Baking

With the wintry, wet weather today, I feel like deliciously sweet, warm bread straight from the oven, dripping butter... Hmmmmm......   So I'm going to try this recipe....

source

I'll let you know how it turned out.

Happy day!

Greek Easter bread

I made this yummy bread for us for Easter, but it is one I could eat any time of the year. That is exactly what the Captain said to me when he tasted it:"Love, you don't have to wait until Easter to make this again!" Hehe.. Next time I will change it a little and add some good quality chocolate chips, ones from Callebaut - the best chocolate in my opinion. Also see another link to their chocolate here or on Facebook.

The recipe for this bread is from Cooks.com here Try it, it's worth it!!

Happy day!

Brown seed bread

Anything home made is always so much nicer and when it comes to bread, this couldn't be closer to the truth. Our local baker is an absolute genius when it comes to bread baking and buying from him is just like home made for me. He uses fresh ingredients with no preservatives, additives or any of that bad stuff that you get in sliced bread we can buy off the shelf in the supermarket. A post about his bakery is for another day though, this one is about the brown seed bread that I make for us at home. the one that we can't get enough of and which we eat  straight from the oven, slathered with butter and/or jam....hmmmmm

Ingredients:

850g brown bread wheat flour

10 g instant dried yeast

1/2 cup honey

2 tsp salt

1/2 cup sesame seeds

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup poppy seeds

60ml sunflower oil

600ml lukewarm water

extra water if necessary

Method:

• Grease a large loaf tin and sprinkle the inside with sesame and poppy seeds
• Pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius
• Dissolve the honey in the lukewarm water
• In a mixing bowl/food processor bowl combine the flour, yeast and salt
• Add the seeds to the flour mixture
• Add the sunflower oil and water/honey mixture to the bowl and mix it all very well - it will be a rather wet and sticky dough; a dough that you won't be able to take out and knead on the table
• If using a food processor, use the dough hook and "knock it around" in the mixing bowl for two minutes or so
• If the dough looks too dry, add a little extra water when mixing all the ingredients- it should really not be a too stiff dough
• Transfer the dough to the greased loaf tin and leave to rise (covered with a tea towel) for about one hour or until well risen - for me it usually takes one hour, but I think it all depends on your flour and the outside temperatures
• Bake for about 45 minutes or until the crust is nicely brown and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped

At this point in recipes they usually say "ALLOW TO COOL" etc,  but what the heck! Take it from the oven, cut yourself a BIG slice, spread it with plenty of butter and.......ENJOY!!!!

Grapefruit cake

I saw the recipe for this delicious cake on the Urban Comfort blog, here and couldn't resist it. Made it for us for tea today and it is absolutely divine!!

This is delicious, yumminess at its' best!

Warm autumn morning at home

What I get up to on a lovely, sunny autumn morning when I have an hour just for myself....

A bunch of beautiful flowers...



Home made choc brownies...



A table set "just for me"...



A pile of my favourite magazines...



Bliss....(sigh!)