monkey bread

As a teenager I absolutely dreaded the mornings, preferring to sleep my day away if given half the chance but since becoming a mum, I have grown accustomed to rising early and have actually come to relish that time between dawn and when the kids eyelids finally flutter open.  It’s often the only solitude I will get on any given day before donning my mothers hat.  My little ritual used to include making a pot of tea and taking it outside to listen to the birds chorus while the sun rose, these days I’m hitting the gym at 5 am in a bid to get fit and healthy and lose the last of this ‘five pregnancy’ weight. 

The other advantage of rising with the birds is that it gives me ample time to make bread.  Such as this monkey bread that I threw together before I skedaddled to the gym on Saturday morning.  I’d not heard of monkey bread before last year some time and when I did my attention was piqued.  I really have no idea where the name originated but on biting into my first ball of sweet, cinnamony, donutty bread, I was sold!  After that very first initiation I think I made a dozen batches in so many weeks…hello hips!!!  These days I don’t make this bread as often, which suits me fine seeing as I can’t eat it, but when I do the smell is absolutely intoxicating and I kick myself at being gluten intolerant.

Monkey bread – serves at least 6
(recipe adapted slightly from The Tart Tart)

Ingredients:
30 butter
1 cup milk
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup raw sugar
2 1/2 tsp yeast
1 tsp salt
3 1/4 cups flour
80 g melted butter
1 cup brown sugar
4 Tbsp cinnamon

Method:
Place the first measure of butter, milk, water and sugar into a small pot and heat gently over a low heat until the butter has melted and the liquids are luke warm.  Stir in the yeast and set aside 5 minutes till frothy.  Meanwhile, measure the flour into a large bowl and add the salt.

Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir with a knife/wooden spoon until it comes together like a dough.  Turn out onto a lightly floured bench and knead for 5 minutes until smooth and glossy.  Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover with gladwrap and leave in a warm spot till it’s risen to double the size.

Once the dough has doubled in size, melt the second measure of butter and place in a small bowl.  In a separate bowl mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon till well combined.  Grease a loaf tin well making sure to get into the corners.  Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured bench and divide evenly into roughly 50 pieces.  Dip each dough ball into the melted butter then coat in the brown sugar mix and place into the loaf tin, layering as you go.

Cover the loaf tin with gladwrap and leave to rise for 30-40 minutes.  You want the bread to rise again slightly.  Preheat oven 170°.  Once the bread has risen bake for 40-50 minutes until golden.  Cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack.

Notes:
- we are spice freaks so add lots of cinnamon, you can reduce the amount to suit your tastes
- bread is best eaten on the day it is made and definitely while still warm
- the original recipe calls for a glaze, we found this much too rich for our liking but feel free to add it to yours
- I’ve added chopped walnuts, raisins and some mixed spice to my flour mix before adding the wet ingredients…it takes this bread to a whole new level!!

bread and butter pudding

Nothing says winter more than comfort food so as an ode to the last few days of winter, which is still lingering by the way, I made a brioche bread & butter pudding which was inspired by Unna’s brioche french toast that she recently shared on Instagram.  Bread and butter pudding is the epitome of comfort food (in dessert form) to my family and is up there with good old fashioned rice pudding.  The best thing about puddings like this is that they are even better the next day for breakfast.  Go on be a little reckless, I dare you *wink

Bread and butter pudding with crème anglaise – serves 6+

Ingredients: (pudding)
a day old loaf of bread – thickly sliced
100g butter – softened
2/3 cup dried fruit
2 cups milk
1 cup cream
1 tsp pure vanilla
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup brown sugar
5 eggs
generous pinch salt

Ingredients: (crème anglaise – custard sauce)
1 cup cream
1 cup milk
1 tsp pure vanilla
pinch of salt
1/4 cup sugar
4 yolks

Method: (pudding)

Lightly grease a square pudding dish.  Butter both sides of the sliced bread and place in the dish, layering as you go.  Sprinkle the dried fruit on and around your bread as you go.
Preheat your oven 180° then whisk the eggs with the cream, milk, salt and spices until well combined and pour over the top of the bread.  Leave to absorb for 15-20 minutes.  Bake for 35-45 minutes until golden on top and set in the middle.

Method: (crème anglaise – custard sauce)

Gently heat the cream and milk in a small pan over a low heat until it just starts to simmer.  In a bowl beat the yolks with the sugar until it is thick and pale in colour.  While beating the yolks pour in a small amount of the milk/cream (approx. 1/4 cup) then add the yolk mixture to your pot and continue to stir over a very low heat until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Do not allow this mixture to boil!  Stir in the vanilla and salt then strain through a sieve into a small jug, place cling wrap directly over the sauces surface and allow to cool before storing in the fridge.

Notes:
- the crème anglaise can be made up to 3 days in advance
- I used cranberries and raisins here but have also used dried diced apricots and sultanas
- roughly chopped walnuts or pecans are a nice addition as are slivered almonds
- use a bread of your choice.  fruit loaf is particularly decadent
- a dollop of ice cream doesn’t go astray
- the zest of a lemon/orange and a sprinkling of dark chocolate chips makes for a nice variation

brioche

I kind of put my foot in it last week.  I was bragging about how amazing a brioche loaf would be in a request for bread and butter pudding without even knowing how to make brioche.  I’m certainly not new to bread making, I used to make bread by hand on a regular basis until I found out I am gluten intolerant and it lost it's appeal, so I thought to myself ‘how hard can it be?’  Have you ever made brioche?  Well let me tell you that it would be a piece of cake if you have a mixer of some sort but to make it by hand takes         c o m m i t t m e n t !    It’s messy, time consuming and somewhat tiring!!  Don’t be put off by the messy hard work though, the rhythmic kneading action is kind of therapeutic and the mix does eventually come together into a soft, smooth, pliable dough.  I'm also told that the effort I went to was well worth it *wink 
 
This brioche was used to make the most luxurious bread and butter pudding – recipe coming soon, and I think it would make an equally delectable french toast.

Brioche – makes one large or two small loaves
(recipe from Gourmet Traveller but the method is my own)

Ingredients:
160ml warm milk
1 1/2 tsp yeast
5 egg yolks – lightly beaten
375g flour, plus extra for dusting
30g sugar
150g butter – cubed
1 egg – egg wash

Method:
Sprinkle the yeast over half of the milk and mix gently.  Set aside till frothy, approximately 5 minutes.  Whisk egg yolks into the remaining milk and set aside.
Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl then pour in both the yeast and yolk mixtures and mix till well combined and dough like.  Tip out onto a lightly floured bench and knead for approximately 10 mins.  Once you have a nice dough, flatten out and place half of the cubed butter on one side of the dough then fold the remaining dough over the top of the butter.  This gets messy but you need to work the butter into the dough.  Knead the dough, working the butter in, till it is well combined and then repeat with the remaining butter.  Trust me, it does come together but requires a good 15-20 mins of vigorous kneading.
Once you have a nice smooth dough place it into a butter bowl, cover and leave to rise until doubled in size.  Once doubled, gently fold the dough over on itself a few times then cling wrap and place in the fridge overnight.
In the morning remove the dough from the fridge and allow to come to room temperature before placing into a lined loaf tin (this is where you can divide the dough to make two loaves).  Leave the dough to rise for a second time.  Preheat oven 180° and brush the loaf/loaves with the egg wash.  Bake for 45-50 minutes until golden brown and hollow sounding when tapped.  Cool briefly in the tin before turning out onto a wire rack.

hot cross buns

I know that Easter is done and dusted and that you may well be thinking that I have missed the boat in terms of posting a recipe for hot cross buns but let me share a little secret with you.  My man and I share a particular weakness for these spicy fruit buns, so much so that we enjoy them at any time of year *wink

You see, hot cross buns were the last meal we enjoyed together before uniting as husband and wife.  We married on Good Friday, 1999 so it seemed only fitting that we start the day with hot cross buns, sadly they weren’t homemade as we now enjoy, they were just your average supermarket variety.

I remember waking earlier than usual that morning, the sun just peaking out over the horizon.  I looked over at the man still deep in slumber beside me wondering how I got to be so darn lucky.  My heart skipped a beat and butterflies of excitement starting dancing in my belly as I drank in the sight of him.  I reached out for his hand and holding it in mine thought about all the dreams we had shared, the babies we had created and the memories we had made.  Leaving him to his dreams, I slipped out of bed to prepare breakfast.  A pot of tea and toasted hot cross buns with lashings of butter.  We sat in bed that morning looking out towards the beach, sipping, eating and laughing.

There was no sense of urgency as I prepare to leave for my parents to get ready, just a quiet calm that continued throughout the day.  We exchanged vows on a cliff top overlooking the beach where I grew up, surrounded by loved ones, followed with a leisurely lunch at my dad’s restaurant.  As far as weddings go, it was a very simple affair but one that I look back on with the fondest of memories.

Before I went to sleep that night I thought back in reverse of all the events that had unfolded that day.  The partying and dancing until the wee hours, the heartfelt speeches, marrying the man that I adored – my soul mate, being given away by my Grandfather who only had weeks to live and eating breakfast in bed undisturbed by our little people.  In that moment I promised myself that I would start making our hot cross buns from scratch and I’ve been umming and ahhing over hot cross bun recipes ever since.  The recipe that follows is this years version adapted ever so slightly from here.

Hot Cross Buns

Ingredients:
310ml warm milk
2 Tbsp sugar
4 tsp dried yeast
600 g sifted flour
1 tsp salt
3 Tbsp cinnamon
2 tsp mixed spice
1.5 tsp nutmeg (we love our spice)
60 g soft butter
2.5 cups raisins (might seem overkill but we love fruit too)
2 eggs, slightly beaten

Egg wash:
1 egg white
1 Tbsp milk

Crosses:
2 Tbsp flour
2 Tbsp water

Method:
Place the warmed milk into a small bowl with the sugar and sprinkle over the yeast.  Mix to combine and let stand about 5 minutes till frothy.
Place the sifted flour, salt and spices into a large bowl and mix.  Rub the butter into the flour with your fingers until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.  Add the raisins, yeast mixture and eggs and stir until combined.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for around 5 minutes until it becomes elastic and smooth.  Place the dough into a lightly greased bowl and cover with a damp tea towel or gladwrap and leave to rise until doubled in size.
Once risen, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and punch down before dividing into 12-16 equal pieces.  Form a neat ball with each piece of dough and place about 2 inches apart on to a lined tray.  Cover and leave to rise again 20 minutes.
Preheat oven to 190°c.  Mix together the egg wash ingredients and brush over the top of the buns.  Whisk together the flour and water to make the crosses until it makes a smooth paste.  Pipe the top of the buns then bake approximately 15 minutes until golden.

Best enjoyed with lashings of butter and a pot of hot tea!

*edited: I use a fan force oven, if you have a regular oven heat to 200°c and bake for a total of 20-25 minutes, reducing the heat to 180°c after 10 minutes.