bialys are round piece-breads distinguished by a central dimple that is traditionally filled with chopped onion. A product of Jewish cuisine, they are named after the Polish city of Białystok and are often compared to the bagel. Although relatively obscure in most parts of the world, bialys have achieved popularity in New York, where many read more…
The first time I tried calzone was in a restaurant in Florence some years ago. My principle memory of the occasion was of a couple of young waitresses who absconded with my then-baby daughter Evie and showed her off to the kitchen staff. I’m pleased to report that they did return her, and that the read more…
I’m not a great baker of cakes, but for a long time I had been meaning to try out some of the amazing recipes on the Cupcake Bakeshop blog (no longer being actively maintained, sadly). I’ve had a couple of goes at the almond and ricotta cakes, with a reasonable degree of success. I’ve abandoned read more…
Baking and brewing are related because of their common use of yeast. This relationship has been particularly close in Britain, where for many centuries the brewing trade was also the principle source of yeast for making bread. Before compressed baker’s yeast became available in the late 19th century, bakers in most parts of the world read more…
Bara brith is a fruit-bread from Wales, the name translating as ‘speckled bread’. Although it sounds distinctive, there are so many different versions that there is very little anyone can definitively say about it. Some make it with yeast, others treat it more like a cake and use baking powder. It may include eggs and read more…
