Crusty white loaf...easy!

The mere mention of baking bread bread at home can be quite daunting to some.

It was to me too!

But honestly, once you take the bread making plunge its one of the most satisfying things you can do.

I seem to have phases where I make bread for days on end and then just stop again.

I think it just breaks it up a little bit,cake is usually where i'm always at!

If you read my ramblings often then you'll know my hubby is a big fan of breads and loaf type cakes.

So recently when we watched the Paul Hollywood 'Bread' series,he spent most of it pointing and saying 'want that one' 

Its been a whole lotta time since i made bread so i made a simple white crusty loaf to start with.

I was happy with it,it looked like bread,it tasted like bread,it definitely smelled like bread.

You see I use past tense? Thats because its all gone,less than 24 hours later!

I didn't eat it all,before you think I gorged...I got 1 slice luckily!

I used Pauls recipe.

500g strong white bread flour

40g soft unsalted butter

12g or 2 sachets fast action dried yeast (I used tescos own brand)

2tsp salt

about 300ml warm water..not hot!

a little sunflower oil

Put the flour and butter together in a large mixing bowl,then add the yeast and salt but make sure not to to let them touch yet. Or as paul tells us,the salt can kill the yeast before it can even start to work.

Add roughly half of the water and start to mix,bringing it together using your hand.

Gradually add a little bit of the water at a time.

You may not need every drop,you want just enough until the dough has picked up all the flour from the bowl.

It shouldn't be sticky.

Drizzle a little oil onto a clean work surface and turn the dough out.

Now knead...this is when you get to work out any pent up tension you have.

Demanding children? Husbands? Take it out on that dough and knead it well for a good 5 minutes.

When the dough is smooth and stretchy drizzle a little more oil into the mixing bowl and pop the dough back in. Cover with cling film to prevent it from drying out and set it aside to prove.

Depending on how warm your room is,about an hour later it will look something like this...

This time dust your surface with a little flour and turn the dough out again.

Knock out all the air by kneading again,this time sort of roll the dough up and turn it 45 degrees then roll it again. Keep going until it becomes a smooth dough and gently shape it into a round loaf.

Now place it onto a lined baking tray.

Cover with a tea towel and set aside to rise once more.

Preheat your oven to 220c or gas mark 7.

Put a clean empty roasting tray into the bottom of the oven. (All will be revealed)

After one more hour the bread dough should have almost doubled in size again.

Sprinkle some flour on the top and very gently 'wipe' it over the loaf.

Take a sharp knife and make slits across the dough,any pattern you like I guess.

I did sort of a chequer.

Pop the loaf into the oven...but right before you close the door pour some cold water into that roasting tin.

A favourite tip of mine from the great Paul,it really does work! It creates steam and gives a fab crust on the bread.

Bake the bread for 30 minutes.

To see if its done,gently tap the bottom of the loaf and if it sounds hollow... you're all set!

Strawberry milkshake cupcakes

I've been thinking about making these for sooo long!
I have this habit of saying 'ill make that' and putting it off,something always gets in the way and it takes me an age to actually do it.
But,then on the spur of the moment ill decide 'todays the day' and thats how these finally came about.
The only problem was I had no Nesquik,
so immediately i sent my son a text and asked him to pick some up for me.
So i waited,not very patiently I might add.
It was late when I made them and that explains the lack of photos. The lighting in my kitchen (or anywhere else around here) is shocking at the best of times,so you can imagine how it is at 1am!

The cases i used were terrible,you can probably see and so that's why I've sat them into another.

I was originally going to use the recipe from hummingbird but instead I decided to adapt a regular vanilla cupcake recipe.

The only thing I wasn't overly happy with is that the actual cake didn't come out pink as I'd hoped.

Though that of course didn't affect the taste.

I weighed the eggs and used the same weight of flour,sugar and butter.

(3 Eggs were 203 grams,i rounded it down to 200)

Cupcakes

200 grams sifted self raising flour

200 grams caster sugar

200 grams unsalted butter or margarine

3 eggs

2 tbsp milk

4 tsp strawberry milkshake powder (I used Nesquik)

Buttercream/Frosting

175 grams unsalted butter

350 grams sifted icing sugar

2 tbsp milk 

4 tbsp milkshake powder

Preheat the oven to 180c or gas mark 4 and line a cupcake tray with 12 cases.

Beat the butter and sugar together until it becomes pale and fluffy.

Now add 1 egg at a time along with a tablespoon of the flour and mix gently between each addition.

Mix in any remaining flour.
In a small dish mix the milk together with the milkshake powder then combine this with the cake mixture.

Divide the mix between the paper cases and bake in to oven for 18-20 minutes.
I use a 5cm ice cream scoop to ensure each 1 is the same size (Link below)

They are ready when an inserted skewer comes out clean and they spring back when you gently touch them.

 Set them aside on a cooling rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting,beat the icing sugar and butter together with a stand or hand mixer for a good few minutes until its very well incorporated.

Mix the milk and milkshake powder together as before and add this to the mix.

Beat again for another few minutes and you'll end up with a very fluffy smooth buttercream.

I piped on a swirl with the Wilton 2D tip and finished off with a cut down paper straw.

I didn't have edible straws to hand :( maybe next time!

I'd planned to top them with these....

But i'd waited so long to use them that they'd gone out of date!

That'll teach me to not put things off!

Jo Wheatley,Home Baking

I'm a big fan of Jo Wheatley,and I have been ever since I first saw her on Great British Bake Off.

It isn't just that shes a fabulous baker,she's genuinely a lovely lady.

A couple of times now I've asked her advice and she helped me out when I was in a cake panic!

Jo's chocolate birthday cake from her first book 'A Passion For Baking' is now my go-to chocolate cake,its never let me down.

So you can imagine how thrilled I was to receive a copy of her new second book 'Home Baking'

I immediately began to read it and it doesn't disappoint. 

Everything is laid out in categories from biscuits,bars and cookies to teatime treats.

Theres a great range of bakes sweet and savoury,along with stunning relaxed photographs.

None of the recipes are out of reach... there's something for everyone right from baking with your little ones up to even the keenest baker.

Straight away I knew that my first bake from the book would be the Coffee and walnut cake,

a favourite of my hubby's.

Perfect!

A fabulous book,congratulations Jo on what I'm sure will be your next bestseller!

Grab your copy of Home Baking at Sainsburys for the bargain price of £8!

You Me At Six birthday cake

We had another special sweet sixteen in our house this week,so another cake was to be had!

This 1 is similar to the last 16th birthday cake I made,but the decoration is completely different.

I have to say,that when Jade asked me to do a 'You Me At Six' theme I wasn't overly thrilled.

Because of the edible prints I knew I'd have to use I was worried it would look too simple.

But as it turns out...she loved it and I'm happy with it too!

Its had quite a bit of attention particularly on Tumblr.

That's Josh Franceschi,the bands lead singer and Jades idea of male perfection!

Google images was my friend on this 1,I found and printed out the lyrics from some of their songs.

The whole cake is chocolate,filled and frosted with chocolate ganache...the birthday girls favourite.

The musical notes on the board I made from chocolate using a mould.

No pink but at least I got some sparkle on there!

I had to coax her into cutting it..she wasn't happy about that at all!

Coffee and walnut muffins

I know I know,its not a pretty or girly bake but I promise I've got something pretty and sparkly coming soon!

I was recently asked to make something from the 'Fathers day ideas' section over at Baking Mad.

As my hubby is a self confessed caffeine addict these were the obvious choice.

They were very easy to make and perfect to let the little ones help and make a treat for dad.

I adapted the recipe just a little,substituting the pecans for walnuts.

Besides that,I followed it exactly as it said.

You can find it HERE.

300g plain flour

2 tsp baking powder

150 grams Light brown sugar

100g Walnuts

1 Egg

225ml Milk

50g Unsalted melted butter

4 tbsp Very strong coffee or espresso if you have it

1 tbsp Demerara Sugar

Just a note,the recipe states that this makes 12 muffins but i got 10,i guess it depends on the case size.

I used regular cupcake cases.

First,prepare the coffee,and melt the butter..this gives enough time for it to cool down while you prepare the muffin mix.

Preheat your oven to 200 or gas mark 6

Line a cupcake or muffin tray with cases and set aside.

Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl and then add in the sugar & nuts and mix it all together.  

In a jug or another bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, melted butter & coffee.

Now combine the 2 mixtures together,be sure to get right to the bottom of the bowl and scrape up all the flour.

Divide between the paper cases and sprinkle a little demerara sugar on the tops of the muffins.

Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes.

Very quick and easy,perfect for a breakfast treat!

There are allsorts of fathers day cupcakes and bakes over at Baking Mad.

So if these aren't quite what you're looking for then take a look.

The Happy face cupcakes are a great bake for letting the little ones loose on the decorating!

Shame mine are a little 'grown up' for that...according to them that is!