White pull-apart breadrolls

Sep 052011
 

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My forays into breadmaking are rare, and rarely very successful. Perhaps this will change now that I have a Kitchenaid to help me with the kneading?

This was a recipe I had saved in my google reader for several months, waiting for the right occasion to make it. One cool weekend I made a big batch of soup, and I thought these rolls would be the perfect side. Fortunately I was right. They kept quite well also, with J enjoying them for the next few days.

You’ll see in the picture that I may have browned them slightly more than I should have. They weren’t quite burnt but they were on the cusp. One day I will work out this oven! They actually work very well quite browned, it gives them a nice crunch on the outside whilst remaining soft and forgiving on the inside.

The recipe I used is from here. It is a vegan version, but I simply de-veganised it by using 2 tbs of butter instead of the Earth Balance, and an egg instead of the egg replacer.

Next time, I’d like to try using half wholemeal flour. I’m reluctant to use only wholemeal flour as the few times I’ve tried the final product has the texture and density of a brick.  If anyone knows how to avoid this please let me know!

Maple Pecan Cake

Oct 032010
 

If you ever want to give me a gift (unlikely though that might be!) a surefire winner is always a cookbook.  However, my bookshelf might have other ideas…

This recipe is adapted from a cute book J’s parents gave me after a recent trip to the Northern Territory: “Scrumptious Recipes from The Beanie Festival Teashop”.

It contains classic recipes, most of which are cakes, slices or pies and all of which look delicious.   This one is really delicious.

I adapted this from the original recipe, which used cashew nuts.  Pecans are one of my favourite nuts; they are grown in Australia and are in season at the moment.  I think the marriage of pecans and maple syrup works wonderfully well.

The other beauty of this recipe is it’s very simple; there are really only two steps.  You will need a set of electric beaters.

The cake is wonderful served warm (but not fresh from the oven, as the sugar will be exceptionally hot!) with a dollop of icecream.  It makes a lot of cake – so I recommend making it when you’re having friends over if you like being able to see your toes past your stomach.

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Honey wheat bread

May 202010
 

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Recently I’ve been dabbling in the world of bread baking.  I’ve had a few failures, a few successes and a few in-between.  I’ve yet to hit upon a failsafe and foolproof recipe that I can rely on for a consistent result.

This one was a success by all accounts (I made three loaves and shared the love around) and I’m sure I’ll make it again.  However, it is a very sweet bread, which I think limits is usefulness as a staple.  I’m now on the hunt for a reliable wholewheat/partially wholewheat or wholegrain bread recipe.

The recipe I used can be found here.  It makes three decent sized sandwich loaves and is great fresh from the oven and smeared with a little butter.

The first post! Easy plum pie

Dec 072009
 

We had friends over for dinner last night for a hearty meal of t-bone steak with sage, mushroom and kale risotto and roasted beetroot and onion salad.

For dessert we enjoyed a plum pie, served with whipped cream.  It was a lovely night of good food, good wine and good company.

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This was such a quick dessert to make, and a great introduction to pastry for people like me who are slightly fearful of it!