crispbread

Caraway Crispbread

May 25, 2015


Caraway crispbread is a wonderful bread for afternoon tea, but I find it quite irresistible for every occasion. You will become addicted to this bread very quickly too!

8–10 small breads

4 dl rye flour
0,5 dl milk powder
1 tbsp caraway seeds
1 tsp salt
75 g saltless butter
3 dl water
4 dl wheat flour

Mix rye flour, milk powder, caraway seeds and salt together. Add butter cut into cubes to the mix, then use just your finger-tips and break up the butter into the flour mix. Add water and stir until combined. Mix in the wheat flour and knead the dough until it's smooth.

Turn the dough out onto a baking surface and divide it into 8–10 pieces. Roll out each piece to a thin, round sheet on a parchment paper. Roll with a patterned rolling pin or poke the surface randomly with a fork. Place the sheet on a baking tray with the help of the paper. 

Preheat the oven to 250°C. Bake for 5–8 minutes per tray. Place on a rack and allow to cool.

sourdough

Seed Bread

May 18, 2015


Sourdough breads have taste and character! It's a pity that it's so difficult to find white or multigrain sourdough breads at the grocery stores here in Finland. But, don't worry! It's easy to bake one by yourself.

 If you don't have a sourdough starter in the fridge, you can easily make one with this recipe. 

 2 breads

 First day

 1 dl (100 g) sourdough starter
3 dl (300 g) lukewarm water
3 dl (200 g) wheat flour

Mix together the sourdough starter, water and the flour. Cover with a tea towel and leave at room temperature overnight.

Second day

4 dl (400 g) water
2 dl (160 g) spelt grains
the starter dough from the evening before
2 tsp salt
4 dl (400 g) water
30 g fresh yeast
1 dl (65 g) linseeds
about 12 dl (780 g) wheat flour

Put the spelt grains into a bowl and pour in the boiling water. Let it cool down until hand warm.

Blend the salt, lukewarm water, yeast, linseeds and the spelt grains with the the starter dough. Keep kneading and adding wheat flour until the dough is bouncy and elastic, this takes about 10 minutes. Cover and leave to rise at room temperature for 2 hours.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead it until it's elastic again. Divide it into two equal pieces and shape into long loaves. Line the baking tray with parchment paper and put the breads on it. Spray with cold water and sprinkle with linseeds. Slash. Cover and leave to rise at room temperature for 20–30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 225°C. Bake for 20 minutes.

Cover and let cool on a wire rack.


grilling

Grilled Bread

May 12, 2015

















Are you excited for the coming grilling season? Yes? Usually this means lots of grilled vegetables and all sorts of meat. Don't forget, that you can bake bread on your grill too. These little flat breads are ready to eat in no time, because you don't have to knead the dough or rise it. 

12 little breads

3 dl (300 g) Greek yoghurt
0,5 tsp salt
1 dl (0,5 cup, US) chopped parsley
1 tsp dried thyme
3 dl (200 g) wheat flour
0,5 dl (30 g) fava bean flour
1 tsp baking powder
butter

Stir the salt, parsley and thyme into the yogurt. Mix together the flours and baking powder. Stir the flour mix into the seasoned yoghurt.

 Use your hands to form the dough into twelve balls. Heat an iron frying pan on the grill. Butter the pan. Flatten the balls. Grill at medium flame for 5–7 minutes per side.

 Eat without delay. 

roll

Nettle Rolls

May 05, 2015


Here in Turku we get the first sight of green after a harsh winter in April. It's time to harvest the tiny tops of nettles. But, be careful! They look tender and harmless, but stinging nettles are given this name for a reason. If you touch the plant, you will be stung and the pain can last for hours. It's wise to use gloves.


12 pcs.

1 L (4,25 cup, US) nettles > 1 dl (0,4 cup, US) mash 
4 dl (400 g) water and nettle water 
25 g fresh yeast 
1,5 tsp salt 
3 tbsp honey 
1 dl (55 g) milk powder 
2 dl (120 g) graham flour
50 g room-temperature butter
about 10 dl (650 g) wheat flour

Use a scissors to cut the nettle tops. Avoid the dirt (pieces of soil, sand or gravel). 


Using dishwashing gloves, rinse the nettles well under cold water to remove any dirt. Place the nettles in a small pot. Add couple of decilitres of cold water. Bring it to a boil and simmer for two minutes. Take the nettles out of the pot. (Save the water.) Using an blender, puree. You will get one decilitre of mash. 

Add cold water to the warm nettle water untill you have 4 dl liquid.

Stir the yeast, salt and honey into the water. Mix in the milk powder and graham flour. Knead the room-temperature butter and the wheat flour into the dough. Keep kneading until the dough is elastic and bouncy, about 10 minutes if you knead the dough by hand.

Cover with a tea towel and let the dough rise at room temperature for 30–45 minutes. The time depends on the temperature of the water, when you soaked the yeast in it. The colder the liquid, the longer it takes. 


Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, admire it's spring green color and knead slightly. Divide the dough in half. Roll each half into a rope. Cut each rope into 6 pieces. Shape each piece into a ball. Dip into flour. With a sharp knife, make cuts into the floured rolls. Line two baking trays with parchment papers, place the rolls on them, cover and leave to rise at room temperature for 20 minutes. 

Preheat the oven to 225°C. Bake for 15 minutes. 

Cover and let cool on a wire rack.