A week ago, I was invited to have an adventurous opportunity to try out something new I have never ever thought about. The good thing is, it was planned at the place I love, so I decided to ahead with the challenge as I hoped that people out there would rescue me if something goes wrong!
It was the Bread baking event hosted by joesbloggers at Jamie Olivers Cookery School in Westfield with lovely people at Currys PC world and Hotpoint ovens!
Get it!? Jamie Olivers kitchen, first time trying my hand on baking bread, the brand new Hotpoint oven that would look after your bread, so I was too excited to learn some tips and tricks from the session.
Unfortunately, I turned up a bit late to the event and missed out some of the very crucial and tips in bread making!!!! You will witness how important they are later in this post!
I am not a pro baker and never baked bread, we do baking at home just for fun and have never taken it seriously. It is just purely to keep the kids entertained and to bake some little treats for them. However, one of my friends has been talking about home baked bread for quite a while now and though we both wanted to try it, we never had the nerves to kick start it and this was the perfect opportunity to give it a go!
Measurement is always the key point I worry about in Baking , however fortunately, all the ingredients were pre-measured for us to start mixing!
We started off with the white bread loaf which was really simple and easy for beginners and decorated them with Pumpkin seeds to go with the Autumn theme.
Here is the recipe for making a simple white bread loaf -> you might find it handy in the cold winter days – Super fresh, homemade bread – A drive to the supermarket saved!
- Strong flour or wholemeal strong flour - 1kg
- Fresh yeast - 30g
- Salt - 1 teaspoon
- Water - 620 ml of tepid water*
- Seeds to decorate - I used Pumpkin seeds but you can go with varities
- Milk or Egg or Olive oil to give a brush over....
- *Tepid water = Lukewarm water
- Eggwash -> golden brown finish
- Milk wash -> matt&whitish,
- Olive oil wash=seeds won't stick
- Put the flour in a bowl and make a large well in the centre. Pour the (310ml of) tepid water into the well, then add the yeast, salt and stir with a fork.
- Slowly bring in the flour from the inside of the well, being careful not to break the walls of the well. Continue to bring the flour into the centre until you get a stodgy consistency – then add another 310ml of tepid water. Continue to mix until it’s stodgy again, then bring in all the flour, making the mix less sticky. With floured hands bring it together into a ball of dough.
- Knead on a flour-dusted surface for 4 to 5 minutes until you have a silky and elastic dough.
- Flour the top of the dough and place in a bowl, cover with clingfilm and allow it to prove for about half an hour until doubled in size in a warm, moist, draught-free place.
- Once the dough has doubled in size, knock the air out for 30 seconds by bashing it and squashing it. Shape it or flavour it as required – folded, filled, tray-baked – and leave it to prove for a second time for 30 minutes to an hour until it has doubled in size once more.
- Preheat the oven to 200ºC/410ºF/Gas 6. Gently place your dough onto a flour-dusted baking tray and into the preheated oven. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until cooked and golden brown. You can tell if it’s cooked by tapping its bottom – if it sounds hollow it’s done, if it doesn’t then pop it back in for a little longer. Once cooked, place on a rack and allow it to cool for at least 30 minutes.
- - Certain flours need a little more or a little less water so feel free to adjust as necessary.
- - All ovens vary so you may have to adjust the temperature of your oven to get the perfect bake.
It then went into the Hotpoint oven for a wonderful baking cycle!
So… What’s so special about these new Hotpoint ovens!?
- Have you ever experienced uneven baking with your oven!?
- Do you have to hide those burnt portions with excess icing and hope no one notices it!?
- Have you been frustrated of throwing away your effort in the bin as the oven didn’t do what you expected it to do!?
Well, if you have ticked even one of the boxes above, you know it because of the uneven temperature circulated in the oven!, and that’s where the Hotpoint ovens come in for rescue…
The new Hotpoint ovens are designed with Multiflow heat technology and delivers an even temperature throughout your oven for thorough cooking results and ensures that you enjoy baking regardless of whether you are a beginner or a Pro.
Cleaning your oven is hassle free and takes a matter of minutes with the catalytic liners featured on all of the interior walls. Food residue and mess is burnt away while you’re cooking, so all you have to do is wipe away any ash with a damp cloth.
Here is the end result of my effort on baking white bread loaf! I beg you not to laugh too loud though! After all, it is my first attempt and I assure it didn’t make croissant but definitely baked bread!
Don’t judge the book by its cover!!!!! This was rather too tastier than it looked!!!! and proved that appearance is deceptive!!!
Don’t judge the book by its cover!!!!! This was rather too tastier than it looked!!!!
Do you see it looks a bit undressed!? Well, that is because I decided to give it an olive oil wash (as I am the huge fan of olive oil and addicted to its smell) and so …. the seeds decided not to go well with the bread!
Don’t forget the tips….
- Eggwash=Golden Brown finish
- Milk wash=Matt and Whitish
- Olive oil wash=Seeds won’t stick
Thanks to the lovely Sanna from @WavetoMummy for making it clear why my bread looks soooooo undressed!, and sharing the tips.
We also have the opportunity to get our hands on baking a rosemary salt focaccia and a red onion and walnut (doughnut shaped) loaf. They were to take home and eventually disappeared before we got home as Hubby came to get me from Westfield and the kids accompanied him! Do I have to say anything more about the taste!? or…. may be they were too hungry!?
When we finally got to taste the white bread loaf. It was served with the pumpkin soup and cheese fondue! Yummmmm!!!!! and there was Prosecco too… and trust me, I wasn’t too drunk!
The pumpkin soup was delicious and here are some few recipes for you to make use of those Halloween pumpkins! Pumpkin fondue and glorious roasted pumpkin soup recipe!
It was an afternoon well spent (and free from kids!, I think I made less mess than my kids during the baking session) and after all I don’t have to clean up the mess after baking!!!
Here is the picture of the lovely joesbloggers who spent the afternoon learning some good tips on bread baking!
Disclaimer: I was invited to attend the bread baking class at Jamie Olivers Cookery school and wasn’t expected to write anything about it. I just thought it would be lovely to share my experience and the tips I learnt at the lesson with you all.
Some of the pictures are shared by JoesBloggers….
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oh gosh, this looks like such a fun event. Glad you got to make something even though you were running late. Looks good to me ☺
This bread looks delicious! Was it hard to make!?!? I really want to try making my own bread, but I don’t get the part about getting it to rise. Thanks for sharing your tips! I think they will be super helpful! The hotpoint oven sounds great too! I hate that my oven doesn’t heat things evenly!
This sounds like a fun experience!
This looks like so much fun, what a lovely event! I love your review and your bread looks so good 🙂