Baking Bread (Regular bread for me)

This is a very short post. In my last blog post, I showed you how I bake bread for DH. Here, I'm going to use the same recipe to make the regular type of bread the rest of the world likes (lol). The differences in the methods are that, here, I proofed the yeast first, I let the dough rise for longer, and I made only 2 loaves.

I used this same recipe


If I can, you can,

Deema.

Baking Bread (Tight Crumb Bread For DH)

You always hear people say baking bread is therapeutic. Hmmmm, I don't know about that. All I know is I love it when my bread is in the oven. It makes me feel like I'm achieving something, like I'm a real homemaker (which, by the way, I'm not!). I love it when my man comes in when the bread is in the oven, and says 'you're baking bread, I hope you're baking my kind of bread?'. See, his kind of bread is slightly different. It's the same basic recipe which I use to bake bread, it's only that he prefers a tighter crumb, almost like a cake crumb inside. My solution? When I'm baking for him, I use the quantity I would use for 2 loaves, and make 4 loaves out of it. And I don't let the dough rise too much during the second rise. So, if you prefer a looser crumb, this recipe makes 2 loaves, and let the dough rise well after shaping.

This recipe is from Penniless Parenting

Ingredients
1 oz instant yeast/ 2 packages/ 1.5 tbsp
2 cups warm water. (Test the water- it should be only slightly above lukewarm. Not too cold or the yeast wont rise, not too hot or you'll kill the yeast)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp salt
3 cups flour 1 egg (beaten)
1/2 cup oil
3 1/2 cups flour

Instructions

Mix yeast and 2 cups of warm water
Add sugar, salt, and 3 cups of flour. Mix well.
Add egg and oil, and mix together.
Add the rest of the flour. Mix in and then knead well till the dough is smooth.
Let rise in a warm place for an hour.
Shape the dough. Let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
Bake at 350 until golden brown, approximately 40 minutes.

Ginger Cake

Hello!!! I've been very irregular, what with moving house and some weddings I've had to cater for. I've had quite a lot on my plate, but i wouldn't give any of it up for the world. Anyway, I'm back now. To prove it, I'm putting up 3 blog posts today with step by step recipes.

My first recipe today is a Ginger Cake. I adapted the recipe from David Lebovitz, who is one of my idols, by the way. If you didn't already know, let me shout it out: I LOVE GINGER! Especially in sweets, ginger cookies, ginger beer, crystallised ginger, etc. I also love France, where David lives now, but that's another story.

I love this cake, I always have some of it in the freezer. On cold mornings or nights, I love to microwave some and have with a hot cup of Ovaltine. It's also the only cake my Dad will eat, as it's not overly sweet.

If you make this, please leave me feedback.
FRESH GINGER CAKE

Ingredients

4 ounces fresh ginger (about 3/4 cup after grating)
1 cup mild molasses (I used Golden Syrup)
1 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup water
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 eggs, at room temperature

Method

Position the oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9 by 3inch round cake pan with a circle of parchment paper.
Blend the ginger with the cup of water. Mix together the molasses, sugar, and oil. In another bowl, sift together the flour, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and black pepper.
Bring the ginger water to the boil in a saucepan, stir in the baking soda, and then mix the hot water into the molasses mixture.
Gradually whisk the dry ingredients into the batter. Add the eggs, and continue mixing until everything is thoroughly combined. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for about 1 hour, until the top of the cake springs back lightly when pressed or a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If the top of the cake browns too quickly before the cake is done, drape a piece of foil over it and continue baking.
Cool the cake for at least 30 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the cake to loosen it from the pan. Remove the cake from the pan and peel off the parchment paper.

* I wanted to share this cake with a neighbour, so I used two 8 by 2 inch pans.

If I can, you can,

Deema

My Most Requested Cookies: Ginger Snaps

Mmmmmm, this cookie is heaven in a bite! I love baking these cookies. The smell of the browned butter, the raw cookie dough, and the aroma which emanates from the oven...my neighbours troop in when these are in progress. Please, even if you don't try any of my other recipes, please, try this one.

These cookies are spicy and crunchy. I love the heat, but feel free to reduce the ginger and pepper.

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter (170g)
2 tablespoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon crushed pepper
1 1/4 cups brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup golden syrup
2 tablespoons finely grated fresh ginger
1 whole egg plus 1 yolk


Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt together in bowl. Heat butter in a pot until melted. Reduce the heat and continue to cook, until butter begins to brown. Remove from heat and mix in ground ginger, pepper, cinnamon, and cloves. Add brown sugar, golden syrup, and fresh ginger and mix to combine. Add eggs and mix. Add flour mixture and stir until just combined. Spoon dough into plastic wrap and freeze for 20 minutes.
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Use a tablespoon to spoon out the dough; roll into balls. Space the balls on prepared baking sheets (these cookies spread like wildfire!). Flatten the balls slightly with your palm. Bake for 12 minutes, rotating the sheets 180 degrees after 6 minutes.

Eat or, if you can (and that's a big IF), store in airtight containers after cooling for 10 minutes.

Enjoy.

If I can, you can,

Deema.