Plum Scrolls

wow, its been a while!

A friend bough a ton of plums the other week - I mean seriously a lot. They were Italian prune plums. And so she made her way out to my place and we thought we'd see how much we could use.

These babies were inspired by a german plum cake. This usually means a very simple cake made with yeast dough, rolled out to fit a baking sheet and then plums layered on top.

We used the same yeast dough, rolled it out into a rectangle, slathered it with melted butter, sprinkled on some sugar and cinnamon, scattered some plum chunks. They were finished with a simple vanilla icing.

So very good, and very seasonal!

Naan

I adore Indian food; its complexity, warmth, the fact that you can eat it all with your hands. I have made naan before. Unfortunately, it wasn't a great experience.

At school when you are 2nd quarter you are in charge of supplying the bread rolls and other such sundries the schools restaurants require. The week I was doing my bread rotation just happened to be the week when they were doing a middle eastern/ Indian theme. All I remember is standing by the sheeter (a mechanical rolling pin essentially) and making flat breads for what felt like hours. Under stress - because they wanted the bread now.

But, I went to dinner at Tricia and Tim's place and well, it was Tim's birthday and he requested naan, so I had to make it!

It was alright. A little dry - I like my naan moist and filled with pannier- which I din't use in this naan. A really easy bread to make though, only requires one fermentation (rather then two) and has a little zing due to the yogurt used.

It was a good accompaniment for all the delicious Indian food we had made - so that means success for me.

It's really is funny though, how I'm never satisfied with what I make. It's never perfect. It can be 'alright' or 'pretty good' but usually not brilliant (note the exception below this post the tomato, mozzarella tart - go and buy yourself -if you are in the Northern hemisphere, some beautifully ripe tomatoes, some good buffalo mozzarella and make the tart tonight).

Light Rye 60%

I adore rye bread. Something about the flavor adds a heartiness and depth that you simply can't achieve using white flour alone. This rye has caraway, a little dark rye flour and has a sourdough starter using some of the levain I've been faithfully keeping alive for the past few weeks. So it has a little added sourness to it, and the flavor gets better as the bread ages.

I like to call the style of cut I used on the bread "the comb over". From Hamelman.

Crumpets

I grew up eating crumpets in the mornings. You'd pop one in the toaster, slather it with butter, and then honey. After a while all the liquids you had placed on top of the crumpet would ooze through the porous dough and leak out onto your plate.

These days I go down to the Crumpet Shop in Seattle near the market downtown. I sip a cup of tea, eat a crumpet and watch the people go into the strip show place across the road. I have to say it's one of my favorite haunts....

Anyway this is my first attempt at making these guys at home. It was an interesting experience. Basically there were two risings; the first was just the yeast (about an hour), the second was with baking soda added (around 30min). The second one with the baking soda was there to infuse the dough with little bubble, but there weren't enough for my liking. I think perhaps I waited too long and the bubble had destabilized. I would make them again though, as they were pretty good.

A simple pizza dough

I love pizza, and I love the fact that it can be so versatile. This is a dough recipe that I use all the time. It makes two huge pizza's and it works out everytime.

Pizza Dough, taken from Williams-Sanoma "Essentials of Baking, p. 2
Ingredients for Dough
2 packages of active dry yeast (5 tsp.)
560mL warm water
2 tsp. sugar
60 mL olive oil
780g flour (bread flour/ AP flour)
1 Tbs. salt

Method
1. Place the warm water and yeast into a large bowl and whisk together. Let rest for 5 min.
2. Add the sugar, oil, flour and salt and mix with your hands until a rough ball forms.
3. Scrape dough onto a floured work surface and knead for 10 min until the dough is soft, smooth and elastic.
4. Place into a oiled bowl, and wait until the dough has risen to around twice its original size (1-2 hours).
5. Preheat oven to 425F.
6. Divide into portions and place topping on.
7. Bake until the color is a light brown, and toppings look baked.

Croissants - The First Batch

I know it sounds like the title of a rather bad horror film, but the croissants I made at home worked out all right. An insane amount of labor went into these guys with me laboring for an hour over the final sheeting (a sheeting is where you roll out the dough - usually with a sheeter) where I had to get the dough down to 3mm in thickness.

This is the recipe I used (I halved it though, and so everything in the recipe is on a smaller scale and done by hand). It has a lot of steps, but I've put it in here to remond me how to go about making these guys again.

Note: To make the beurrage, you beat the butter (with a rolling pin - usually a French one) between two pieces of parchment paper into a rectangle that is around 10mm (1cm) thick. I really should have some diagrams for this but I hope the photo's help!

Straight Dough Croissants
Full Recipe (I used half this makes a ton of croissants!)

Ingredients
4Lb 8oz bread flour
8oz granulated sugar
2oz fresh yeast (or 40% dry yeast - saf yeast?)
1.25oz salt
20oz milk
16oz water
2.5Lb butter (for beurrage block)

Method
Day 1
Heat milk to 80F and dissolve the yeast in the milk. Pour in the bottom of a 20 quart mixer.
Add flour, then salt and sugar.
Using a dough hook mix at first speed. Wait 3 min and see if all the flour has been picked up off the bottom. If not, add water.
Dough should be a little lumpy, you don’t want to over mix.
Flour a large bowl and round the dough and place in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap.
Leave at room temp for 1 hour.
Refrigerate overnight.
Make the beurrage (either sheet it between two silpats into a rectangle at 10mm, or about the size of a 1/2 sheet pan). Refrigerate.

Day 2
Roll out the dough by hand so that it will fit the beurrage block in the center with the two sides of dough covering the butter like a door.
Place the beurrage in the center. Fold the flaps over so they meet in the middle of the beurrage.
Seal the edges with pressure from the rolling pin, as well as sealing the center the same way.
Sheet the dough with the middle closure parallel to the sheeter. Sheet until you can do a simple tri-fold on the dough.
Refrigerate 30 min.
Repeat step 4, but face the open end of the sandwich towards you (make sure to flour the bottom of the sheeter to prevent sticking and stretching).
Refrigerate overnight.

Day 3
Final sheet to 3mm thick (make sure to do width first, then length).
Use (see pictures below for croissant shapeing. Make sure to roll to 3mm thick, and each triangle should weigh 2.5 oz).

Bah Humbug and Stollen

I guess I grew up differently, because at around this time of the year I start to go insane. I think it's the music, the constant repetitive cheerful voices, the people telling me (very happily I might add) about how great it is to have snow (and well, yeah I have to agree there having had xmas in Australia in summer for the majority of my life), and about the virtues of Santa. Anyway, despite my bah humbug ways I decided to make Stollen with two buds from baking class, Sarah and Jamie. It was quite an undertaking and it taught us to read recipes before we decide to make them. This is specifically in relation to yeast and time.

Yeast takes it's sweet time eating starches and suagrs and so it needs a little time to burp. The recipe we used had a starter dough, as well as other rises, and benching proceedures so it took a while. There are plenty of recipes out there, we decided to use one recipe to make three mini stollen, which I think worked out nicely. The ingredients were another matter, specifically the candied fruits required. I went to a few places and found it difficult to get fruit that well...looked something like fruit (what cherries are green??) Eventually I found some (citron is green!) and we used that and a combo of candied citrus peel, golden raisins all soaked in rum for an hour or so. I grew up on stollen.

We had a European xmas in Australia with the celebration and present opening all done on the 24th. Nanna would sometimes make stollen or buy it, I remember the only part I ate was when she would make/buy the type with marzipan. I would rip out the marzipan and scoff it down while I would casually hide the remnants of the stollen in my hand until I could find the grabage bin and shove it in. Needless to say the stollen I made had a massive amount of marzipan (almond paste) in it and it worked out pretty well.

Stollen pairs brilliantly well with a warm drink (coffee, cider, tea etc) as it is by nature a fairly dry yeasted bread. But, if you like xmas, enjoy baking, want to do a fruit cake type of baked good, I'd give stollen a go.

PS. Sarah and Jamie! I erased the picts of all our stollens after they were made - I'm sorry!

Bialys

This is one of those recipes I'd been eyeing off for a while, but hadn't yet go around to trying tit. These were doughy (as opposed to bready) rolls infused with onion.

These took a while to make, there was no waiting overnight for the poolish or biga, but as it was a straight dough method, you had to hang around from the very beginning to the very end to give the yeast all the love and attention it desires (it it likes quite a lot). 

These were nice. They taste more along the lines of a bagel, chewey, not crunchy. Apparently they were first made by Jewish bakers in Bialystock in Poland. Then some bakers moved to New York, and so the goodness spread!

Simply Cinnamon Rolls

These are a simple and plain cinnamon roll. More about the bread then being super sweet. They are particularly nice when still warm, as this is the case I recommend letting them rise overnight and baking them in morning. 

Ingredients: Dough

2 packets active dry yeast

1 cup milk heated to around 105F

1/2 cup granulated sugar

3 large eggs

5.5 cups all purpose flour, plus extra fro working the dough

2 tsp. salt

1 tsp ground mace

grated zest 1 orange (I used the zest of a lemon because I had it hanging around. I think citrus is the way to go - whether it's orange, lemon or something else)

1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temp. 

Ingredients: Filling

6 Tbs. sugar 

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted

Ingredients: Glaze

1/4 cup apricot jam

1 Tbs. water

Method

1. In a large bowl dissolve the yeast into the warm milk, and let sit for 5 min. 

2. Ad the sugar, eggs, 5 cups of flour, salt, mace. butter and zest and mix with your hands until a rough mass forms. 

3. Scrape out of the bowl and onto a lightly floured work surface. 

4. Knead the dough working in the last 1/2 cup of flour. 

5. Knead for 5-7 min until the dough is soft, but not sticky. 

6. Form the dough into a ball and place into an oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm place for 1.5 - 2 hours. 

7. Punch down the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Cut it in half. 

8. Roll out one half of the dough into a 10x16 inch rectangle. 

9. Brush one side of the rectangle with half the butter. 

10. To make the filling, combine the sugar and cinnamon. 

11. Sprinkle half the cinnamon sugar mix on top of the butter. 

12. Starting at the long side furthest from you roll the rectangle towards you to make a log. 

13. Cut the log into 2 inch slices. 

14. Place the slices onto baking trays lined with parchment paper. 

15. Repeat with the remaining half of the dough. 

16. Cover the rolls loosely with a kitchen towel, and let rise for 30-40 min. (This is where you could bake these in the morning. Simply place them in the fridge after they have been cut, and covered with a kitchen cloth. In the morning take them out, and let them come to room temp. and continue with step 17). 

17. Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400F. 

18. Bake until golden brown depending on your oven this will take between 15-25 min. To test, stick a toothpick in the middle of a bun and see if it comes out sticky. If it does keep it in a smidge longer. 

19. Just before baking time is up, make the glaze. Simply push the apricot jam through a sieve and add the 1 Tbs. of water and combine. 

20. When they are out of the oven, brush on the glaze with a pastry brush. 

Taken in part from Williams and Sonoma "Essentials of Baking" pp 68-9. 

Chocolate-Studded Swiss Sweet Buns from Basel (aka. Schoggiweggli)

These are a crunchy sweet yet salty bun that pair well with a hot coffee. They are laborious, but they are tasty especially for people who aren't so big on sweet things.

Ingredients

1 cup milk

2.5 tsp. active dry yeast

3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 Tbs. sugar

2 tsp. salt

4 Tbs. unsalted butter, softened

6 oz. semisweet chocolate (either chips or roughly cut into small chunks)

Eggs wash: 1 egg beaten with a pinch of salt

Method

1. Warm the milk in a small saucepan until it is lukewarm. Pour this into a small bowl and whisk in the yeast. Set aside.

2. Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment place the flour, sugar and salt. On the lowest setting mix together for 30 seconds.

3. Add the butter and mix until the butter is well mixed into the dry ingredients (around 1 min).

4. Add the yeast mixture you set aside earlier and beat together for 2 min on the lowest setting. Stop and let the dough rest for 10min.

5. Mix together for another 2 min, this time on medium speed. You want the dough to be fairly elastic.

6. Beat in the chocolate bits on the lowest speed until evenly distributed throughout the dough. Don't beat for too long as this may mean that the chocolate will melt and the dough will be chocolate brown.

7. Scrape the dough into a well oiled bowl and rub the oil all over the outside of the dough. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour, or until the dough has doubled in size.

8. On a lightly floured surface scrape the dough. Press into a rectangle and divide the dough into 14-18 equal pieces.

9. Round each piece of dough using your palms, let rest for 10 min under a tea towel.

10. Roll the dough pieces into ovals, and squash the ends in until the dough looks like a mini canoe (see the photo below). Place on a baking tray lined with baking paper.

11. Cover and let rise for 1 hour. At 45 min into the rising preheat the oven to 375F.

12. Paint with the egg wash.

13. With a pair of scissors cut slashes into the top (around 4 slashes depending on the size of the bun).

14. Bake for 15 min and then swap the trays around (middle to top and top to middle). Bake for an additional 10 min. You want the final product to be a deep golden color.

15. Slide the baking paper from the pan and onto a wire rack to cool.

Taken from Nick Malgieri's "A Baker's Tour" pp. 67-8.

Potato-Cinnamon Rolls

These are pretty laborious, but they are good. This recipe makes a heap of rolls (huge ones), but as it is a yeast recipe I don't recommend reducing it (eg. halving it). However, after the second rising you can freeze the rolls for three weeks.

Ingredients: Rolls
2 medium russet potatoes

4 packets dried yeast

3/4 cup plus 1 tsp. sugar

2 sticks of butter, melted

3 large eggs

2 tsp. salt

9 cups unbleached flour

Ingredients: Pecan/Cinnamon filling

4 cups pecans

4 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

2 Tbs. cinnamon

2 sticks unsalted butter, melted

Ingredients: Icing

2.5 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Method: Rolls

1. Peel and quarter the potatoes and cook for 15-25 min until soft.

2. Setting 3 cups of the potato water aside until it registers 110-115F

3. Mash the potatoes well (either by hand or with a mixer)

4. In a medium bowl combine the cooled potato water, 1 tsp. sugar and the yeast. Whisk together and leave alone for around 5 min.

5. In a large bowl whisk together the potatoes, remaining sugar, melted butter, eggs, salt, and the yeast-potato water.

6. Add the flour, 3 cups at a time and combine with a wooden spoon until all the flour has been mixed in.

7. Place the dough in a large bowl that has had oil rubbed into it.

8. Cover with a damp cloth and place in a warm place until it doubles in size (1-1.5 hours).

9. Punch down the dough in the bowl.

Method: Filling

1. Preheat oven to 350F

2. Roast the pecans for 7-9 min, and then roughly chop them up into manageable pieces.

3. Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl.

Method: Assembly

1. Remove half the dough and on a clean floured surface roll the half into a 1/4 inch thick rectangle.

2. Spread with half the melted butter.

3. Sprinkle with half the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture and then with half the pecans.

4. Grease two large baking sheets.

5. Starting on the long side of the dough furthest away from you, tightly roll up the dough towards you.

6. With a sharp knife, cut the roll at 2 inch intervals, place each slice (cut side facing down) on the prepared baking trays.

7. At this point you can freeze the dough for 3 weeks making sure that you have covered them tightly with plastic wrap. Simply defrost them overnight in the fridge and then follow with steps 8 and onwards.

8. Set the rolls in a warm place and have them rise again (45 min).

9. Preheat the oven to 375F and bake the rolls for 20-25 min.

Method: Icing

1. Combine the powdered sugar, milk and vanilla extract in a medium bowl (making sure there are no lumps left in the mixture).

2. Spread onto the rolls while they are still a little warm.

Taken from "The Pastry Queen: Royally Good Recipes from the Texas Hill Country's Rather Sweet Bakery & Cafe" by Rebecca Rather and Alison Oresman pp.8-10.

Fruit Buns

I love fruit buns, warm and with lots of salty butter - a heart attacks delight. These were alright, they did however, need some salt, whether it comes from the use of salty butter in the dough, or the addition of salt, it really needed the salt once they were baked. Otherwise these were tasty buns.

Ingredients

1 Tbs. active dry yeast

1/2 cup sugar

1.5 cups warm milk

4.5 cups all purpose flour (sifted)

2 tsp. mixed spice

2 tsp. cinnamon

1.5 oz. melted butter

1 egg

1.5 cups raisins

1/3 cup candied mixed peel (I didn't use this)

Method

1. Place the yeast, 2 Tsp. of the sugar and all of the milk in a large bowl.

2. Set aside for 5 min, or until the mixture starts to foam.

3. Add the flour, mixed spice, cinnamon, butter, egg, raisins, mixed peel, and remaining sugar to the mixture.

4. Using a butter knife mix until a sticky dough forms.

5. Pour the dough onto a lightly floured bench, and knead for around 8 min (or until the dough feels elastic).

6. Place in an oiled bowl and cover. Let it rise fro 1 hour or until it has doubled in bulk.

7. Divide the dough in 12 pieces (I made giant buns, so I divided it into 8). Roll the dough into balls.

8. Grease a tray with sides (it is recommended that you use a 9-inch square cake tin, and line the bottom of it with parchment paper.

9. Place the dough balls onto the parchment paper.

10. Cover, and allow to rise again for 30 min.

11. Preheat oven to 400F.

Bake for 35 min, or until well browned and springy to the touch.

12. Serve warm with butter.

From the beautiful Modern Classics 2: Cookies, Biscuits + Slices, Small Cakes, Cakes, Desserts, Hot Puddings, Pies + Tarts, Donna Hay, pp.50-

Bienenstich (Bee-Sting)

These are one of my favorite things to eat. They are sweet, moist, and nutty. They are finicky to make, but they are well worth it! You can buy good Aussie custard powder at http://www.greataussiefood.com.au/showProduct/Food/Desserts+and+Baking/FCCP/Foster+Clarks+Custard+Powder+350g+box

Ingredients: Dough
200mL milk

50g butter

375g all-purpose flour

1 packet of fast action dry-yeast

50g sugar

1 Tbs. vanilla sugar

1 pinch salt

1 medium egg

Ingredients: Topping

200g butter

100g sugar

1 Tbs vanilla sugar

3 tsp. honey

3 Tbs. whipping cream

200g chopped almonds (the proper way is to use blanched almonds, but I can't be bothered, and it still tastes mighty fine.

Ingredients: Filling
80g vanilla custard powder (Americans will need to find a good source for this. I have found a couple of "Australian" stores that stock it. There are stores on-line that you can find it on as well).
100g sugar
100g butter

750mL milk

Method: Dough
1. Warm the milk in a small pan and melt the butter in it.

2. Sift the flour into a mixing bowl and mix in the dried yeast.

3. Add all other ingredients for the dough, including the warm milk and butter mixture.

4. Stir with a hand mixer, or with a wooden spoon and your hands until the a smooth dough is formed (if using a mixer use a kneading hook).

5. Cover with a tea towel and let rise until it has visibly increased in volume.

Method: Topping

1. Slowly heat the butter with the sugar, vanilla sugar, honey and cream while stirring, bring briefly to the boil and stir in the almonds.

2. Leave the mixture to cool down, stirring occasionally.

3. Grease a baking sheet.

Method: Assembly Part 1

1. Preheat the oven to 440F/200C

2. Dust the dough lightly with flour, and place it on a lightly dusted bench.

3. Roll out the dough to the size of your baking sheet, and then line the baking sheet with your dough.

4. Spread the topping evenly on top and put the baking sheet in a warm place to rise again (around 1 hour).

5. Put the baking sheet in the oven.

Method: Assembly Part 2

1. Leave the cake on the baking sheet to cool down on a rack.

2. Cut the cake in half vertically, then cut in half horizontally (for the filling).

3. For the filling mix the custard powder, sugar and milk in a saucepan, and then stir in the butter. Mix until it thickens.

4. Put the filling in the refrigerator , stirring occasionally.

5. When it has cooled spread it on the lower cake halves, then replace the top.

Taken from "German Baking Today: The Original" from Dr. Oetker pp.134-6

Cherry Kolaches

These were really very nice, the pastry was wonderful. I would also try it with a pineapple filling (Combine 8 ounces of canned, crushed pineapple, in its own juice with 1 Tbs. cornstarch in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the sauce thickens, about 3-4min. Stir in 2 Tbs. of unsalted butter. Put in place of the cherry filling). If they are hard the next day microwave for 20sec, or heat in the oven until warm.

Ingredients: Dough

2 cups of milk

1 package of active dry yeast

1/2 cup lukewarm water (110F - 115F)

1/2 cup unsalted butter

2 large eggs

1.25 cups sugar

2 tsp. salt

8.5 cups all-purpose flour

Ingredients: Cherry Filling

1.5 lb fresh cherries

1 Tbs. kirsch

2Tbs. water

1-2Tbs. cornstarch

1 Tbs. lemon juice

1/2 tsp. lemon zest

sugar to taste

Ingredients: Streusel Topping

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 sugar
3 Tbs. chilled butter (unsalted) cut into small pieces.

Method: Dough

1. Warm milk in a medium saucepan, do not boil. Cool for 10-15min until it registers 110F-115F.

2. Dissolve the yeast in the lukewarm water and let it sit until foamy (5min or so).

3. Melt the butter in the microwave, and let it cool for 5 min.

4. In a large (after all there is 8.5 cups of flour in this...) whisk together the eggs, sugar, salt, and melted butter. Add the cooled milk and yeast to the mixture.

5. Gradually add flour to the batter - 2 cups at a time. Use your hands or a wooden spoon to mix the flour with the wet ingredients.

6. Keep adding flour until it is completely incorporated and the dough begins to hold together. Don't pound or overwork the dough, otherwise you will get tough pastry. You want the dough to be sticky, moist, and light.

7. Lightly grease a large bowl with veggie oil.

8. Transfer the dough to the bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Let it rise in a warm, draft-free place until it has doubled in bulk (around 1-2hours).

9. Leaving the dough in the bowl, punch it down, until it deflates.

10. Cover the bowl and place it in the fridge for at least 4 hours.

Method: Cherry Filling

1. Wash and pit the cherries.

2. Add the kirsch to the cherries.

3. In a medium saucepan add the cherries and the 2 Tbs. of water. Let boil and breakdown, until a nice, thick consistency has been reached.

4. In a small bowl mix 1 Tbs. of cornstarch with 1 Tbs. of water and add to the cherry mixture. Stir until it thickens. If you would like it thicker, add more cornstarch.

5. Add the lemon juice and lemon zest.

6. Add sugar to taste, it all depends on how sweet the cherries were in the first place.

7. Remove from heat. Cover, and refrigerate until needed.

Method: Dough Continued & Assembly

1. Grease a 12 x 17 inch baking sheet with butter or cooking spray.

2. With lightly oiled fingertips shape the dough into 2.5 inch balls. Arrange the balls evenly on the baking sheet, 3 across and 6 down.

3. Create an indentation in the kolaches with your thumb (if need be you can expand the size of the dent with a teaspoon lightly covered with oil).

4. Mound 1 heaping tsp. of the filling into the crater created by your thumb.

5. Cover the rolls with a tea-towel, and let rise for an hour, until almost doubled in size.

Method: Streusel Topping

1. Preheat the oven to 375F

2. In a bowl combine the flour, sugar and butter. Mix with finger tips until it is crumbly.

3. Scatter over the kolaches just before baking.

4. Bake kolaches 25-30min, until slightly brown on top.

Dough and inspiration from Rebecca Rather's "The Pastry Queen" pp. 14-17

Raisin Swirl Bread

A nice bread, I made this one without the raisins because Josh doesn't like them. It wasn't as moist as I like it so I would recommend making it with raisins, or at least another dried fried ie. apricots.

Ingredients: Bread
1 packet yeast

1/4 cup sugar, plus a pinch

1.25 cups just warm milk

1/2 stick butter (4Tbs.) at room temp.

3/4 tsp. salt

1 large egg

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

3.25 - 4 cups all-purpose flour

Ingredients: swirl

1 Tbs. sugar

2 tsp. freshly ground cinnamon

2 tsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup moist plump raisins

3 Tbs. unsalted butter, softened to a spreadable consistency.

Method: Bread

1. Put the yeast in a small bowl, add a pinch of salt, and stir in 1/4 cup of the warm milk.

2. Let this rest for 3min, then stir.

3. Working with a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, combine the rest of the milk, the butter and 1/4 cup sugar and mix on low speed for 1-2min.

4. Add the salt, egg and vanilla and mix.

5. Add the yeast mixture and beat on medium-low for 1 min or more.

6. Turn the mixer off and add 2.75 cups of flour. Mix on low speed until just worked into the liquid.

7. If you have a dough hook switch to it now.

8. Add another 1 cup of flour, increase the mixer speed to medium and beat the dough for a couple of minuets.

9. If the dough does not come together and almost clean the sides of the bowl, add up to 1/4 cup of flour, 1 Tbs. at a time.

10. Keep the mixer speed at medium and knead the dough for another 3 min. The dough will be very soft.

11. Butter a large bowl, and place the dough in it. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until doubled in size - around 1.5 hours.

12. Scrape the dough onto a large piece of plastic wrap and wrap it up. Put it in the freezer for 30 min. or until it is firm enough to be rolled out.

Method: Swirl and Assembly

1. Butter a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.

2. Whisk together the sugar, cinnamon and cocoa.

3. Put the dough on a large work surface lightly dusted with flour.

4. Lightly dust the top of the dough, and roll out to be roughly 12 x 18 inches.

5. Gently smear 2 Tbs. of butter over the top (using your fingers is the best tools to use in this case).

6. Sprinkle over the sugar mixture (and scatter over the raisins).

7. Starting from the short side of the dough, roll the dough 'jelly-roll' style, try and make it nice and tight, so that it holds together in the oven.

8. Place seam side down in the loaf pan.

9. Cover loosely with wax paper and let rise for around 45 min.

10. When the dough has risen again, center a rack in the oven and pre-heat the oven to 375F.

11. Melt the remaining 1 Tbs. of butter and brush over the top of the bread.

12. Bake in the oven for 20min, then cover with a foil tent for 25 min, or until the bread sounds hollow when it is tapped.

13. Transfer to a rack to cool down for 5 min, and then unmold. Let it cool down the right way up. Enjoy!

Taken from Dorie Greenspan's 'Baking: From My Home to Yours' pp. 58-60.

Coffee Cake Rings

This is a tasty, slightly sweet, cake that is more like a bread. As the name suggests, it pairs brilliantly with coffee.

Ingrediants: Dough
1.5 tsp instant yeast
3.25 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup warm water
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 tsp. salt
1/3 cups sugar

Ingrediants: Nut Filling
1 cup walnuts
1 cup pecans
2 Tbs. sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnaom
2Tbs. honey (warmed slightly)

Method: Dough and Filling
1. Put the yeast, 100g flour, and warm water into a large bowl and mix with a fork
until smooth. Let this mixture stand, uncovered for 10-20min until it begins to ferment
(the smell is slightly alcoholic, and it looks a little puffy, the mixture is noticeably thicker,
it sticks to your finger if you did it in).

2. With a fork mix the egg, egg yolk, oil, salt and sugar into the above mixture until the
eggs are well incorporated, and the salt and sugar have dissolved. With a wooden spoon
stir in all the remaining flour (340g) at once. When the mixture is a shaggy ball put it on
a lightly floured bench and knead it until it is smooth and soft. If needed add water (if
dough is too dry) or flour (if dough is too sticky).
The dough should feel soft and silky.

3. Place the dough in a clean bowl and cover it with a tea towel or plastic wrap. Let the
dough ferment in a warm place until it has at least doubled in bulk (around 2 hours).
Make the filling in the meanwhile.

4. Finely chop the nuts by hand until the texture is like baklava filling.

5. Transfer to a bowl, mix in sugar, cinnamon and honey. Taste, you can add more sugar
or honey if you like it sweeter.

6. Cover the filling and set aside.

7. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.

8. Divide the dough in half.

9. Using a rolling pin, and a small amount of flour, roll out dough until it is about 10cm (4inches) wide, and 50cm (20inches) long.

10. Spoon a heaping line of half the filling down the center of thedough.

11. Pull the edges over the filling and pinch together. Then roll again and check if it is sealed, if not pinch together some more.

12. Pull the ends together to form a ring.

13. Repeat with the other half of the dough.

14. Let them proof until triple in size (around 1.5 hours).

15. Preheat oven to 375F or 190C.

16. Brush with egg wash (1 egg)

17. Get scissors and cut shallow, diagonal incisions about 1inch (2.5cm) apart, creating a decorative fringe.

18. Put bread on two racks in the oven.

19. After the first 15min of baking, switch the bread over with each other: the top on the bottom, the bottom on the top.

20. Bake the rings for 25-35min, until very well browned.

21. Remove from oven, cool on a rack


Taken from the amazing book: "A Blessing of Bread: Recipes and Rituals, Memories and Mitzvahs" by Maggie Glezer (pp184-6).