No-knead brioche buns

This recipe was an attempt to redeem myself after my collapsing bread disaster; with no kneading apparently required and a very slow overnight rise I thought I would give it a go. The idea came from my very cool copy of Ideas in Food but is based on one from the BBC Good Food website.

I was a bit sceptical as to whether it would rise, be really heavy or taste like brioche. I have to say I was quite impressed, after peering at the dough nervously all evening as it didn’t seem to be “doing anything”, but the texture of the dough in the morning was much more elastic than I expected, and the buns did rise nicely.

They aren’t the same as a more traditional brioche, but then I did half the recipe  I’m posting as there are only two of us which made it a bit more fiddly (1 1/2 eggs is tricky to measure out, although you can keep the remainder to brush the tops with in the morning) but I would make it again as it was a lovely, super quick treat.

Ingredients

• 200g butter , very soft
• 2 tbsp golden caster sugar
• 3 eggs , plus 1 beaten for glazing the next day
• 500g strong white bread flour
• ½ tsp yeast
• 1 tsp salt
• 200ml whole milk

Method

Mix the butter, sugar and eggs in a large bowl – they’ll look a mess rather than coming together nicely.

Add the flour, yeast and salt and pour on the milk. Stir the mixture to make a sticky dough (use you hands if you prefer), cover the bowl and leave somewhere cool for the whole day or overnight.

Heat the oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5. Butter a 12-hole muffin or bun tin. Pull off lumps of dough the size of a clementine (flour your hands if it’s sticky) and form into a ball.

Drop into one of the holes and repeat. Brush the tops with egg and bake for 20 minutes, or until golden and cooked through.

Malteser Brownies

I’ve been a bit flustered recently with one thing and another and in those circumstances I need to keep myself busy, so I’ve been baking up a storm. This doesn’t always mean baking well, the bread I made on friday to calm myself down with some kneading collapsed totally after I let it rise too quickly. However, I like to think I redeemed myself with these brownies.

The recipe is adapted from Lorraine Pascale’s Baking Made Easy which won me second prize at the allotment association show in the summer, her victoria sponge won me a first so thanks Lorraine! Swapping the oreos for maltesers, some of which have been given a good whack with a rolling-pin (very therapeutic) gives the brownies a lovely malty taste as well as leaving nuggets of biscuits in the cooked mixture. They are very rich, but very good and won’t hang around for long!

Ingredients

• 165g  butter, plus extra for greasing
• 200g dark chocolate, grated or finely chopped
• 3 free-range eggs
• 2 free-range egg yolks
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 165g soft light brown sugar
• 2 tbsp plain flour
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• pinch salt
• 150g pack maltesers

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Grease a 20cm/8in square baking tin with butter, then line with baking paper.
• Melt the butter in a pan over a medium heat. When the butter has melted, remove the pan from the heat and add the grated (or chopped) chocolate. Leave to stand for a few minutes, or until the chocolate melts, and then stir together. Alternatively, you can put the chocolate and butter in a bowl and melt in the microwave in 25-second blasts, stirring well each time.
• Whisk the eggs, egg yolks and vanilla together in a large bowl until the eggs begin to get light and fluffy. Add the sugar in two additions, whisking between each. Pour it around the side of the egg mix so as not to knock out the air that has been whisked in. Keep whisking until the mixture becomes stiffer. Once the egg mixture is ready, pour the chocolate into it – again around the sides so as not to knock the air out.
• Open one en of the bag of maltesers and hold it closed so they don’t go every where, place on a hard surface and give the bag a few good whacks with a rolling-pin to break up some of the chocolate.
• Add the flour, cocoa powder, salt and a the malteasers and stir until fully combined, then pour the mixture into the prepared tin. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 25–30 minutes. The middle should be very so slightly gooey. Leave the brownies to cool in the tin.
• Pull the brownies out of the tin and cut into squares.