crunch crunch

I just made some muesli. Crunchy.
Our new house doesn't have an oven so I thought I would bake some things. I also made some strawberry jam. I think it's going to be good. Probably better than the guts necklace I made for skin & bones.
Nice segue. My excuse for the ambivalence is simply that it was too hot for anything last week, in particular sewing. Tough as Guts. Or is it Rough as guts? I dunno.
I am wishing for cooler breezes, I'm tired of being grumpy.

This is one of the better photos (and possibly least incriminating) from saturday's rooftop dancing party. It still is a challenge to use my camera with the broken screen, a blind point and shoot. It's a bit of a lucky dip when you download the results. LUCKY.

hot-crossed buns

I have managed to cheer myself up completely by baking amazing hot-crossed buns. They are soft, fluffy and fragrant and better than any I've had since my Mum made them when I was little...



1 cup milk
1 sachet of dried yeast
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. salt
1/3 cup butter, melted and cooled
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
4 eggs
5 C flour
1 1/2 cup currants or raisins
1/2 cup of chopped candied orange peel
1 egg white

Glaze
1 1/3 cup icing sugar
1 1/2 tsp. finely chopped lemon zest
1/2 tsp. lemon juice
1- 2 tblsp. milk

If you haven't baked with yeast before, do some reading first, for some background and prepare to witness some special magic. In a small saucepan, heat milk to luke warm, but not hot. Pour warm milk in a bowl and sprinkle yeast over. Mix to dissolve and let sit for 5 minutes.

Gently mix in sugar, salt, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg and eggs. Gradually add flour, dough will be wet and sticky, and continue mixing until smooth, about 5 minutes. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and let the dough "rest" for 30-45 minutes.

Mix until smooth and elastic, for about 3 more minutes. Add currants or raisins and knead until well mixed. At this point, dough will still be fairly wet and sticky. Shape dough in a ball, place in a buttered dish, cover with a lid or plastic wrap and let rise overnight* in the refrigerator. Excess moisture will be absorbed by the morning.

Let dough sit at room temperature for about a half-hour. Line a large baking pan (or pans) with parchment paper (you could also lightly grease a baking pan, but parchment works better). Divide dough into 24 equal pieces (in half, half again, etc., etc.). Shape each portion into a ball and place on baking sheet, about 1/2 inch apart. Cover with a clean tea towel and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.



In the meantime, pre-heat oven to 400° F. When buns have risen, take a sharp or serrated knife and carefully slash buns with a cross. Brush them with egg white and place in oven. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350° F, then bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes more. Transfer to a wire rack. Whisk together glaze ingredients, and spoon over buns in a cross pattern. Serve warm, if possible (Hot Cross Buns).

Instead of this glaze I just made a sugar syrup with some sugar, lemon juice and a little zest and cinnamon, simmered on the stove til slightly thick, and brushed on hot... It added some extra sweet sticky zest at the end... then I pulled out the white picture icing and added some lightning bolts...



*if you cannot possibly wait until tomorrow, break off a bit, and form it into bun shapes, and place on a tray and let rise for an hour in a warm spot and then bake as directed, and you get the early bun. Not terribly different from the next day bun, still delicious, and a whole day earlier...

kitchen

the sun comes in the window now, this is new, it's good. it's goodbye dark days. at least as a general pattern. yup, that is good. What is also good is that Adam just baked almond and chocolate brownies... mmm...

we got flava

WE made a batch of delicious Lebkuchen... In the research phase, we discovered why you buy them at the christmas markets for your love and wear them home around your neck. They keep you safe from evil spirits and protect you in battle! Biscuit of POWER!

Lebkuchen

1/2 cup of honey
1/2 cup molasses
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 3/4 cup of plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 cup candied orange or lemon peel
1/2 cup finely chopped hazelnuts

Icing
1 cup white sugar
1/3 cup water
1/4 cup icing sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice

I put in a teaspoon of ground black pepper as I had no idea what they call allspice in germany, despite staring hopefully at the spice section for about half an hour... I managed nutmeg and cloves. I also added some finely chopped fresh ginger, because I love it. And the lemon juicey icing is me too... It's extra zesty...

In a medium saucepan, bring honey and molasses to the boil, remove from heat and stir in the brown sugar, egg, lemon juice and lemon zest, then stir in the candied peel and hazelnuts. In a large bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, allspice and nutmeg. Add the molasses mixture and stir well. Cover the dough and chill overnight.

Preheat the oven to 175 degrees C. Roll out half of the dough at a time, to 1/4 inch thickness, cut into rectangles, little men, stars or giant circles, if you wish to make flava flav clocks... Bake for 10-12 minutes until no imprint remains when touched lightly.

Brush the icing over them while they are still hot and quickly remove to wire cooling racks. Store in an airtight container with a peeled mandarin or a few slices of apple overnight... They will get soft and chewy, personally I prefer them before they get soft and chewy, but, that's how they make them here...

To make the icing: Combine the sugar and lemon juice and water in a small saucepan. Stir until fully dissolved, then gently boil until a small amount dropped into water forms a soft ball. Remove from heat and stir in icing sugar. If it becomes sugary while brushing the cookies, reheat slightly, adding a bit more water or lemon juice until crystals dissolve...

This makes a small mountain of dough, so you may want to keep half in the fridge and bake it later when the need for more arises...