Apple, Walnut, Cheddar Cheese Bread & Honey and Sesame Seed Bread

No-knead, no-rise, no-yeast bread in 40 minutes start to finish? Yep, you’d better believe it. When I first saw this recipe here I couldn’t believe how easy it was. Bread is usually a long processes involving waiting around, for a couple of hours at a time, to give your yeast a chance to prove (any bread buffs out there – get the pun?!) that it is alive and kicking (what an attention seeking little so and so!). No-knead, no-rise, no-yeast means no waiting...at all.

Whilst the bread is baking in the oven, you have just about enough time to wash up, call some friends round and crack open a bottle of wine. Once this bread is out of the oven, it requires immediate consumption. This is not a dramatic over exaggerated expression of how delicious this bread is. Rather, a slight drawback of taking a short cut in baking. If left to go cold it can be a little stodgy. Of course if you do bake it in advance, I would simply advise warming it up before you eat it.  

On the plus side, this recipe is all about getting creative. Use the basic recipe of said amount of flour, salt, water and olive oil and let your imagination/taste buds do the rest! I’ve tried paprika and chilli, olive and rosemary (as used in the original) and even date and walnut. The ones in this post were my favourite. Sweet apple, crunchy walnut and salty, creamy cheese. Mouth watering already? Mine too! I just love the mix of sweet and savoury. When I go to the cinema, it’s always half sweet and half salty popcorn for me. And as for honey and sesame seed, if you’ve ever tried Jewish breads you’ll know honey and sesame is a tried and tested combination. This bread couldn’t be any easier if it tried. Now there is no excuse for not baking your own!

Apple, Walnut and Cheddar Bread (serves 8)

300g self raising flour

Pinch of salt

2/3 tbsp olive oil

150ml warm water

1 green apple, cut into small cubes

Approx 50g walnuts, roughly chopped

Approx 40g cheddar cheese, grated

// Click here to PRINT RECIPE //

Start by measuring out the flour and pinch of salt. Add the oil, warm water and cheese. (The measurements are quite specific but honestly, if you pour in 1 whole tbsp of oil instead of 2/3 by mistake it’s not the end of the world. The same goes for the water and cheese.) Stir until the mixture comes together using a wooden spoon.

As the dough forms it will start to come away from the sides of the bowl. At this point tip out onto a clean surface. Push the dough around and shape into a flattened circle. Pile the apple and walnuts into the middle of your circle and pull the dough over to cover. Use your hands to try and evenly distribute the apple and walnuts into your dough. If it seems to stick to your hands, add a little more flour.

Shape into a round loaf, by tucking in the edges of your circle underneath (as seen in the video below). Use the handle of a wooden spoon to indent 8 segmentations in the loaf. This will make the loaf easier to cut/pull apart once bakes. Sprinkle some cheese on top for a cheesy crust. And now it’s ready to bake, for 30 minutes at 200 ºc.

Honey and Sesame Seed Bread (serves 8) 

300g self raising flour

A pinch of salt

2/3 tbsp olive oil

150ml warm water

4 tbsp runny honey

3tbsp back sesame seeds

3tbsp white sesame seeds

// Click here to PRINT RECIPE //

Start this is the same way as the other bread. Start by measuring out the flour and pinch of salt. Add the oil, warm water, honey and sesame seeds. (The measurements are quite specific but honestly, if you pour in 1 whole tbsp of oil instead of 2/3 by mistake it’s not the end of the world. The same goes for the water, honey and sesame seeds. If you only have one kind of sesame seed, that’s fine too.) Stir until the mixture comes together using a wooden spoon.

As the dough forms it will start to come away from the sides of the bowl. At this point tip out onto a clean surface. . Push the dough around and shape into a round loaf. Use the handle of a wooden spoon to indent 8 segmentations in the loaf. This will make the loaf easier to cut/pull apart once bakes. And now it’s ready to bake, for 30 minutes at 200 ºc.

I shared my breads with four of my friends at a “bring-a-dish” dinner party at mine, so I couldn’t blog about this recipe without mentioning them. I knew we are all foodies or at least dedicated food consumers (we all went travelling together and came back a lot heavier after two months in each others company!). But I did not realise how many great recipes they all have up their sleeves! Here is a little snippet of our feast, and my God it was a feast!

Ricotta and Roasted Veg Stuffed Pancakes

Mushroom and Pesto Puffs, Camembert, Apple Toast

Tiramisu

Apple, Walnut, Cheddar Cheese and Honey, Sesame Seed Bread 

Cheese Board

The chefs! 

Until next time...

Mexican Guacamole and Horchata

For the past three weeks or so I have been impatiently waiting for the right time to pick my chillies. Which, I might add, I grew myself without killing or neglecting. Completely from scratch. This is a huge achievement for me as someone who has seen one too many basil plants die shrivelled and unloved on my kitchen windowsill!

Last autumn I went to a Mexican chain called Wahaca, who very generously give you a gift of chilli seeds as you leave. Those seeds became my babies over the last year. It’s not meant to take chillies that long to grow, but being the novice gardener that I am I didn't think to wait until after winter (the coldest this country has seen in years) to plant my seeds and give them a better chance at life! Then again, I've always been a fan of tough love. Nevertheless, despite my harsh parenting, the chillies have well and truly blossomed (as you will notice in my video below).

I couldn't think of anything more fitting to make using my Mexican chillies than a Mexican guacamole. And what with this amazing weather here in London, nachos and dips are the perfect way to start off an evening in the garden.

That brings me onto my chosen accompanying drink (because what crisps and dips would be complete without a drink?!) – Horchata. It’s an unusual Mexican drink, made from dry roasted rice, cinnamon mixed with condensed milk served cold with ice. Until recently the only thing I knew about Horchata was that it’s the name of a Vampire Weekend song (as some of you may have noticed by the music from my last videos, I am a Vampire Weekend fan). But alas, Horchata is an authentic Mexican drink, really easy to make and tastes amazing with a drop of rum as suggested in the recipe I followed that can be found here. 

Mexican Guacamole (serves 4)

2 ripe avocados

5 cherry/baby plum tomatoes or 1 normal tomato, chopped into small dice

1 small red onion, chopped into small dice

2 small green chillies, finely chopped

3/4 tsp lemon/lime juice

Simply add all the ingredients into a bowl and either use you hands or use a knife and spoon to squash the avocado into the other ingredients. Keeping the avocados whole to begin with allows you to add texture to your guacamole. You can add more/less chillies according to taste. This goes for the lemon/lime juice as well. Guacamole is best made fresh right before you want to eat it, and is best served with nachos.

// Click here to PRINT RECIPE //
Horchata (serves 6)

1/3 cup rice
1 large piece of cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
340g evaporated milk (about 1 can)
396g condensed milk (1 can)
4/5 cups of water
cinnamon to garnish
ice to serve

Dry roast the rice and cinnamon in a pan over a medium heat. Wait for the rice to turn slightly golden. Keep tossing in the pan to avoid any rice getting overcooked as this will give a burnt taste.

Grind the rice and cinnamon in a blender until they form a fine powder.

Mix all remaining ingredients in a jug and add the powder. Stir well and then drain over a cheese cloth into another jug or large punch bowl. You can use a really fine cloth (as I did) if you don't have a cheese cloth. Refrigerate and serve cold with some ice and cinnamon powder to finish. you can even add a dash of rum when you serve if you wish, trust me this tastes great!

// Click here to PRINT RECIPE //
If you're having a Mexican fiesta any time soon, these recipes are a must!

Until next time...

Summer Lasagne

Summer is here, and it's baking! Stepping outside I almost feel like I'm on holiday. However, if my experience of British summertime is anything to go by, this wonderful weather is probably going to be short lived. So I'm going to make the most of it whilst it's here. And what better way to do that than alfresco dining? This recipe is perfect for just that. Light, rich in greens and clean, summer flavours - this is the perfect summer dish.

If you've scrolled down already, you may have noticed I've tried to do things a little differently this post. I have used VIDEOS! Or more accurately, mini "movies", as the only editing software I have of my computer is the stuff that comes free with Windows and that, apparently, is a "movie maker". So instead of photos depicting my afternoon fun I have five short blockbusters. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch so thanks to my brother and friend for helping me film.

Popcorn at the ready... here's my Summer Lasagne (serves 3 or 2 very hungry people)

5 sheets of lasagne

7 small spring onions, chopped into rings

1 big bulb of fennel, chopped as thinly as possible

300g asparagus

100g broad beans

1 glass of white wine

50g parmesan cheese, grated finely

1 small tub of single cream (285ml approx)

Zest of 1 lemon, grated finely

A handful of fresh parsley, chopped finely

A handful of fennel leaves, chopped finely

1 tbps olive oil

½ tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

Start by brushing each sheet of lasagne with oil (to stop them sticking to each other as they cook), and snapping each in half. Add to boiling salted water to cook as you would normal pasta. Fish out the pasta using tongs, or alternatively you can drain the lasagne sheets as you would normal pasta. They will finish cooking about the same time as the sauce.

Prepare the asparagus by bending each one and letting the tough end naturally snap off. Discard the tough end and wash the remaining part. Put the asparagus on to cook in a pan of boiling salted water. After about 2 minutes add your frozen broad beans. Cook for further 3 minutes and drain.

Next, heat the oil in a pan, and start cooking the onions gently for about 2 minutes. Add the wine and let it reduce for about 5 minutes. Add the fennel and season. Let this cook for 2 minutes. 

Then add the cream, and let it reduce a little. Mix in the lemon zest and parmesan, followed by the fresh herbs. (I have used parsley and fennel leaves because I had these in abundance, you can really use any soft herbs you like or have around.) Finally mix in the cooked asparagus and broad beans and you’re now ready to assemble. 

To assemble this summer lasagne, start with a square of lasagne, followed by a layer of sauce making sure to get some asparagus too, then top with another sheet of pasta. I did 3 layers per person, finishing with an asparagus on top. This was a good amount for lunch, but for dinner you could easily add another layer.

And there you have it, simple and delicious summer lasagne. I hope you've enjoyed the videos and more importantly the delicious recipe!

// Click here to PRINT RECIPE //

Until next time...