MESSY BAKER

A few months back my daughter (10yo) started having ongoing stomach pains and bloating and we thought we'd have her checked out to see if any of it might be caused by allergies or some sort of food reactions.  To my huge sorrow, the test showed high level of intolerance to wheat - WHEAT !! I've been baking for myself and for my family and with my family for as long as I can remember, and now thats all gone???!!!    After taking a few days to cry and dust myself off and decided that its not all bad, actually if anything, its a new challenge to test my baking skills. I am hoping that one day I will be baking gluten free sourdough creations but for now I am going to start with easier, more familiar recipes, like biscuits or scones.    I do love a good scone, and after spotting some new season wild garlic on my morning walk, my mind was made up - I shall make some wild garlic scones.  I've had great success with Rosie Birkett Wild Garlic and Cheddar Scones las...

This bread was a bit of an experiment, it’s the first time I baked this recipe, but it turned out such a success that I will definitely be baking it again! It is bursting with flavour – super seeds mix for the extra goodness and a touch of sweetness from the dried fruit.   Makes 2 medium sized loaves (tin loaves) Dough : 250g rye starter (100%) 320g (+30g) lukewarm water 330g white bread flour 100g rye flour 50g roastedbarley malt 10g salt Seeds porridge : 100g sunflower seeds 50g linseeds 50g pumpkin seeds 50g dried fruit (raising, currants or cranberries) 100g warm water   Prepare the porridge : toast sunflower seeds and linseeds in a preheated oven (180C) for 6-8 minutes. Combine with the rest of the seeds and fruit and add water. Leave for an hour until the water is absorbed.   Dough : Mix all flours, including roasted barley malt, with starter and 320g of water. Mix well to make sure that all the water has been incorporated and all the flour is mixed in. Leave ...

 What I love about rye breads is the huge variety you get from different parts of the world – there are dark spicy loves from Easter Europe that remind me of my childhood, there are wholesome German breads tightly packed with grans, there are crusty French loaves full of flavour and there is the famous Pastrami on Rye sandwiches that you can find in New York. I’ve developed this recipe for a bread class I ran a few years back, taking a bit from all different cultures to create a dark bread, full of flavour and yes with a light crumb that can be eaten as it is or toasted for a crispier finish. New York Rye Bread 150 ml water 150 ml orange juice 1 tsp (10g) molasses 100g rye starter (100% hydration) 150g dark rye flour 220g white bread flour 30g roasted barley malt flour 1 tsp (10g) salt 1 ½ tsp fennel seeds ½ tsp ground cumin ½ tsp ground coriander -     -  This is the mix of spices I love, but feel free to adjust the quantities Whole cori...

“Pandoro” is a beautiful golden colour, star-shaped bread dusted with powdered sugar. That gorgeous colour is what lent the bread its name -   “ pan d’oro ” meaning “golden bread”.   While Christmas is all about the cake and the pudding, the run up to Christmas, and New Years for me its all about Pandoro. Looks like I am not the only one that feels that way, as around 117 million breads sell every year in the run up to Christmas !!   You can buy Pandoro in many shops around the world, but nothing beats the one you make yourself … So, lets get on with the recipe - this recipe makes two Pandoro (or is it Pandori?) A couple of notes before you begin : FLOUR : if you can, use an artisan Italian flour – a fine white 00 flour with a very low white content. I use Shipton Mill Italian Flour as it really does make a difference to the texture of the bread. MOULDS : I use 1kg Pandoro bread moulds, you can buy them from many online retails, I got mine from BakeryBits ....

Happy New Year and all that - hope you had a lovely break and ready to face the world after the holiday hibernation. Its my last day of holidays and I've had a bit of a bread from bread baking, so I thought I'll start with something nice and easy to start with. My January GoodFood magazine arrived last week and I finally got around to reading it when a carrot cake recipe caught my eye and I decided to give it a go (with a few modifications). Honey Carrot and Ginger Loaf 1 Tbsp honey 1 Tbsp olive oil 3 large carrots (280g), peeled and grated 1/2 - 1 tsp ground ginger 60g spelt flour 165g white flour 1/4 tsp salt 1 tsp baking powder 3 eggs 60g natural yoghurt 50ml almond milk Peel and grate carrots in a bowl, add honey, oil and ginger and mix everything together. Line a baking tray with parchment paper and tip the carrots onto the tray, spread out evenly. Heat the oven to 160C (fan) and roast carrots for 15 mins, giving it a bit of a stir half way through. Coo...

My husband recently got into cheese making, he did a course at one of local cheese farms and got really inspired by all the different cheeses you can make at home - anything from fresh ricotta and halumi to strong aged cheddar and soft brie. As far as I am concerned, its a great hobby for him - I love cheese, and now I get to sample all of his different cheese experiments.  But I've also discovered that whey - a cheese by-product - is great for baking! its a slightly sweet, slightly creamy liquid that makes a perfect base for breads, giving them slightly softer crumb and more golden crust.  If you won't have whey, just use water in this recipe, or there are plenty of easy recipes for home made cheese if you want to try your hand at making it at home and remember to collect whey to use it in breads later. Milk and Oat Sourdough Pre-ferment: 150g stiff white starter (50% hydration) 100ml milk 230ml whey or water  50g rye flour 250g white bread flo...

My mother in law makes the best mince pies, they are these tiny buttery shells filled with juicy, boozy fruit always topped with a small pasty star. The pastry is wonderful and short, but it’s the mincemeat that really makes it.  I don’t think I will ever be able to replicate her recipe, so the best I can do it to go to good old favorites – Delia and Mary Berry and create my own recipe, my own special recipe that I can pass onto my children.  Christmas Mince  Makes 3x0.3l jars  200g (1 large) bramley apple  225g raising  225g currants  225g sultanas  130g mixed candied peel, chopped  225g brown sugar  50g toasted almond flakes  3 heaped tsp mixed spice  ½ tsp nutmeg  1 lemon, juice only  1 orange, juice only  150g shredded suet  50g butter  2 bay leaves  250ml brandy  Core the apple (don’t worry about peeling) and chop into small, fingernail size pieces. Place the appl...