Part One of Three
As the nation embraces lockdown, families and individuals everywhere are looking for new ways to fulfill the demands of the kitchen table.
Since the dawn of modern society, we have relied on kitchen staples such as bread, milk and butter to sustain our habits. For a long time, these products consisted of animal-derived ingredients, however, in light of recent events, more and more people are adopting a cruelty-free lifestyle.
Let us start with: Bread
Simple Bread Recipe
This recipe uses a stand mixer, which means no fuss and an even, hassle-free kneed. If you wish to make this by hand, drop us a message and we will release a new recipe, just for you!
- 475g Strong White Flour
- 1tbsp Salt
- 1tsp Oregano
- 450ml Luke Warm Water
- 1tbsp Yeast
- 1tsp Sugar
In a measuring jug, add 1tbsp yeast, 1tsp sugar (we love coconut sugar) and 450ml luke warm water. Combine with a fork or whisk and leave for up to 10 minutes, until bubbles appear on the surface.
In your mixing bowl, add 475g strong white flour (we use Dove’s organic strong white bread flour) 1tbsp Salt and 1tsp Oregano.
Set your mixer to a low speed, 1 is fine. Gently add the wet contents of your measuring jug into the mixing bowl, ensuring all of the flour combines. Pause the machine and scrape down the sides with a spatula.
Set your mixer to mid-speed, something around 3 or 4 is perfect and leave to mix for 6-8 minutes.
At the end of this, you want to ensure that the dough is perfectly combined. If it appears that you have missed some along the bottom of the bowl, use a spatula to add this into the mix and resume on a medium speed for a further 30 – 60 seconds.
Transfer your dough to a sealable container, with enough room to allow it to rise to at least double it’s size. Add the lid, leaving one corner free to allow gases to escape.
Leave to rest for between 1hr 30 minutes and 2hrs.
Remove from the container with a spatula, onto a floured surface. Flour your hands and knock-back the dough by hand. At this stage, you are gently removing any larger gaps in the dough – you can also add additional ingredients such as sun-dried tomatoes or olives, for additional flavour and texture.
After approximately 30 – 45 seconds of gentle kneading, you can take the dough and create your desired bread shape. We tend to favour oval shapes as it creates a beautiful result, but this is entirely up to you.
Place on a baking sheet, covered with baking paper and dusted with flour (we use corn flour). Leave to rise for an additional 30 minutes.
Whilst the dough is rising, turn your oven to it’s highest setting, we use 240°C on a fan oven, but this will differ with each oven. Experiment with different temperatures to suit yours.
Add baking tray, filled over half way with cold water. Make sure it’s as cold as possible (you can even add a few ice cubes). Place this at the bottom of your oven.
This will gently heat alongisde your oven to create a steaming environment.
Before you place the bread in the oven, dust lightly with flour and take a sharp knife (the sharpest knife you own) to slice along the top of the dough. You can also add any toppings such as seeds, nuts and flaked salt or oil at this stage. This slice allows gas to escape from the dough during baking as well as create an incredible final aesthetic.
Place in the centre of your oven and shut the door. Do not open it until you believe the bread is ready – it needs to become rather dark to form it’s crust. We bake ours at 240°C for 32 minutes.
Once it looks ready, remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Allow the bread to cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing into it.
How can you tell it is ready? Turn it over and tap the base, if it sounds hollow, it’s ready!
Voila – homemade bread made easy.
Vegan Life & Living 