The Bread and Baking Thread

Today's offering. Irish soda bread with chopped cherries & dates. Make 3 loaves at a time, doesn't make sense to just make 1!
Managed to stock up on ingrediments today so we're good for around a month's worth of home made bread now. Got some walnuts on order too so date & walnut next batch...😜IMG_20200318_181459.jpgIMG_20200318_181446.jpgIMG_20200318_181107.jpg
 
My latest sourdough loaf is 50% white and 50% wholemeal flour with no added seeds. I've also baked it for a few minutes longer to darken the crust a little:

IMG_20200322_083928.jpg

I'm getting lots of satisfaction from baking loaves. It's relaxing and, to some extent, unpredictable since it depends on organisms that occasionally seem to have a mind of their own!

Colin 🙂🙂🙂
 
Right I’m gonna have a bash at this lol . Someone give me the easiest recipe and method for making a loaf and I’ll give it a go think I’ve got the basic ingredients at hand should be good for a laugh if nothing else I’ll post a photo of it once I’ve made it. That Irish soda bread looked amazing would like to try that. Or dose that require more than my two brain cells.
 
200g plain flour
150g wholemeal flour
50g oats
1tsp salt
1tsp bicarb
1tbsp lemon juice or cider apple vinegar
300ml any non dairy milk (coconut milk is great)
Add a few chopped nuts & dried fruit to taste
Mix everything into a sticky dough then put into a loaf tin or make a round loaf on a baking tray dusted with a bit of flour.
Bake at 200deg for 30 mins
Enjoy with some quality butter...😋
IMG_20200318_181446.jpg
 
200g plain flour
150g wholemeal flour
50g oats
1tsp salt
1tsp bicarb
1tbsp lemon juice or cider apple vinegar
300ml any non dairy milk (coconut milk is great)
Add a few chopped nuts & dried fruit to taste
Mix everything into a sticky dough then put into a loaf tin or make a round loaf on a baking tray dusted with a bit of flour.
Bake at 200deg for 30 mins
Enjoy with some quality butter...😋
View attachment 53632

Thanks for the recipe.
I'll be trying that!
I also want to try Chris' (Edina's) and/or Nigel's (Mr brown's) bran loaf - see posts #57 and #58.

Colin 🙂🙂🙂
 
Hope it turns out good mate. You can adjust the recipe to suit, use all plain flour instead of mix of the 2. Any acidic type juice will do, don't use malt vinegar tho it'll taint the flavour.
I have made cherry & date, date & walnut, & dried mixed fruit variants, all have been lovely. Going to try a savoury mix next batch probably a handful of grated cheese & maybe some red onion chopped fine so watch this space....
 
Looks great mate. Fruit & nuts are optional extras anyway so no worries. I have made round loaves too but prefer the tins cos the slices fit in the toaster!...👍😉 yours looks lovely tho, hope it tastes as good as it looks...
 
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For the latest sourdough I've increased the proving time which seems to have resulted in a crust which hasn't split so deeply into the loaf:

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It has lots of seeds included and has a more even 'crumb' , more reminiscent of the loaves to be found in Germany:

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.......though I suspect the later is more to do with the mixing and kneading rather than the longer proving time.
I've managed to buy ingredients for some alternative recipes - so watch this space!

Colin 🙂🙂🙂
 
This afternoon I made a loaf using the recipe that GreggBear posted at #67. I also added about 100g of chopped dates and about 100g of chopped walnuts.
I thoroughly mixed all the dry ingredients together before adding the 300ml of coconut milk and (for me) 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar. I then quickly stirred everything together (because the bicarbonate of soda and the vinegar start to react pretty much straight away) and spooned the wet mixture into an oiled bread tin. I gently pressed the stiff mix into the bread tin and smoothed the surface of the loaf with the back of a spoon.
I baked the loaf for about 30 mins at 200°C in a fan oven.
The result is paler than the samples posted by GreggBear but a wooden skewer came out of the loaf only slightly damp.
I'm really pleased with the result:

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It tastes great with a lovely texture, so thanks go to GreggBear for this one. It's not a sweet loaf but the dates make it not totally savoury. There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that I'll be making quite a few variants on this recipe!
Again, thanks GreggBear.

Colin 🙂🙂🙂
 
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You're welcome buddy, glad you liked it. It looks great by the way. An extra 5 mins in the oven will probably darken it up & finish cooking the centre.
Last batch I made contained chopped dates & walnuts, as well as glace cherries & dried mixed fruit. Get creative & go crazy!
Good luck with your next batch....👍😉
 

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