Crunchy Rosemary and Honey Soda bread

This is by far the easiest bread recipe I have ever tried! I had handwritten it a while ago but only had the time to make it now.

Necessity is the mother of invention. Anup was away on work travel. I did not have a chance to step out of the home to buy store bought rolls, bread and had some extra kitchen time in between cooking the mains so what did I do when I realised I did not have yeast or any rising agents other than soda bicarbonate, look for the next best option! Which truly was the best option where it came to this recipe.

You can have it with melted butter, olive oil with some Mediterranean herbs or if you like sweeter options maple syrup, honey drizzle or jelly/jams or even peanut butter. I made this bread over Christmas Eve and we dunked it into some savoury Slow cooked duck gravy! Yumm! I will share the duck recipe soon as well.

This bread is best had immediately out of the oven so make sure you have your accompaniments of your choice ready to go and this is the last thing you take out from the oven. Crispy and crunchy on the outside, this is the bread to go when the weather outside is cold / chilly even! Hope you enjoy this bread as much as we did!

You need:

• 400 gms of whole wheat flour or multigrain wheat flour
• 475 gms of maida/plain flour
• A pinch of salt
• 8 tbsps of natural honey (if you do not have this you can use store bought varieties too)
• 2 sprigs of rosemary or dried rosemary (in case you do not have the option for fresh varieties)
• 600 ml buttermilk
• 1 tsp of soda bicarbonate

The Make:
Serves 4 adults | Preparation time: 5 minutes | Cooking time: 40-45 minutes

1. Preheat your oven to 210°C
2. If you are using dried rosemary, you can use it directly from the air tight bottle. Otherwise remove the rosemary from the stalks and set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, mix the whole wheat flour with the plain flour, rosemary and salt.
4.Add the buttermilk and honey. Mix well till you get a soft dough. Next turn the soft dough onto a floured surface and knead well to a smooth mix.
5. Shape into two round loafs and stick a knife into the top of one loaf and cut a cross and then cut into another cross till you see eight triangles. Repeat for the second loaf.
6. Using a metal spatula carefully scoop each loaf onto lightly floured baking trays.
7. Bake for 30-40 minutes each. Bake test is to tap the base of the loaf lightly to hear a hollow sound.
8. Rest for 5-10 minutes. If you are not a fan of crusty bread, then wrap the loaf in a damp kitchen/tea towel.

Serve hot! Bon Appetit!

Papaya pies and Papaya Pancakes

I hope my readers are enjoying my Breakfast creations as much as I am enjoying creating them. I know that after the initial requests for Breakfast week, it continued into the second week as well. Seriously I am considering continuing for another week simply because I am so enjoying creating these breakfast creations. I still have a couple more to post however I just cannot stop creating new ones. I just made one this morning, finger licking good and kids will so enjoy it as well. Plus, each of these recipes are so nutritious and filling that your energy lasts till afternoon.

PapayaPies

My lil one has been learning about fruits and food types in school. Papaya has been a fancy for her in its imagery and seeds. She does not like to eat it as is but this recipe was enjoyed by her esp. the pancake.

Papaya Pancakes

Now for the pies, I had to add extra ingredients but the base mix was just the same. Papaya by itself is rich in  provitamin A carotenoids, vitamin C, B vitamins, dietary minerals and dietary fibre. I cannot reinstate how important it is to have a breakfast rich in dietary fibre. Kick starts your entire day;-)



*You need:

I have the whole Papaya in my hand:)

• 1 medium sized ripened papaya, chopped into small pieces
• 2 cups all-purpose flour or plain flour or whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 4 tbsp sugar or honey
• A pinch of cinnamon powder
• 1 cup milk (if slim milk, then use 2 cups)
• 1 tbsp cooking oil 
• 1 tbsp butter (room temperature)
• 1/2 cup filtered water
• 1/2 cup yoghurt or 1 mashed banana or 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp cooking oil for dipping (take in a small bowl)
• 1 tbsp powdered or split flax seeds or blanched and finely diced almonds or other nuts (*Optional - adds crunch)

The make:

Makes 10 pancakes | Cooking Time: 20 minutes | Preparation Time: 15 minutes

1. Puree the papaya. You can also opt to cut it into thin slices.
2.  Mash banana if you are using banana or whisk eggs if you are using eggs or else skip this step.
3. Combine dry ingredients and mix slightly and allow to stand for 10 minutes.
4. Add the papaya puree to the mix with the milk, oil, water,vanilla and yoghurt or banana or eggs.
5. Whisk together until just combined. Do not over mix as it has to be slightly thick and lumpy. Set aside to rest for 5 minutes.
6. Add butter to the mix after resting period and give it a good stir. Meanwhile heat an iron skillet or dosa pan or non-stick skillet on high heat until hot.
7. Lower the heat to medium-high and with a oil - dipped kitchen paper towel, rub the surface of the skillet from middle to slightly outer ring of the skillet.
8.  Stir the batter mix. Then take a 1/2 cup quantity of batter in a ladle and pour it in the center of the skillet and in a circular fashion, spread the batter to the outer ring of the skillet.

Closeup of my papaya pancake batter

9. Cook the pancake for 2 minutes on each side or until bubbles appear on the surface of the first side. Since    I had added ripened papaya and sugar to the mix, I had a darker appearance of the surface of the pancake.  It was not in the least bit burnt just darkened because of the fruit factor with sugar.
10. Serve hot as is or with coconut cream, chocolate sauce or sour cream.

Papaya Pancakes

Now for the Papaya Pies, I added

You need:
The above ingredients *

• 1/2 cup more of flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder 
• 1/2 cup of milk
• 3 tbsp of butter at room temperature
• A pinch of nutmeg (optional)
• Sour cream (couple of tbsp)
• Almonds - a few

The make:
Makes 10-12 pies | Cooking Time: 20-30 minutes | Preparation Time: 10 minutes

You can also just use the above batter to make as many pancakes as you like and use the remaining batter with the pie ingredients to make 8-10 pies. In my case I made 7-8 pancakes and then used the remaining ingredients with the pie ingredients to make 8 pies.

1. Either add the pie ingredients to the pancake ingredients as described in the method to make only pies or use the remaining batter of pancake and add in all the above ingredients, except the sour cream and almonds. and whisk well. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.
2. Next into a muffin cake tray, pour 3/4 of each pocket with the batter mix and set into a preheated oven of 160°C and cook until golden brown on top or until cooked (check with a skewer). It would normally take 20-30 minutes in an oven of 170-180°C.

Undressed Pumpkin Pies

3. Once cooled, transfer the pies onto a wire rack and top with sour cream and blanched split almonds or whole almonds.

Papaya Pies

Bon Appetit!