Hot Cross Bun Inspired Loaf

I like hot cross buns, however they are quite fiddly to make. My least favourite parts of the process are rolling the dough into balls, and piping the cross over. I find the only way to get relatively even sized hot cross buns is to weigh the dough and divide by how many I am making (usually 12). Then rather painstakingly weight out the dough until each ball is about the same weight. I just find it annoying!

Even though the cross on the hot cross buns is quite easy, I do find so many elements can change the look of the cross. How thick has the mixture become (what was the temperature of the water added?), what size hole did I cut in the piping bag? I find I often get varying results even when I’ve made them time and time again. The cross also adds nothing flavour wise so I began wondering why I even bothered with it at all (I understand the point of it re religion, but for me hot cross buns are more about flavour).

This year I decided to make a hot cross bun loaf, which cancelled out a couple of the steps I dislike about making hot cross buns. I have also found the cut up loaf fits much nicer in the freezer, and toasting it in the toaster is much easier than getting the grill going, and having to defrost the buns before that. 

You could of course still pipe a cross over the top before baking, however I chose to sprinkle the loaf with some pear sugar which holds its shape whilst in the oven.

Obviously making anything yeasted and bread based is going to take some time, but if I can cut out a few of the less necessary slightly annoying steps I’m happy. I’m also happy if I can just get my hot cross bun fix around Easter, and for me, they don’t need to be actual buns. 

This recipe is very much based on the vanilla hot cross buns I made a few years ago, so they are decidedly uncitrus-y which is how I like them. You could add mixed peel, or orange zest if you like.

Hot Cross Bun Inspired Loaf

Ingredients: 

100g golden sultanas or raisins (roughly copped if very large)

100g currants

2 tbsp vanilla extract

250ml milk

85g (golden) caster sugar

9g dried yeast

490g plain flour, plus extra

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cardamom

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp mixed spice

3/4 tsp salt

2 eggs

63ml canola, vegetable or sunflower oil, plus extra

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

cooking spray

Pearl sugar, optional 

Method:

In a small bowl place the sultanas and currants. Top with the vanilla extract, then add enough hot water so the fruit is just covered. Set aside. 

In a small saucepan gently heat the milk and 60g of the sugar. Heat until lukewarm, then remove from the heat and mix in the yeast. Leave for 10-15 minutes, or until the yeast has become foamy - if the yeast does not foam, it may be out of date and no longer active, or if the liquid is too hot it may kill the yeast. It is best to discard the liquid and yeast and begin again if this happens.

Place the flour, salt, spices and remaining sugar into a large bowl (one that fits your stand mixer if you have one), and mix together. 

In a jug, whisk together one of the eggs with the oil and the vanilla extract.

Once the yeast is foamy, add to the flour mixture, along with the egg and oil mixture. Mix together with a wooden spoon until a rough dough forms. 

Then attach the bowl to your stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, and knead on a medium speed for about five minutes. The dough will be smooth and a little sticky once done. If the dough is too sticky, add a little more flour (1-2 tbsp). 

While the dough is kneading, lightly oil a large bowl and drain the sultanas and currants well. 

Dust your work surface with flour and tip the dough out. Add the fruit mixture bit by bit and knead by hand to combine into the dough. Add small amounts of flour if necessary to counterbalance any moisture the soaked fruit has added and to make the dough a bit less sticky - the dough will be a bit sticky to touch, but it shouldn’t be really wet. There is no need to knead the dough for too long, as your stand mixer has done most of the work already. 

Place into the oiled bowl and cover. Leave in a warm spot for 1.5 hours, or until the dough has risen and doubled in size. 

Spray a 22 x 10 x 8.5cm (approx.) loaf tin* with the cooking spray. 

Once the dough has risen, very lightly flour your work surface and tip the dough out. Divide the dough into three, and roll each portion into a long strand (about 10-15cm). 

Plait the strands together, ensuring either end is well connected and tucked under if necessary. If the plait has become quite long push it from either end to reduce it’s size (so it will fit into your tin). Place into the prepared tin, cover and leave in a warm spot for about 30 minutes, or until the dough has risen. 

While the dough is rising, preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Once the dough has risen, beat the remaining egg to create an egg wash. Brush the loaf over with some of the egg wash. Then scatter over some pearl sugar.

Bake in the oven for 40 minutes. Check after 20 minutes, and loosely place some foil over the top to prevent the loaf from over browning if necessary. 

The loaf will be ready when it is golden on top, and sounds hollow when gently tapped. Remove from the oven, and place on a wire rack. Leave to cool in the tin for about 20 minutes.

Once the loaf has cooled a little, slide a spatula or flat bladed knife around the edges of the loaf to detach the loaf from the tin if it has stuck. Remove from the tin and allow to cool completely before cutting into about 12 slices. 

Serves 12 (approx. - it will depend on how thickly you cut the slices!). 

*a more bread baking style loaf tin rather than a cake loaf tin (which can be smaller) will work better for this recipe. The loaf tin needs to have fairly high sides to accommodate the bread rising in the oven. If you don’t have a loaf tin big enough, once the loaf is braided place on a lined baking tray for the second proof and then use the egg wash and bake as per the recipe instructions.

Biscoff Hamantaschen

I had this recipe in mind to make at Purim a couple of years ago, and for some reason didn’t get around to it until this year. I originally shared this recipe (if I can really call it that, as it’s just an assembly job) over on Instagram as part of my ‘Year of Everyday Bakes’ series.

As I explained in this post, I am sharing a recipe a week that is simple, easy and could fit into your everyday life. I hope it inspires you to bake a little more without adding any stress to your day.

Hamanstachen are small triangle shaped pastries, some are more biscuit like as these are, while there are other varieties that use a yeasted dough. They are traditionally made and eaten during the Jewish holiday of Purim, and while Biscoff hamantaschen are in no way traditional, like I said they are very easy to make and require much less time than making each element from scratch.

This recipe is very low stress as I am asking you to use bought pastry, though homemade would be lovely too, and Biscoff spread. All pre-made, all easy but most importantly all tasty. You can think of these like a little free form individual tarts if you like (maybe an alternative to a jam tart or similar?), a quick and easy baking project with very tasty results

Biscoff Hamantaschen

Ingredients:

1 sheet shortcrust pastry (approx.435g - I used Careme brand, if you use another brand who make smaller sheets of pastry you made need 2-3 sheets).

1 jar Crunchy Biscoff Spread

1 egg, beaten

Sprinkles, optional

Method:

Line three large baking trays with baking paper.

Leave the pastry on the plastic sheet it comes on, and using a 7.5-8cm round biscuit or scone cutter, cut out rounds of the pastry and place on the prepared trays. Cut out the rounds as close toegtehr as possible, so you have minimal pastry scraps left over.

Re-roll the remaining pastry - you can do this inbetween the plastic sheet the pastry came on so you don’t have to flour your bench or rolling pin - and cut out the remaining pastry.

Brush the beaten egg around the edges of each pastry round (you won’t use all of the egg). Drop teaspoonfuls of the Biscoff spread (no more than 1 tsp per pastry round, you shouldn’t need the whole jar - I used about 3/4 of one jar) into the centre of each pastry round. Then pinch the rounds into triangle shapes, esnure the corners are well sealed. You can brush with more egg if needed. See this post for more detailed instructions on how to fold the hamantaschen* - if you create a smaller hole in the centre and fold your hamantaschen up tigther than what I have done here, it will also help them not break open or spill over in the oven - you can see in the photos some of mine have spilled a little.

Place the trays of hamantaschen in the fridge for at least 30 minutes so the pastry can chill. Do not skip this step - this, along with not overfilling the hamantaschen will help ensure your hamantaschen don’t spill over and loose their shape when baking.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

After at least 30 minutes, remove the trays of hamantaschen from the fridge, sprinkle with sprinkles and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the pastry is golden.

Once removed from the oven you can sprinkle more sprinkles over the hamantaschen for an extra pop of colour. Allow the hamantaschen to cool on their trays.

Hamantaschen will store well in an airtight container for at least 7 days.

Makes about 24 hamantaschen - however this may vary depending on your cutter size and type of pastry used.

*for a great video demonstration of how to fold hamantaschen (plus another great recipe as well as more good hints and tips at making them) check out Lisa Goldberg’s (of the Monday Morning Cooking Club) Walking Up An Appetite YouTube Channel, as she has a great YouTube live video of making hamantaschen that shows how to fold them really well.

Cookbooks Worth Waiting for in 2023 - Part One

It’s a new year, so that means more cookbooks worth waiting for! 

These are the upcoming releases in the first half of 2023 that I am most looking forward to. They are all by authors I have already got books from on my shelves and that previous experience has made me all the more excited that these cookbook authors are bringing out new titles. 

When I originally started writing this list in early January, I could only come up with four titles that I was most looking forward to. Then thankfully prior to when I was planning on posting this, I was reminded of a couple of others and now the list is a rather hefty six! Hopefully amongst the list you will find at least one book to add to your wish list too. 

I’ll be back with a recap of this list once all the books have been released and I’ve had time to have a good look through. Plus another cookbooks worth waiting for list will be on it’s way for the second half of 2023. And just a disclaimer, opinions expressed in my cookbooks worth waiting for series are my own and all books have been purchased by me (links below are just for your reference/further research - links to books on Booktopia removed 15/07/2024). 

Let me know in the comments if any of these cookbooks are on your wish list for 2023, and if not which ones are?

1. Dark Rye and Honey Cake: Festival Baking from the Heart of the Low Countries by Regula Ysewijn (February 2023) - I bought one of Regula’s previous books, ‘Oats in the North Wheat in The South’, about a year ago and I found it so interesting in terms of food history, that I have since also bought ‘Pride and Pudding’ and have preordered ‘Dark Rye and Honey Cake’. Books like these that focus so heavily on the history of food in a particular area, sit at a neat intersection between two of my favourite topics, food and history. They are probably not completely unique in terms of bringing a historical focus to a cookbook, but the fact that it is done so well, with amazing photography (also by the author) and well written too makes Regula’s first two cookbooks really stand out, and gives me no hesitation in feeling like her next will be just as good. Whereas Ruglua’s first two cookbooks are about British food and food history, ‘Dark Rye and Honey Cake’ is about the food of the Low Countries - which consists of Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg . I am particularly interested in this as I can’t think of any cookbook that focuses on the food of this area, and it’s definitely not an area I know very much about (I had to Google what countries the ‘Low Countries’ consists of so that probably says it all regarding my lack of knowledge about this region!). 

2. A Table Full of Love by Skye McAlpine (February 2023) - Similar to Regula’s previous books, I really like Skye’s first two cookbooks. We use ‘A Table for Friends’ regularly (see here for a Off The Shelf post about it), so I am imagining this next book will bring more family favourite recipes to our table. The combination of Skye’s recipes and food styling and photography is always such a joy, I am really looking forward to this new book. 

3. Sweet Enough by Alison Roman (April 2023) - Ok, I have to be honest here. While I am in some way looking forward to this book, I am not looking forward to it as much as I would like. When Alison first announced she had a new book in the works, my mind went straight to all the amazing dinners we’ve had from her recipes (see here for my Off the Shelf post on Nothing Fancy) and the cool savoury recipes she has shared in her newsletter that I have made again and again (A little eggplant Parm I’m looking at you!). I don’t associate Alison’s cooking with much baking or sweet stuff, so I was a little disappointed her next book would solely focus on that. I’m sure based on the quality of her recipes generally, and knack for great flavour combinations, that this book will be good. I just think I need more time (I guess I have until April…) to get over the fact this isn’t the book I thought it would be, and open my mind to the (most likely great) possibility that I will enjoy this book just as much as the two previous ones from Alison.

4. Love is A Pink Cake by Claire Ptak (April 2023) - Claire’s book ‘The Violet Bakery Cookbook’ has been a firm favourite of mine for years, and is one I always recommend when anyone is looking for a book about baking that’s a bit more interesting (check out my Off The Shelf post about it here). I recall seeing on Instagram what feels like ages ago (maybe during 2020?), that Claire was working on a new book, and apparently this one has taken a while to work on, 5 years according to Claire, so it’s really exciting to see a release date for it. I love the title, which is taken from an illustration by Andy Warhol of the same name, and cover image, which is a close up of a pink flower with a yellow centre. It’s a little different from many cookbook covers, which makes me even more intrigued to discover what is inside the book. I am obviously keen to see what recipes this book contains, not only due to the cover, but as I have really enjoyed cooking from Claire’s recipes over the years, and everything she posts on her Instagram for her London bakery Violet looks dreamy. Finally visiting Violet Bakery is quite high on my ‘one day if I ever go to London again’ to do list, so a new book from Claire should do the trick for now.

5. The Flavour Thesaurus More Flavours by Niki Segnit (May 2023) - I discovered Niki’s first book ‘The Flavour Thesaurus’ at a workshop years ago, and I bought it straight away. The premise is that you can look up a flavour and see what other flavours complement it, using Niki’s categorisation of flavours via her flavour wheel. It has remained a great cookbook shelf investment since, especially for someone like me who works as a recipe developer too. A new version of the flavour thesaurus concept isn’t something I thought I needed, but based on how useful Niki’s books are (her book ‘Lateral Cooking’ is also great if you love developing or fiddling around with recipes), I don’t doubt it will be beyond useful in my kitchen. 

6. Heartbake by Charlotte Ree (May 2023) - also a special mention to this part memoir part cookbook by Charlotte Ree, which feels like it will be a deeply personal voyage of life’s tough bits through food. I’ve followed along with Charlotte’s journey of creating this book via Instagram, and I have so appreciated her honesty in sharing how these things come about and how emotional the whole process can be (especially so with a memoir). I am imagining this book to be somewhat in a similar vein to those cookbook/memoirs by Ella Risbridger, but also something quite different from those as well. Sharing a look at a final copy of the book on Instagram, Charlotte showed how the first section of the book is the memoir and the second is the recipes, and with the bright yellow cover I think seeing a copy will make anyone want to pick it up and see what it’s about. Reviews of the early copies of the memoir section distributed by Charlotte have been immensely positive and make me even more keen to see more. 

Ginger Molasses White Chocolate Cookies

I have had this recipe on my mind since before last Christmas. I bought some cookie dough via Pepe Saya, that was a collab between them and Butterboy. Both are business that I really like, and this festive cookie dough sounded perfect for me - brown butter ginger bread. Filled with white chocolate, spices and rolled in sugar this cookie dough added a nice festive cookie hit that lasted well into January as I had frozen the dough and just baked some as I wanted it. 

This cookie dough got me thinking about creating my own version of this cookie. I needed my version to be heavier on the spices and more flavoursome in that respect, and the Pepe Saya x Butterboy cookies were lacking the ginger flavour for me. I have added 2 tsp of ground ginger to my cookies (you can add just 1 tsp if you want a milder flavour), and I also added some chopped stem ginger to add another layer of that ginger flavour. Crystallised ginger would also work well, but this element can also be left out completely if you wish. 

I also made my cookies a smaller size than the Pepe Saya x Butterboy cookies end up being. Butterboy is known for massive cookies, but when I bake my own I like smaller sized cookies so that one cookie doesn’t end up being almost a full meal (and more than one could comfortably be consumed in one sitting). You can play around with what size you’d like to make your cookies, just keep in mind it may alter the cooking time, you will need to leave more space between each on the trays if making them bigger (which may mean cooking in batches) and your yield for the recipe will also differ from what I have specified below.

This recipe will probably be added to my Christmas baking list when the time comes, but I think they are too good not to bake and eat all year round.

Ginger Molasses White Chocolate Cookies

Ingredients:

125g unsalted butter, melted

125g caster sugar

100g dark brown sugar 

2 tbsp molasses

1 egg

280g plain flour

1/2 tsp bicarb soda

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp all spice 

200g white chocolate chips

2 tbsp chopped stem ginger (drained of syrup) or crystallised ginger, optional 

Method:

Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius and line three large baking trays with baking paper.

In a large bowl whisk together the melted butter, sugars, molasses and egg.

Then add the flour, then sift in the bicarb soda and add the spices. Add the chocolate chips and chopped stem ginger (if using), and mix to combine with a wooden spoon.

Place the dough in the fridge for about 20 mins, to allow it to firm up a bit.

Once chilled, roll heaped teaspoonfuls of the dough into balls and place on the trays. The cookies will spread as they bake so leave enough room in between. 

Bake for 12-14 minutes or until the cookies have spread a bit and are golden brown. Rotate the trays in the oven about halfway through to ensure the cookies cook evenly.  

Allow to cool on their trays, then store in an airtight container. 

Makes about 30 cookies.

The Best Cookbooks of 2022

Fortunately for people like me (and maybe you too if you are reading this?!), 2022 was another great year for cookbooks. I have created a slightly more succinct list this time to round out what I thought were the best cookbooks of 2022. This list is by no means exhaustive, and is very much based on my personal opinion right now. 

I toyed with adding more books to the list, but if I didn’t give myself a limit I’d never finish writing it. 

So below are my top four. A diverse selection, but all ones I think would make great additions to your cookbook shelf (or shelves… let’s be honest here!). 

As always the links to the books are not sponsored, just for your reference. Links to books on Booktopia removed 15/07/2024.

Let me know in the comments what you think of my selections, and what books would be on your personal list for the best books of 2022?

1. The Joy of Better Cooking by Alice Zaslavsky - How could I not include this book on this list? It delights and surprises in the best possible way, and maybe one of the few books I genuinely think would delight the majority of people regardless of their cooking abilities. It’s bright, colourful and joyful - just like Alice seems herself! So it really feels like you are getting Alice in your kitchen explaining things and encouraging you to be an enthusiastic cook and eater.

2. Mabu Mabu by Nornie Bero - When I first mentioned this book on my blog, I said after reading this book Nornie’s restaurant was on my list of placed to go whenever I next went to Melbourne. I ended up going to Melbourne in December of 2022 and unfortunately a migraine attack thwarted my attempt to eat there (as so often happens). So now it’s still on my list for next time which is disapointing, but ‘Mabu Mabu’ the book can certainly keep me company until then. It looks like lots from the restaurant is in the book, and coupled with the really informative ‘The Native Pantry’ section which helpfully explains many Indigenous ingredients and the list of where such ingredients may be found, ‘Mabu Mabu’ really gives a great experience of what (I imagine) eating at Nornie’s restaurant would be like. I also really enjoy the colourful design of the book and the images are glorious as well.  This is definitely a cookbook for every Australian kitchen. 

3. A Good Day to Bake by Benjamina Ebeuhi - I know I’ve sung Benjamina’s praises for this book already, but I really do love it. I am still so enjoying the use of flavour in this book and I really just love that it stands out from many other baking books because of that. Sometimes when I get a new book that is just about baking, I feel it gives me a sense of de ja vu to many other baking books I already own or have seen. ‘A Good Day to Bake’ doesn’t do that at all (even when I already own Benjamina’s first book) and it’s just so refreshing to see something a bit different, a bit interesting, yet not overly complex or intimidating. This book has a really calm vibe and it, along with the lovely photography, makes me lose time wandering through the book and contemplating what I could bake next. 

4. Nistisima by Georgina Hayden - I think only Georgina could make me like a book essentially about vegan food, and it be so good, I would have to include it on this list. Georgina’s enthusiasm for food is infectious and the research behind this book really makes it shine. This book isn’t just about vegan cooking for the sake of it, but documents the recipes and traditions from many countries when those following the Orthodox Church observe much time during the year where they fast and abstain from foods using animal products (thus they are eating vegan). I found this perspective a really interesting way to view a particular diet, as to me, it looks like those engaged in this form of eating enjoy everything, just not all at once, so their diet would probably end up quite balanced overall rather than constantly restrictive. And based on the recipes in this book the potentially restrictive nature of eating nistisima food (fasting foods) is not obvious at all. If you saw the recipes without knowing the context of the book, I doubt it would be obvious at first glance that it was a vegan book. As Georgina says in her introduction, this book isn’t a religious or diet book, and she’s not interested in telling anyone how to live or eat - “this book is for everyone…Why and how you use this book is up to you.” 

Cookbooks Worth Waiting for in 2022 Part Two - A Recap

These were the new release cookbooks I was most looking forward to in the second half of 2022, you can read the original list here. Now that I have (almost) all of them, and had some time to read through them, it’s time for a recap of the list.

Just a note - The links to the books are for reference only and are not sponsored, I’ve just included where I bought them from or where I wish I had bought them from! Though its always best to search around for the best price as it can vary depending on when you are buying as well. Links to books on Booktopia removed 15/07/2024.

Did any of these books get a place on your bookshelf last year? What did you think of them? Let me know in the comments below. 

1. Pasta Grannies Comfort Cooking by Vicky Bennison - If you loved the first Pasta Grannies book, or just love pasta this is the book for you. This time Pasta Grannies ventures into some rice based dishes, pizzas and desserts too, so there is slightly more variety in the recipes compared with the first book. The stories of the grannies are just as heat warming as the first book, and the photography is just as excellent too. I realised when reading this book, that is one of the few I have looked through of late that isn’t focused on the author themselves. Vicky Bennison is showcasing the food of others, preserving recipes and writing down the history of peoples everyday lives. There is something genuinely comforting about that, and by the success of Vicky’s first book (she won a James Beard Award for it!), and the popularity of the related Pasta Grannies You Tube channel, many others must feel the same.

2. Home Is Where The Eggs Are by Molly Yeh - the Australian release of this book has been very delayed, and I still don’t have my preordered copy :( I will add my thoughts here once it arrives!

Update (May 2023) - I have now had Molly’s book for a little while, and it is pure joy which is what I have come to expect from her. I love the colour scheme, and the fact that this book feels typically ‘Molly’ but has just evolved to suit her different phase of life (in comparison to her first book which was pre kids for her and her husband). The focus on family food and things that can be made more quickly is noticeable, but not in a way that excludes people who don’t relate to that part of Molly’s life. The illustrations scattered about the book are delightful, and I really like the food photography as well. Molly’s style of cookbook is very different to the usual American style cookbook, that always feel very different to their European, British and Australian counterparts. I’ve noticed many US based cookbooks utilise a really different style of food photography that looks like artificial light and flash is used and everything can be quite intensely bright and over exposed. Molly’s aesthetic is the total opposite to this. It is calm, yet vibrant, and the images have noticeable shadow creating depth and clearly utilising natural light that really makes the food sing.

3. Home Food by Olia Hercules - When I first got this book, I wasn’t super impressed with it. Looking back I think it was more because I had preordered it from Booktopia, then once the book was released it took them ages to actually ship it to me. It was annoying, and I think it created more frustration than excitement around getting a new book. Now it’s been a few months since then, and I can see it really was the general frustration impairing my view of Home Food. At first I struggled to find recipes I wanted to make, now I’m not sure how all the recipes I’d like to try didn’t stand out to me back then. Many recipes are influenced by Olia’s Ukrainian heritage, and others from her time living in Cyprus, Italy and the UK. This book encapsulates what comfort food means to Olia, and she explains it so well in the longer form writing in the book. The photography by Olia’s husband Joe Woodhouse is also excellent and combined with her writing makes a wonderful book to pursue through (once you’re over the initial frustrating shipping delays of course!). In terms of cover design for once I think the US cover is nicer than the UK/Australian one, but really, that doesn’t detract from all the goodness that is inside.

4. Persiana Everyday by Sabrina Ghayour- As I expected these recipes look like they are flavourful and will bring a bit of Persian cooking to your kitchen. In the introduction Sabrina, says her style of cooking has changed more recently as she is now married with two step sons. She says she now gets the need for quick tasty meals and this book is a product of that. I think this is a good book for those looking for a different take on the meals you might want to make midweek, as the recipes don’t look overly fussy and you might try a few new flavours along the way. The photography is also nice in this book, with an image per recipe, plus I just really enjoy the vibrant cover design and the embossed pistachios on the cover.

5. The Joy of Better Cooking by Alice Zaslavsky - This cookbook really is joyful, and as I’ve said before it is just trademark Alice. This book positions itself to help you in the kitchen, but it also has things for those more experienced too. It seems to be able to cater for everyone, I think because Alice really walks the reader through each recipe is very generous with her cooking knowledge and explanations, but the recipes themselves aren’t those super basic things that more experienced cooks may wonder why they bothered with the book at all. The recipes are interesting, and might even challenge the generally favoured flavour and technique profiles of more experienced cooks. For some more info about the book and Alice’s cooking style more generally, you can check out the her segments on ABC News Breakfast (on iView or have a look at Alice’s Instagram as she shares them there as well).