77

I'm constantly amazed and delighted by the wonders of yeast doughs. You wouldn't think that different applications of pretty much the same ingredients could yield such amazingly different results.

As I said earlier, I wasn't sure they'd taste like bagels, but they really do. The boiling part is amazing, the way the dough changes in both appearance and feel - looking more like a donut. Pop them in the oven and the smell is a bagel smell (I used to live across the road from Glicks in St Kilda so I know that smell) and the taste, the texture, the external shine, it's a win, win!

Run to your kitchens, check your cupboards to see if you have all you need and make bagels. You simply must!

67

I'm bread obsessed at the moment, I'm sorry. I'm sure it's very uninteresting for those of you not similarly inclined. Me carrying on about the holes and texture in this particular loaf will hold no interest, but it is an achievement. It's quite easy to make a dense, finely crumbed loaf, but it's more effort to get a real sourdough style texture, a wetter dough, longer proofing time, not necessarily more effort, but more thought.

I'm loving this book I've discovered. Learning theory behind breadmaking, again to me at least, is fascinating and a little information really helps to understand how to achieve certain results.

There is other crafting non bread related going on around here, I'll try and share my focus a little more!

66

A photo of mother and child.

Breadmaking is definitely something I'm more enthusiastic about when the weather cools - it's just more pleasurable, if not easier, when you're not resenting every minute the oven is turned on.

Most of the recipes I've been using for the last while have come from here. On the weekend though I stumbled across this book, which I have borrowed from the library ahead of buying. It's more of a reference book, a lot of theory, but as I'm interested in achieving a more artisan texture to my sourdough and using more leavens, perhaps it's the go.

59

There's a reason that bakers start work in the middle of the night, it take a *** of a long time to make "real" bread.

Now that the weather has cooled down (in theory at least as it's very summery today), it's time to start bread making with a leaven/mother. There are no gloriously golden crusted loaves to share with you, just this slow developer. It's now just after 5pm and I started this baby off just before 8am this morning. I would say we have at least another 2 hours before I can bake them.

Reading through it suggests that you do the final 4 hour rise overnight in the fridge (so it becomes 8), but then you need another 2 hours in the morning to bring it up to temperature before baking. I'll try that next I think, because the satisfaction is not the same when it comes out of the oven at 8:30 PM! Anyone with any tips on doing it this way, I'd love to hear.

PS The loaves came out of the oven at 8:30. They are delicious. A 12 hour loaf sure, but absolutely worth it. Dense bouncy crumb, real crunchy in a real sourdough way crust. Really wonderful.

47

For years I've stuck to my tried and true hot cross buns recipe, but this year decided I'd give something new a try. Apple and cinnamon buns from the current Gourmet Traveller. They are good. The recipe though, is stingy on fruit and spices, to my taste at least. I think if you cut into a hot cross bun and only find two sultanas, it's not enough. The addition of apple was particularly yummy in the glaze, which tasted like the apple jelly my mum made years ago. Next time I would put in more apple, cooked a little less so it didn't just disappear into the mix. Also, the recipe ran wet, so add your liquids gradually.

Excuse the photos, but I started late in the day so it was about 8pm when I took them from the oven. I do love them all baked together like that, so festive.

38

I'm feeling under the weather today. Whenever that is the case, it's a busy day. I have a natural aversion to taking it easy, just sitting, having a cup of tea, relaxing. I am not alone in this affliction, I think it just one of many changes that overcomes many of us when we become mothers. Don't misunderstand me though, I'm no martyr, I do complain about how bad I'm feeling and draw attention to the fact that I haven't relaxed all day!

So in the spirit of feeling lousey I felt it necessary to bake today and for some reason decided to match a double batch and include some cheese and ham rolls and some cinnamon scrolls, because what else would you do when you have a head cold?

Absurd

Days ago we were roasting (ourselves that is) and had salad for lunch and dinner 4 days in a row. Now I'm baking and we had the heating on this morning.

This is another bread from Dan Lepard's book, which I love. Good tip when using rye flour is to whisk it with hot water (as per quantities in your recipe) and leave to soak for an hour. You know how rye bread can be a little dry, well this process apparently elasticises the crumb of the bread! Seems like it worked in this fruit bread.

Mother's lost her oomph

It took her 10 hours to get to this point and she wasn't moving very much at all. I think the problem may be her initial mix - I used a more commercial brand of yoghurt rather than the biodynamic very alive one I previously did. Tomorrow I'll give her a feed with the good stuff, rest her up for a few days and then see how she is.

I call her mother,

you may know her as leaven. With the warmer weather my breadmaking slows, but as it's cooled my enthusiasm has returned and so too, therefore, has my mother. I will record her progress over the next week, if you want to learn more you should pick up a copy of this book, it's inspiring.

Can you have too much of a good thing?

I think not!

It's not Christmas for me

without panetonne. I started making it about 4 or 5 years ago and Christmas morning now just isn't right without one toasted on the side of a cup of coffee.

Get Your Bananas Here!

It was one of those days.

I probably have visitors like this in my fruit bowl every couple of weeks. I know that some of you like yours this ripe, but in our house they continue to blacken until I do one of two things - make them into a smoothie or a cake. As the weather has turned cool again, my thoughts turn more to a hot cup of tea and moist slice of banana cake/bread.

I use Jane Grigson's recipe, from her fruit book and it always turns out beautifully and stays moist for as long as it lasts - which isn't long! Her recipe includes walnuts which I often subsitute for pecans (I prefer them) but this time I was out of nuts, so went plain old banana.