Buns and Loaves

With only a couple more recipes to catch up after this, I thought I should at least make the first lot of buns on the list.   With these light mornings, its an early start for me, because despite pretty good blackout linings, the sunshine peeping along the edges of the curtains brings to me life, and calls me to either start baking or going down the garden.

I had cornmeal in the cupboard, and just sufficient molasses left in the bottom of the jar...so it was Cornmeal Buns on p 149.  I used white flour for these, as I wanted to take some round for Marie Claire and Steve.

Again I found the dough very tight and hard to knead, so I had a little bowl of water by my side, and kept dipping my fingers in it.  Not only did this keep my hands clean, I could add just a little water each time until I could feel the dough just as I wanted it.  I am working through a bag of Very Strong White flour, and maybe it is just that the gluten is so much stronger in this one.

They finished off a lovely golden brown colour on account of the molasses.  The smell in the house when they were baking was divine.  Normally my sense of smell gets overcome and goes into 'what smell mode?' when I am completely surrounded by it, but as I was mainly in the garden with the timer, then each time I came into check the buns, I really could smell the wonderful aroma.  

That was the Sunday morning early bake, when I was completely astounded to find Mr S in the kitchen just a few minutes after I had weighed the ingredients.  Our whole Sunday was full of activity because of this early start and we even set out from the house at around 9 am for our walk up through the Town, through the park and back home.  It was the two Castle Run and we clapped the first runners through by Castle Farm Recreation Center.

A brilliant quick 'summer pudding' type desert, without all the faff....best made in individual portions, came to me on the spur of the moment, just as I was clearing away from the main meal yesterday...

Take a delicious sweetish bun, in this case one of the Cornmeal Buns.  Slice down as if you are slicing a loaf into about six thin slices.  Place them in two glass desert dishes, dribble on the cooking juices of some fruit you have poached earlier, in my case this was some lovely cherries bought on Thursday.  Resist a teaspoon or so of your choice liqueur or other tasty alcohol, top with poached cherries or other poached red summer fruit, and top with cream, yogurt or creme fraiche, whatever you have.  The puddings  looked delicious, but we were so tempted that there was no photocall.  Even Mr S who normally does not like summer pudding very much, said it was superb.  I love summer pudding, after all it is fruit held together in a blanket of bread...and I love bread!

Saturday's  bake had to be one from James Morton's Book 'Brilliant Bread'.  I remembered him from the Great British Bake Off in 2012, and have just had his book for two days, borrowed from the Library.  You can really hear his voice in his writing.  I know I am going to love this book, and will most probably buy this one, if I get to the end of my  renewals on line, and get to the point of having to take it bake in to renew this.  I call this the 'prove you have not dropped this in the bath, lost it, or sold it on ebay moment!'

My first recipe was Honey & Walnut Loaf.  Absolutely delicious.

I decided to divide the dough into two, to have smaller slices, and to have a 'spare' in the freezer.

We had a couple of slices each for Sunday Morning breakfast and since I love walnuts, love sunny bright sunny mornings, love birdsong, love have a leisurely breakfast with hubby, even though it was 7 a.m. on a Sunday morning, it was a perfect start to the day!