Chef Martin Anderson
I know it’s all the rage at the moment but there really has to be something said about baking your own bread, cakes or treats.
It’s very therapeutic, the house will be filled with fantastic aromas, you know what’s going into your food, you can eat the end result (if you don’t burn it), it’s a cheap way to produce food, it’s fun for all the family ….the list is endless .
There are various mixes available where you just add water or milk and while they are great I always tend to fall back on old recipes or even online recipes from good food bloggers or well known bakers or chefs.
In my past cookery books I have written recipes for desserts , breads & baked goods but none as good as some that are available today .
The gluten free , non refined sugar and vegan movements have forced dessert suppliers , bakers & foodies to rethink their recipes and I must say they have some fantastic alternatives to the usual products.
I’m trying out an avocado chocolate mousse recipe over the weekend. Now there is a combination you mightn’t have heard of,( I’m using my family as crash test dummies) avocado is a fruit packed with natural fats , vitamins & has loads of health benefits .
Combined with real chocolate, almond milk and honey I hope to create a fantastic dessert, I’ll post the recipe next week.
Back to the baking. There are a few things to remember and I might be repeating myself but have a good recipe, have a weighing scales that work and buy good ingredients.
I find that value flours , oils , buttes or spreads do not give a great end result and can be of inferior quality .
Make sure your oven is working properly , is there a cold spot in your oven, mine is hotter on the right hand side even though it’s a fan assisted oven.
Baking trays, non stick tins, cake tins, cupcake tins all serve a purpose, there is no point in making a fantastic muffin recipe and pouring it into a Swiss roll tray! You can’t be bluffing with your muffins .
Gluten free flour is a whole different style of baking , traditional recipes use traditional flour it cannot just be replaced with gluten or wheat free flour , you must source recipes and follow them exactly most of these flours have recipes on the packet , you can look for rice flour , gram flour , almond flour or corn meal , the majority of these can be found in health food shops , Asian stores or even online delivered to your door.
Ok so this weeks recipe is so easy to make , one bowl to mix it , one tray to bake it .
I usually serve it warm but you can allow it to cool and warm it up as required.
Thank for all the shares of my recipes too I’m delighted with the comments, likes , shares and its great to know you enjoy them so much, have a great weekend .
Black Olive, sundried tomato and rosemary flat bread
This bread is best served warm and is usually dipped in olive oil or drizzled with olive oil.
You will need.
400g of plain flour.
5 table spoons of olive oil.
2 tsp of baking powder.
100g chopped black or green olives.
Fresh rosemary.
Cold Water to mix the dough .
Seasoning.
Method.
Grease a baking tray with olive oil.
Sieve the baking powder and flour together.
Season with salt and pepper or any other flavour you wish, See the list below.
Add the olives and olive oil, mixing and adding a little water until a loose dough forms.
Knead the dough on a floured table until smooth.
Oil your tray and roll out the dough to the size of tray covering as much of the tray as you can don’t be afraid to push it into the corners .
Poke dimples into the dough with your fingers and then stud with the rosemary.
Season the top of the bread with sea salt and pepper.
Bake at 180c until the bread is risen and cooked.
Drizzle with olive oil.
Cool on a wire rack.
You may add a variety of flavours to this bread, make sure however that they are cooked before adding them.
Red onions, smoked bacon, sweet corn, fresh herbs of your choice. Chilli powder, cranberries, dried fruits, roasted garlic or even, pieces of hard cheese.
