Our Daily Bread ( bread recipe )

We think we have come to a decision on what to do next, --------  carry on cruising to London, !   it has a comedy sound to it, and with us, probably a comedy feel too. We hope to get down there before Phil and Rosie go on their holiday, and see a few of the sights as time allows, we nearly set off today, but Ali's sister Chrissie phoned with an offer Ali could't refuse, a trip to the shops.

We have been aboard for approaching a year, and have bought bread on two occasions, the rest of the time Ali makes the bread by hand, using a mix of flours and a selection of seeds and nuts. We did bring with us a bread maker, but as we did't use it , and as it took up vital cupboard space,  have taken it back ashore.
Ali has had a couple of requests for bread recipes and method, so here it is.

Cooking in a small galley has taught me how to be a bit more organised in my approach - so assemble your ingredients and equipment before you start. You'll need 450g of Strong white bread flour, 1 sachet of fast action yeast,  a good glug of olive oil (about 3 dessert spoons) 1 teaspoon of salt and 300 ml of tepid water.
I do favour the good quality bread flours as they  seem to produce consistent results but the main thing to remember is it must be STRONG flour, not ordinary plain or self-raising.

 Put the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl and give a quick mix with a spatula. Add the oil and water and mix till a rough dough forms. Quick word about the liquid here - water is frequently used in bread but you could substitute milk, cider, beer or even some leftover white wine ( is there ever any leftover I hear you ask?!) The liquid does need to be lukewarm because that helps get the yeast working. If you want to add a handful or so of sunflower/pumpkin seeds at this stage so much the better - it adds fibre, nutrition and flavour.
The dough will be slightly sticky, if it is very dry add a drop more liquid.

 Have ready some lightly oiled cling film

 Adding a good handful of seeds

 Scrape the dough onto a lightly oiled surface and bring together into a ball

 Begin kneading - this is the fun part and a great de-stressor!  Fold the dough over on itself, keep giving it half turns and press down on the dough with the heel of your hand whilst pushing it away from you

 If the above description of kneading makes no sense to you just pummel, squeeze and stretch the dough until it's smooth. Try not to use lots of extra flour as this upsets the balance of the recipe and makes bread dry - just work through the sticky phase - knead for between 5 and 10 minutes, get into a good rhythm, the dough feels silky and elastic when it's ready

 Place the dough into a bowl that you have greased with a teaspoon of olive or vegetable oil and cover the bowl with the greased cling film. Leave to rise at room temperature for at least an hour, perhaps a little more, until the dough is puffy - it will be at least doubled in size. Patience at this stage results in better bread.

 The risen dough - you can see the seeds poking through!

 Put the risen dough on the work surface and 'knock back' using your knuckles, the dough will deflate - that's supposed to happen! Knead for a minute or two only then shape, a basic cobb is just like a large pebble.

 Put the shaped dough onto a greased or lined oven tray, I use parchment lined foil, most supermarkets stock it now and as well as preventing the bread sticking to the tray, it also saves on washing up!  Cover with the same cling film that you used on the bowl and leave to 'prove' ( that is- rise again)  but this time only for about 30 - 40 minutes. It will be doubled in size when ready to cook.

 I like to slash the top of the dough with a sharp knife before cooking, but it can be left plain if you prefer. Some people glaze their bread with milk or beaten egg before cooking - again personal choice

 Ready to go in the oven - gas 7, or electric 220 C. The oven does need to be hot so pre-heat for a few minutes

 After 25 minutes check the bread - the delicious smell will be a give away that it's almost ready. It's a bit of a fiddle but at this stage I take the almost cooked loaf off the oven tray and place it back directly on the oven shelf - UPSIDE DOWN to finish cooking, this ensures a lovely all over crust. Then after another 5 minutes check the bread again, using an oven cloth turn the loaf upside down and tap on the base with your hand - it will sound hollow when cooked.  All ovens are different, in our oven the bread takes between 30 and 35 minutes to be done. I always think that bread is better slightly over done - nothing worse than a doughy middle!

The finished loaf cooling on a wire rack

Firstly, well done for getting this far, a long blog for us, the bread recipe is well worth the effort though.

We aim to move to Abingdon tomorrow morning, on our trip down the Thames 

Bye for now,

Baz and Ali.