discovering a simpiler life

discovering a simpiler life

Sunday 5 July 2015

In my kitchen July 2015

It's July...only 5 months til Christmas can you believe it!!  We are in the full swing of winter here and my oh my it has been brisk.  Perfect weather for the oven and I've been bitten hard by the sour dough bug this past month, so get ready for lots of bread!  I'm hooking up with 
Celia from Fig Jam and Lime cordial along with hundreds of other food obsessed bloggers from around the world.  If you love to see what's in other peoples kitchens, pop over to Celia's blog and get stalking!
I'll have to apologise for the exposure of some of the picutres - firstly I had to resell my new camera as it just didn't do what I hoped (rookie error!!) so it's back to my phone and secondly it's so dim in my kitchen and it gets dark so early :( but anyway,
 grab a cuppa or a wine and settle in cause here we go.....
I'll admit, I've been crocheting over blogging due to a few orders for my 
granny stripe blanket.  I'm halfway through this one now and am loving it just as much as the first one.  
In my kitchen has been a steady stream of Jerusalem artichokes and parsnips.  
In my kithchen, I've been crushing on this coconut yoghurt - delicious!
In my kitchen has been lots of cos and mint - I had it this day with fried rice, a dry fried egg and wrapped it up in the cos - yummy healthy lunch.  I've been trying to increase my leafy greens and fresh vegetable intake.
In my kitchen has been lots of soup for lunch too, especially this prawn chowder  - I blanch a mix  of freshly picked beetroot leaves, kolrabi leaves, kale and spinach to top this off as a vitamin power house.  I sometimes also add a poached egg to my soups to give it that extra protein hit and they add a natural creaminess to them if you keep the yolk runny.

In my kitchen has been lots of sourdough and changes to my sour dough.  This starter above is from a dear friends which must be around 15 years old now.  I did experiment with this starter some time ago which you can read about here but to be honest, I didn't quite gel with the length of time needed to get to the final product and I killed her.  This is a new one that I hope to keep going alot longer.  There seemed to be so many steps and seeing as I'm an instinctive baker rather than a chronic step follower ( such a rebel :) ) 
I searched for a way that would be more a kin to my favourite no knead bread
I did lots and lots and lots of reading online but finally found what I was looking for.
Enter my new 100% hydration starter that contains the original starter.  
Isn't she beautiful!  
I just naturally feel like it's more 'alive' and gets quite bubbly when left in the fridge.  Basically it's 100gm starter, 100gm water(weigh on scales) , 100g flour.  I feed her once a week, and/or the day before I want to bake a loaf or two.  I can do it all the night/afternoon before and bake it the next morning - perfect!
Here are some of the useful blogs I used to get to where I am now.  
Celia's overnight sour dough - this is the recipe I now use - I do halve it sometimes to just make one loaf.
Johanna's take on Celia's overnight sour dough - Johanna has lots of helpful tips and things she has discovered on her sour dough and bread learning curve.  Thanks for all your work Johanna.
Celia's bread section on her blog - this has been a great find.  Celia is very passionate about her bread making and has taken the time to document lots of different types.  Thank you Celia for taking the time to explain this mystery in wonderful terms and taking the fear out of it and for feeding my passion!
I fed my new starter a few times over the course of 5 days.  I did want to make 2 loaves so I needed to double my starter.  To do this you need to start a few days before baking. I took off 150g of starter (discard the rest) and added the same amounts of water and flour(150g). I left it out on the bench for 4-5 hours in a warm spot, then that night I took off 300g starter (discard the rest...you could use it to make another starter to give to a friend or bake with it) and added the same amounts of water and flour (300gm of each).  I then popped her into the fridge.  

The following day after lunch I then started Celia's recipe:

300g starter (it should be bubbly)
570g water (I used filtered or from the kettle)
18g salt
1kg flour
Mix together and leave out for 30 minutes.  Knead for a minute or 2 and then pop on the bench til the morning.
 I used Wallaby bakers flour (I've also had great success with the Laucke crusty white bread pre-mix Mr. GW accidentally brought but it has the salt in it.  
I ideally wouldn't want to use this as my go to flour as it has 
other preservatives in it)  Don't forget to take off 100g starter to keep :)
Above is the bread that resulted - not bad but not great.  5 days later I started again...but with much better results
This is the dough after it has been out on the bench over night.
Very gently tip the dough onto a floured surface and cut in half.  Lightly dust with flour and lightly shape, if at all actually as you want to keep all that air in there.  Your oven should be on as high as it can go and put camp oven or casserole dish to heat up for at least 15 minutes.  Make sure you have a piece of greaseproof baking paper on the bottom of your vessel.
Taking care to take the camp oven out of the oven, gently place your dough in and snip the top with sharp kitchen scissors or a razor and whack the lid on.  After 30 minutes take the lid off and turn your oven down to 180c.
And this is what you should have 30 minutes later.

These loaves where fantastic.  I think the main difference between this lot and the first ones is that the starter has had more feeds and time to settle in.  I was also gentler and didn't knead/shape this batch.  I can't tell you how happy this makes me.  I really have a big passion for bread baking now and never get tired of the loaves coming out of the oven.  I never thought I'd get such pleasure from something I though would be so hard and I'd never be able to do.  Just goes to show you where having a go and not worrying about the failures can lead you.

So that's me for this month.  
Thanks for taking the time to stop by, your comments are greatly loved and appreciated.  I'm now off to see what's happening in everyone else's kitchen this month.

Ciao, Jan x

37 comments :

  1. Soup is a staple in our house right now and my starter is in the freezer hibernating for winter. Wishing I could get Jerusalem artichokes here :)

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    1. I wish I could send you some Tandy - we have loads of them!!! xxx

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  2. Hi Jan, what camera did you end up buying that was no good for you? Also what do you think is the difference in this sourdough loaf vs the NYT No Knead Bread? Sadly I still haven't picked up my crochet rug even though it's sitting on the couch. I know once I start I'll be right again...still need to just do it. Kathy

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    1. Hey Kathy, the camera was a sony cybershot but I got the wrong model so I couldn't do soft focus etc....The only difference with the sourdough and the NYT NKB is that is using sour dough and not instant yeast and the measurements of course, otherwise thats the only difference. Hahaha I can't wait to see your rug!!!! xxx

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    2. You might be waiting a while longer for the rug....I'm sure I will be making bread before the rug is finished!! I would suggest a lower end DSLR body plus the 50mm f1.8 lens and you will be in business. That lens is only about $120-140 and if you get a body with it you will be able to do what you want. Check out Cameras Direct (online....they are at the Gold Coast) and I have bought all my camera gear from them in the last 6 years.

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    3. You are a love, thanks Kathy for that I'll check them out xxx

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  3. A very nice look into your kitchen Jan! Good luck with your sourdough adventures too :D

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  4. Wow your bread is going great guns! Do you let it prove again after turning it out from bowl? I think m sometimes a bit too heavy handed with mine :( Isn't it wonderful that people are so generous with sharing their skills?

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    1. I usually let it prove while I let the oven heat up, so around 20 minutes is all. Yes, we are so lucky that people take the time to share what they have learnt!

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  5. Hi Jan, Your bread looks great. Well done!! I also love your crochet blanket - they are so homely, aren't they?

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  6. Hi Jan, Your bread looks great. Well done!! I also love your crochet blanket - they are so homely, aren't they?

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  7. Hi Jan - Your bread came out beautifully! It looks absolutely perfect. I've never tried a bread that involves using a starter. Where do you get the first bit of starter from?
    Fabulous blanket. I love the colors

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    1. Hi Susan, I was given my sourdough starter but you can make one - there are lots of information online - it's not hard just a bit of time is all but so worth it. x

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  8. I always love having a look into your kitchen Jan. Well done with the sourdough, it is truly a labour of love. It has been a long time since I have done this and this is motivating. Thanks for the reminder and the recipe :)

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    1. You are a love Jem, thanks :) and I love you visiting! x

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  9. Crocheting always reminds me of my mum! Your prawn dish looks amazing and I can almost smell your bread from here!
    Thanks for this month's kitchen view also!

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  10. Wonderful looking loaves of bread. It's always fun to play around with sourdough. I think it's time for me to experiment a little more. Your soups look and sound delicious as well. It is incredibly hit here now during our summer but we still had roasted tomato soup recently as I have so many tomatoes in the garden!

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    1. Thanks Gretchen, I'm loving playing around with it. Enjoy those tomatoes you lucky duck, ours are now only a memory and I'm already dreaming of our summer crop as the supermarket tomatoes are terrible!! Jan x

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  11. Your bread looks amazing. I also buy that yoghurt. The plain coconut one is really good in Indian butter chicken curries. I love Jerusalem artichokes and parsnips! xx

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    1. Great tip about using the yoghurt for the curry Charlie, thanks!

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  12. crochet, chowder and fresh bread is just the sort of cosy post I need to read on a cold night. I am pleased you found my post on the overnight sourdough useful. I have been making that bread regularly for months and it really is easy once I remember to take the starter out of the fridge. Your bread looks really lovely.

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    1. Thanks so much Johanna, I made the sour dough again this morning and it's just heavenly x

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  13. What do you do with your artichokes? They have an adverse effect on Rich so I don't cook with them!!! I've lost my touch with the sourdough lately I need to get back into it when I get home - I make the half size one too.

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    1. Hey Nancy, I roast the artichokes whole in coconut oil is one of my faves but also make a soup with them - have a look at the alphabetical list on the right of my page and you can look under Jerusalem artichokes for the recipe...they can give you lots of wind but if you just take it easy and don't over indulge I find them fine. xxx

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  14. Yes, well there's a reason why I take photos outside in my garden. The light in my kitchen is shocking so I hope after my renovation, things will improve. Hard to take a photo in the garden when it's raining! Love Jerusalem artichokes but not such a fan of the parsnip.

    Thanks for the tour

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    1. Sadly the light issue is putting me off taking photos Fiona, at this rate I'll have none for next months instalment!! x

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  15. ooh i love coyo yoghurt too! I make my own yoghurt but the coconut one is never quite right. Love the bread too! Such a good IMK this month

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  16. Such fun, I love the 'In my Kitchen' posts. And Jan, it seems your kitchen is loaded with many a goodie. Especially your sourdough. I have vile memories of failing dreadfully last attempt at making me some sourdough, so I applaud anyone that can bake something that doesn't look like a brick that would kill if thrown at anyone. #tangent

    Happy weekend. :)

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    1. hahaha thanks Anna :) I think you should definately give the sour dough another go!!!!

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  17. I googled how to roast a whole scotch fillet and your recipe from 2013 came up. Have even grabbed huge handful of herbs to put on top as you mentioned. Not ready yet but sure smells beautiful.
    Lol will now spend rest of night looking through your recipes and fantastic blog pages.
    Ruth - Australia

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    1. I hope you enjoyed the recipe Ruth - I still make that whole scotch fillet, so easy and delicious!! thanks for stopping by and hope you find some other inspiration here :) Jan x

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  18. wow i love your crochet. how pretty. very clever are you:) i think it is marvellous how everyone is doing all this bread baking. i just wish i liked bread enough to spend all that time making it:)

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  19. Thanks Sherry :) I actually hardly eat the bread but I just get so much pleasure out of making it. My husband, family and friends are happy of course!! x

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